A sudden health issue can cause stress and confusion for any person. In this situation, people are unaware of any solution and visit the first point of help for them i.e. primary care physician. The doctor who helps people and provides both medical and emotional support, and treats their health issues.
Primary care physicians who specialize in treating patients of all ages are called family physicians. It is a common practice to visit a family physician whenever a health issue arises. But it is important to understand what the real role of a family physician is, and what type of treatment and care they can provide to patients. So, in this blog, we will explore family physicians and their importance in our healthcare system.
Who is a Family Physician?
A Family Physician is a doctor who provides general care, diagnosis, and treatment to patients of all ages. These are the first point of contact whenever a patient feels discomfort, mild illness, or needs a general checkup or emergency treatment. Family Physicians are also commonly known as family doctors, family practitioners, and general physicians. They treat and provide preventive care to patients, including children and adults. A family doctor is such a necessary health professional and a report by Health Resources and Services Administration highlighted that in 2022, 107,536 number of family doctors were providing their services in the USA.
Difference Between Primary Care Physicians and Family Physicians
People often confuse primary care physicians and family physicians. However, family physician is a subspecialty of primary care medicine. Primary care physicians are general physicians who provide holistic health support to people. They diagnose, treat, and provide care for the health conditions of all patients. But in medical terms, the primary care physician is categorized on the basis of their field of specialization. Some of which are as follows:
- Family medicine
- Internal medicine
- Pediatrics
- Obstetricians and gynecologists OB/GYN
- Geriatrics
Family Medicine
Doctors specializing in family medicine become family physicians. They treat patients of all ages, including babies, adults, and children. One thing that makes them different from other physicians is that they provide care and treatment to multiple members of the family. A family usually goes to the doctor for a general checkup, and over the years, their children will also visit the same doctor for any treatment. Therefore, these physicians are known as ‘family physicians’.Family medicine is one of the specialties of primary care physicians, and doctors in this practice provide their services as family physicians.
Primary care physicians who specialize in family medicine are one of the most essential doctors in our healthcare system. They diagnose and treat a variety of patients every day and keep the doctor-patient relationship strong in the healthcare industry.
Family doctors can find many good opportunities in different healthcare settings. However, these doctors, instead of doing their own job search, take the help of health staffing agencies to find job opportunities in hospitals and clinics. Additionally, these agencies also offer benefits to family doctors who secure job offers through their services.
Suggested Read: What are the Pros of Getting Hired Through a Staffing Agency?
What Conditions and Diseases Do Family Physicians Treat?
Family physicians sit in almost every corner of the city, providing their services to all patients. No diagnosis and treatment moves forward without their consultation first. After that, they guide patients on what their health problem is and whether they need to book an appointment with a specialist. So, on a daily basis, a family physician provides consultation for the following conditions:
Common Cold and Flu
Family physicians provide their care to patients suffering from the common cold and the flu. They treat both seasonal and infectious cold and flu in patients, including children and adults.
Infections
Infections are of different types such as bacterial, viral, fungal, and parasitic infections. These different types of infections can cause mild to serious medical conditions. For example, a viral infection can cause different conditions like the common cold, flu, chicken pox, measles, and Hepatitis viruses (A, B, C, D, and E).
General Injuries/Wounds
Patients suffering from injuries or wounds need immediate care from a doctor. They often quickly visit the family physician to get immediate treatment. The doctor treats the patient’s wounds and prescribes medicines to alleviate the patient’s condition. If the injury appears serious or can lead to further issues, the family physician advises patients to see a specialist.
Preventive Care
In many cases, patients often feel discomfort or suffer from a health issue due to poor lifestyle and habits. In this case, the family physician also helps the patients by providing preventive care. They advise patients to keep a healthy lifestyle and diet to prevent diseases in the future. For example, a person with poor lifestyle and eating habits can take the advice of the family physician to avoid diabetes in the near future. The doctor will guide them to exercise and undertake a healthy diet plan to keep the condition at bay. Thus, the patient keeps their health optimum under the doctor’s advice.
Care for Chronic Conditions
Family physicians provide care for chronic conditions like heart disease, diabetes, obesity, respiratory issues, and joint problems. They can’t provide proper treatments for these conditions, but they can help patients manage their health so their conditions don’t become worse.
Read More: Physician vs Surgeon: What Is the Difference?
What Types of Treatments Do Family Physicians Provide?
Patients often visit their nearest family physicians and undergo a checkup of their health condition. Normally, these family physicians are enough to provide a solution to patients’ health problems, but it is important to understand what treatments these family doctors can provide and what their limitations are in terms of treatments and consultation as compared to a specialist:
Annual Checkups
Annual checkups are routine-based checkups that people undergo twice or three times a year. They consult their family doctor, and they run a complete health checkup to diagnose any condition before it becomes worse. These annual checkups ensure that people stay in the best health possible.
