March 2023

Call it a checkup, a physical or a wellness exam — an annual visit to your primary care physician is the number one best way to be proactive about your health. Many people only visit the doctor after symptoms begin to develop. But taking the initiative to see them even when you feel fine is an important part of maintaining your good health and catching potential issues early on.

Here are a few reasons why you should schedule your wellness exam today:

Preventative Care

Wellness exams are designed to catch potential health issues before they become a bigger problem. For example, a blood pressure health screening can detect hypertension, a leading risk factor for heart disease. Cholesterol screenings can gauge if blood sugar is healthy or near early diabetic levels. By monitoring for certain underlying conditions early, you and your doctor can work together to prevent them from affecting your health, plus stay up to date on when — and how often — you should schedule your screenings.

Early Detection

Catching health issues early aims to identify disease at the earliest possible point before it can progress into something more serious. For example, if you have an abnormal mole, a skin exam can detect it early and prevent it from turning into skin cancer. In the event cancer is detected, early detection greatly increases your chances of a successful diagnosis and treatment outcome. Taking the time to schedule one wellness visit a year can make this the main differentiator in staying healthy.

Establishing a Relationship With Your Healthcare Provider

Having a regular healthcare provider or primary care physician can be beneficial for many reasons. They can get to know you, evaluate your lifestyle habits and review your medical history, which can help them make more informed decisions about your care. It’s also a great time to ask your healthcare provider any questions you may have about your health, enabling them to provide you with guidance and support throughout your health journey. 

It Helps Create a Baseline of Health

Staying accountable and actionable about your health starts with your wellness visit and continues with the healthy habits you make every day. After vetting your health info and talking about ways to improve your health, your primary care physician may work with you to create an action plan. Do you need to quit smoking? Exercise more? Eat healthier? Make other lifestyle changes to avoid turning to medication and/or lowering the risk of chronic conditions? It’s a chance to be proactive about your choices and track your health progress every year with every visit.

Keeping Your Vaccinations and Medical Records Updated

Given the COVID-19 pandemic that swept the world, we’ve become more conscious than ever before about getting vaccinated to protect ourselves from new and emerging diseases that can affect not only ourselves, but our loved ones and others, too. Keeping up with regular physicals and wellness exams keeps you on point to making sure all your vaccinations recommended by your doctor are up to date. 

It’s Cost-Effective

Regular wellness exams can save you money in the long run. Not only can detecting certain health issues early prevent costly medical treatment bills, but also, many insurance plans cover the cost of checkups and wellness exams — a cost-friendly way to maintain your health for years to come. And if you don’t have health insurance at the moment or coverage including wellness visits, many doctors’ offices and clinics offer affordable or discounted billing plans.

Schedule a Wellness Exam With Richfield Medical Group

At Richfield Medical Group, we strive to create a collaborative, accessible healing environment where fun, passionate people thrive and excel at improving and sustaining health. Your health starts with you, and working with your doctor to schedule an annual wellness visit is a great way to make healthier choices, prevent illness and start taking charge of your own health outcomes. 

Ready to request an appointment and start your health journey with us? Start by contacting us today.