Primary Care

Primary care providers are dedicated to wellness. They offer annual physicals to monitor your overall health and play a crucial role in ensuring you know which health screenings you need for early detection of serious conditions.

• Heart health: They assess your risk for heart disease and screen for high cholesterol and high blood pressure.
• Cancer prevention: Understanding your risk, they may screen for the most common types of cancer, including colorectal, breast and cervical cancer. 
• Mental health: Primary care providers check for common concerns such as anxiety and depression.

Routine checkups and screenings may include:

• Colorectal cancer screening: Recommended for average-risk adults age 45–75. A colonoscopy every 10 years (or more often based on risk factors) helps detect colorectal cancer early.
• Breast cancer screening: Mammograms starting at age 40 help find lumps or other signs of breast cancer early, improving treatment success.
• Cervical cancer screening: Screenings, including Pap smears, are based on your age and risk factors starting at age 21.

Prevention is better than a cure, and your primary care provider focuses heavily on ways to keep you healthy. They can help you stay up-to-date on vaccines that prevent serious illnesses, such as the seasonal flu, pertussis (or “whooping cough”), measles and many other preventable conditions.

Your primary care provider is also a partner in healthy living, offering advice on diet, exercise, stress management and other steps you can take to live better.

Your primary care provider is there to handle common illnesses and injuries. Whether it’s a urinary tract infection requiring antibiotics or managing seasonal flu, they've got you covered. Because they get to know you, they can also help determine when repeated minor illnesses turn into conditions that require more focused care.

Chronic conditions are those that last a long time, sometimes your entire life. Diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and other chronic illnesses need consistent monitoring and management, which your primary care provider can handle efficiently. They’ll tailor treatment plans to your personal needs, whether that’s medication, lifestyle changes or support resources for managing your condition effectively.

Primary care providers can treat a lot of different conditions, but sometimes you need the help of a doctor with specialized expertise. Your primary care provider can also refer you to other Baylor Scott & White specialists for additional care that is right for you and your needs.

With the MyBSWHealth app, you can manage your appointments, view test results and send secure messages to your primary care team whenever it works best for you.

Download the MyBSWHealth app now