Wellness Visit Specialists

Why is an annual wellness visit so important?

An annual wellness visit is all about prevention. The goal is to help you stay well and prevent chronic disease by examining your overall health and lifestyle, then identifying risk factors that are known to lead to disease.

If any concerns arise during an annual wellness visit, steps can be taken to prevent disease from developing. For example, a wellness exam will catch prediabetes, which is when levels of blood sugar are slightly high but not quite high enough to be diagnosed as type 2 diabetes. At that stage, changes in diet and exercise often prevent diabetes.

In addition to preventing disease, an annual wellness exam catches problems that may have developed but haven’t yet produced symptoms. This gives you the advantage of early diagnosis and treatment.

What should I expect during a wellness visit?

When you schedule an appointment because you’re sick, you’re concerned about feeling better and Dr. Boulware is focused on learning your symptoms, diagnosing the problem, and helping you get better. By comparison, a wellness visit gives you time to learn about your overall health and to talk with Dr. Boulware about any concerns you may have.

A wellness visit includes the same vital information gathering that you’d expect, such as height, weight, blood pressure, heart rate, and a thorough physical examination. However, Dr. Boulware also explores other key lifestyle factors like diet and order blood tests that reveal risk factors for chronic illness.

Preventive health screening may include:

• Lab testing: Blood draws and lab testing are performed in the office, so we can screen for cholesterol, blood sugar, thyroid hormones, and other health measures.
• Well-woman visit: Pap smears, breast, and pelvic exam.
• Immunizations: Flu shots, adult immunizations, including herpes zoster, and pneumococcal.
• Well-child visit: Assess growth, development, and vision, and provide recommended vaccinations.
• Senior care: Screening for cognitive impairment and assessment of nutritional status, frailty, and home safety.

What specialized services are available from Dr. Boulware?

Protecting cardiovascular health is a priority, so it’s good to know that additional cardiac services are available here in the office. If Dr. Boulware detects any potential red flags during a wellness visit, we can perform an electrocardiogram (EKG) to test for problems with electrical activity in your heart.