What to Expect From Your First Therapy Appointment
A therapist is involved in the diagnosis and treatment of a number of human diseases. He or she accepts patients who have reached the age of 18 years. Everything the physician does is related to diseases and pathologies of the human internal organs. In most cases, a therapist solves all the issues related to conducting research and prescribing effective treatment, and, if necessary, issues a referral to a doctor of narrow specialization.
What a therapist treats
The duties of the therapist include the diagnosis and treatment of the respiratory, digestive, excretory and circulatory systems. Patients visit such a specialist not only for the most common catarrhal diseases – flu, bronchitis, SARS, but also when they have disorders related to the joints, back, stomach, or when they have is a general deterioration in well-being and insomnia.
Often the malaise is attributed to a mild cold or fatigue, but it is impossible to make a correct diagnosis without the help of a qualified specialist, and self-medication, as a rule, only exacerbates the situation. Do not rely on the will of chance, just make an appointment with an experienced doctor, armed with modern diagnostic methods.
When to make an appointment with a doctor?
If your well-being has sharply worsened, alarming symptoms or suspicion of a disease have appeared, you should not postpone the visit to the therapist, as many diseases go into the chronic stage, which has long-term negative health consequences, worsens the quality of life and shortens its life. You can even make a therapy appointment online using a login.
Symptoms in which you need to visit a therapist:
- increase in body temperature;
- dry mouth;
- frequent urination;
- drowsiness, fatigue, which does not pass even after long rest;
- the pain of any severity or discomfort of internal organs, including heaviness in the stomach, nausea, almost incessant feeling of hunger, heart palpitations for no reason;
- a marked decrease in vision, dizziness, fainting;
- memory impairment and distracted attention;
- persistent insomnia and apathy.
What happens on your first visit to a therapist?
In the beginning, the doctor listens to the patient’s complaints and asks about the symptoms. He or she is definitely interested in past illnesses and chronic diseases. Patients should tall about their health as much as possible. Then the specialist measures the pressure, listens to the chest and back with a phonendoscope, measures the temperature, examines the throat and the stomach.
After analyzing the complaints and based on his or her own conclusions, the therapist prescribes medications and medical procedures, writes out a referral for tests, an additional examination (ultrasound, MRI, CT scan, x-ray), and, if necessary, sends the patient to other specialized specialists – gynecologist, gastroenterologist, neurologist, etc.
You should bear in mind that communication with the therapist is rarely limited to a single visit since the doctor must “guide the patient”, that is, monitor the progress of treatment. If necessary, he or she makes amendments, prescribes additional diagnostic methods, coordinates the interaction with doctors of other specializations.