Screen Health Tests
If a patient feels discomfort or a health-related problem, the family physicians help diagnose it. They run several health tests and try to find the health issues. The health scans help family doctors understand the issues, prescribe treatment for them, or refer the patient to see a specialist for complete treatment.
Prescribes Medicines
The role of the family physician is to provide immediate care and guidance to patients when they need medical care. So, patients visit the family doctor for a medical checkup, and based on the diagnosis of the condition, the family doctor prescribes them medicines to treat the condition.
Prescribe and Administer Vaccines
Some health conditions like viral flu, hepatitis, and vaccines for newborns are available at the family physician’s clinic. They prescribe these vaccines and even inject patients and babies by themselves.
In these cases, people can take a vaccine right away from the clinic of a family doctor. They can prescribe vaccines to children and adults. However, family doctors are only allowed to give general vaccines to people and patients. Vaccines for flu, tetanus, and shingles are commonly available at the clinic of the family physician.
Assess Family Disease History
The role of a family physician is to properly guide patients for preventive care regarding their conditions or diseases. As a part of their treatment and guidance, they also choose to discuss the history of family diseases with the patients. This helps them understand the conditions or diseases that run in the genes of the family in question. By assessing all these family diseases, doctors can guide patients to take preventive measures to keep their health condition stable. It also helps patients avoid any further serious health problems.
Refers to Specialists
Family doctors have the duty to treat patients with general health conditions. However, they are not the right doctors to consult if a patient suffers from a serious medical condition or disease. Therefore, a patient might visit the family physician when they feel unwell. But if the condition seems serious, the family physician refers patients to see specialists for proper treatment.
When Should You See A Family Physician?
It is clear that a family doctor is just one step away from providing immediate care and medical guidance to people. However, it is important to know when you should see the family physician and take their care and treatment to manage the health conditions on time. So, the following are some of the signs or symptoms that cause patients to visit the family doctor:
Signs of infections
Different types of infections need immediate treatment from the family doctor. Signs for respiratory infections include pain or discomfort in the throat, headache, and nasal congestion. Similarly, for skin infections or allergies, the patient might feel intense itchiness or redness. After experiencing these signs, patients should immediately see their family doctor.
Pain in the Body
Sometimes patients might feel new or unexplained pain in their muscles or bones. Now, the patient is still unaware of the reason for the pain in their body. In this case, a visit to the family physician for immediate medical care is the best decision. They will not only resolve the pain problem but may also refer the patient to see a particular specialist for diagnosis.
Side Effects of Medicine
All medicines have potential side effects. Some patients might get side effects from a medicine, and in that case, they need immediate care from a doctor. Patients can visit the family physician for treating medication side effects.
Questions About Treatment Plan
Family physicians are not just for providing treatment to mild conditions; they can also be trusted with guiding patients about the treatment plans for certain conditions. So, before starting any medications, patients ask all the relevant questions about the treatment plan prescribed by their family doctor.
Career Path to Become a Family Physician
Do you know that in 2023, about 75,020 family physicians were providing their services through private offices. This report by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that a family doctor is a successful profession. For anyone interested in this field, they should follow the following steps to become a family physician:
Enroll in a Bachelor’s Degree
The first step is to take admission in a bachelor’s degree. The undergraduate degree in medical sciences helps students gain basic knowledge of biology and the human body. The medical bachelor’s degree takes four years. Students then have to pass the MCAT exam to get into medical school.
Join A Medical School
After successfully passing the MCAT exam, students get admission to the medical school to study their doctoral program. It is a four-year degree program, and the first two years involve learning the anatomy of the body. The remaining two years focus on clinical rotations in the desired specialization of the students. To become a family physician, students specialize in family medicine.
Complete Residency Period
After completing medical school, students have to pass a residency period. In this stage, students have to work under real doctors and provide treatment and care to patients, and should learn a broad range of experience in treating patients. It helps them gain all the knowledge and practice of their specialization.
Pass Specialty Board Certification
The last step in the career pathway for family physicians is to pass the specialty board certification of the American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM). This is the state-approved exam in which the emerging family doctors have to demonstrate the best of their knowledge about their specialization. After passing this exam, students become family physicians and can independently practice in hospitals and clinics.
Connecting Family Physicians with Opportunities
A family physician is a primary healthcare professional who is always there to help patients with immediate care. Due to their broad range of medical specialties, they not only treat patients but almost all members of a family recognize them, which is why they conveniently become the family doctors for us. For mild conditions or managing long-term disease care, family doctors should be your advisor to get safe treatment as early as possible.
Family physicians work in a variety of medical settings. If you need help finding the best opportunities as a family doctor, then consult Intuitive Health Services. It is a premium healthcare staffing agency that can help you locate the best job family physician opportunities in the USA.
