About a year ago, I
changed my primary care physician. My previous doctor, one of my college
roommates, had a practice on the other side of town that over the years became
a life-risking drive depending upon the time of day of my appointment. Sometimes
the half-hour trip to her office turned into a nightmarish two hours of stopped
traffic due to accidents on the highway. Then after my last visit, my car ended
up being shoved from the rear (no damage) by an inattentive driver.
After that
experience, I decided to change to my mother’s internist. His office, walking
distance from our house, means my blood pressure checks out normal at each
visit! Having gone to a doctor who used PA’s most of the time, I now see the
doctor himself at every visit. Because he cared for Mom through all of her
Huntington’s disease with constant grace and consideration, my appointments
with him so far have been less stressful than if I’d changed to a totally unknown
doctor. In June, I injured my wrist when I tripped doing yardwork. He checked
me over, ordered X-rays, and scheduled me with an orthopedic specialist to give
me feedback on the arthritis in my wrist. He informed me that he was retiring
within the next few months and shifting me to one of the other doctors within
his group.
Tomorrow, I will meet
my new internist. The group has several doctors within the practice, and my
retiring doctor said he matched me with the person who’d give me the best care
for my needs. A quick online view shows she’s young with training in India,
England, and the United States, just like my current physician. She focuses her
care on thyroid, cholesterol, and hypertension all the issues that plague me at
this point.
My mission for
tomorrow is to begin a new path for better health. Wish me luck!
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Copyright 2023 Elizabeth Abrams Chapman
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