Doctor Question - Advice please!

lunasmom

lunasmom

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I'm in the midst of picking a primary doctor (for physical checkup) and a point of contact in general.

Should I go with a family/general doctor or a internal medicine doctor?
 
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liza24

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i would go with a general practitioner. you can always be referred to a specialist as needed.
 
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lunasmom

lunasmom

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Thanks...that's what I was thinking...i.e. if I decide to slice off my thumb, then how would that involve internal medicine (other than me bleeding).

I just want to check and make sure.
 
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pee-cleaner

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If you are generally healthy, a family practitioner is fine. If, however, you have any kind of chronic illness, such as diabetes, severe asthma, etc, an internal medicine doctor would be more appropriate.
 
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strange_wings

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GP, and try to find one you feel comfortable with and who is someone that will listen to you.
Depending on insurance, you may or may not need referral before going to specialists but it's nice to have a doctor to write the referral if needed.
 
carolpetunia

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My own experience has been that internal medicine doctors are often more knowledgeable and more current than GPs. I just switched away from a GP who was wonderful on a personal level, but who had given me inaccurate information on several occasions. Now I have an internal medicine doctor, and it's very clear that he's much better trained and more insightful.

Of course, this could just be the difference between these two people, rather than a function of their areas of practice... but I think an internal medicine doctor might be the better choice.
 
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lunasmom

lunasmom

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Originally Posted by CarolPetunia

My own experience has been that internal medicine doctors are often more knowledgeable and more current than GPs. I just switched away from a GP who was wonderful on a personal level, but who had given me inaccurate information on several occasions. Now I have an internal medicine doctor, and it's very clear that he's much better trained and more insightful.

Of course, this could just be the difference between these two people, rather than a function of their areas of practice... but I think an internal medicine doctor might be the better choice.
Click to expand...
I think its more the method they were trained for. I looked up "Internal Medicine vs. Family Doctor" and basically is said that the internal medicine looks at your body functioning from the inside. The GP looks at your body for psychosis view.

I do have PPO so I don't have to worry about needing a referral.

I was just asking because it seems for every GP here, there are 5 IMs. So I was wondering if this was a new trend in the doctor world and if they were used interchangeably.
 
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