Why is it Important to Have a Primary Care Doctor?

Do you have a primary care doctor? If not, you might want to consider finding one.

Specialty doctors are exactly that, they have a specialty focus. But with a primary care doctor, people can talk about anything.

"I wanted a primary care doctor because I hadn't seen one since I was 14 years old, and I needed to see somebody because I knew I had something wrong with me, and I just needed to figure out what was wrong," Elizabeth Lookabaugh said.

She said a friend recommended Ayesha F. Cheema, M.D., a primary care doctor and medical director of Mercy Personal Physicians at Ellicott City, and it has been a great relationship so far.

"We actually touch base on my thyroid condition every once in a while, we see each other every six months, and we touch base on that, we touch base on my migraines, we touch base on pretty much everything that I have wrong," Lookabaugh said.

According to Dr. Cheema, that's the thing about primary care, the topics are endless.

"Talking about screenings, what is age-appropriate, vaccinations age-appropriate, health screenings, additionally you can talk about important things like mental health. A lot of women do not discuss their concerns regarding anxiety or depression or any change in mood, which might impact their health in general," Dr. Cheema said.

You can also ask questions about your sexual health, chronic health conditions, family genetic health, and even nutrition, to name a few topics. Dr. Cheema added that open communication is key, and Lookabaugh said nothing is off limits.

"She's like a best friend, it's really nice, we talk about anything, we talk about my business, we talk about our cats or everything, it's pretty nice," Lookabaugh said.

It's recommended, for a healthy person, to visit a primary care provider at least once a year.

View Mercy primary care physician Dr. Ayesha Cheema's interview regarding choosing your primary care doctor.