Q: If your patients were to take only one piece of advice to heart, what would you want it to be? A: Do not skip your annual exam.
“EVEN IF you don’t have symptoms, it’s important to check in regularly. It’s getting a baseline of where your body is at from the perspective of your vital signs, basic screening, and blood work. I think for a lot of people, there’s this sense that if you go to the doctor, you’re going to walk away with a medication. But if you’re proactive with it, you can often prevent the need for medication by correcting something. When your car’s check engine light comes on, you get the engine checked. Let’s try to fix it before there’s a problem and something needs to be repaired. It’s the same with your health. My goal is to avoid medication if possible. The sooner we recognize an issue, the sooner we can address it and make lifestyle modifications, ideally to correct it. The definition of ‘doctor’ in Latin is ‘teacher.’ So our job isn’t to make you do anything. Our job is to help guide you and teach you. So my message to patients is to take control of your own health. Recognize when something’s going on with your body, know when to seek help, and come to us.”
— Greg Specht, D.O.
Family medicine doctor with Franciscan Physician Network
