Prioritize your health for a lifetime of wellness. From essential vaccines to regular screenings and check-ups, each chapter of life deserves and requires unique care. At Cornerstone Care Community Health Centers, we are helping you understand the care you or your loved ones need to stay healthy. In our “moments you live for” campaign, we highlight the vaccines and screenings you need at each stage of life. Cornerstone Care has comprehensive, integrated resources, providing the care you need to allow our patients to live life to the fullest.
Importance of Wellness Visits
Good health begins in the earliest stages of life. From birth until the age of two, children should receive a series of essential vaccinations. Then, as the child continues to grow, regular wellness visits are scheduled for both children and adults annually. These appointments ensure ongoing health maintenance and may include needed vaccinations and/or health screenings.
Pediatric and adult wellness appointments follow different structures tailored to the age of the patient. In pediatrics, the focus is primarily on vaccinations and developmental milestones. During pediatric appointments, healthcare providers perform measurements and sensory evaluations, they complete oral health checks, discuss developmental milestones, make behavioral observations, and conduct nutritional assessments. When children meet developmental milestones and receive age-appropriate vaccinations, they have a foundation for a healthy life.
From 19 and older, adults transition to wellness visits overseen by a primary care doctor. This is when screenings become crucial. For women, essential screenings include mammograms, pap smears, pelvic exams, and clinical breast exams. Men undergo tests for testicular and prostate health. Screenings are completed for cholesterol, blood sugar, HIV, and skin cancer typically start at 19 for both genders. As individuals reach their 40s, colonoscopies are added to the screening routine. Family history or changes in health status may result in earlier or more frequent screenings to ensure optimal health maintenance.
Annual wellness visits play a pivotal role in allowing your doctor to monitor health benchmarks, screen for conditions like arterial blockages and Type 2 diabetes, and detect early changes such as elevated blood pressure. This proactive approach allows for more effective treatment strategies. Skipping these visits may result in disease progression, potentially allowing diseases to reach more advanced stages.
Skipping Wellness Visits
Skipping your annual wellness visits places both you and your doctor at a disadvantage. These checkups are vital for diagnosing and treating health issues effectively, as they provide your physician with a continuous overview of your health history.
After COVID-19, there has been a concerning rise in diseases and heart-related issues attributed to missed wellness appointments. According to data from the American Society for Radiation Oncology, 73% of radiation oncologists reported a decline in cancer screenings among patients during the pandemic, with many reporting interruptions in ongoing radiation treatments in 2021. Reflecting on this trend, Rishi K. Wadhera from Health Policy and Equity at Harvard University stated, 'Our finding is that preventative health screenings did not return back to pre-pandemic levels and has critically important public health implications. The consequences of disruptions in preventative health screenings during the pandemic could be devastating over the long term, especially if those patterns continue to persist.”
Call the Cornerstone Care Community Health Center nearest to you to schedule your next appointment.
Accessible, affordable care
At Cornerstone Care, we understand there are challenges in accessing healthcare. As a Community Health Center, our mission is dedicated to improving the health and well-being of our patients and the residents of our community, with a special concern for the underserved.
Research indicates 25% of adults have refrained from seeking medical care due to cost. To address this issue, Cornerstone Care offers a sliding scale fee structure tailored to each patient's income and ability to pay. Additionally, we welcome patients with all major insurance plans, including Medicare, to ensure that financial barriers do not limit access to quality healthcare.
Schedule an appointment!
Make an appointment for your annual wellness visit today at one of our locations. You can call or schedule online through the patient portal.
Learn More: https://cornerstonecare.com/resources/moments
