Half of all adults in the United States suffer from at least one chronic disease. These conditions — hypertension, Type 2 diabetes, hyperlipidemia, hypothyroidism, heart disease, obesity, cancer, COPD, asthma, anxiety, depression, and arthritis chief among them — amount to some of the most common and costliest health problems in the nation. At Austin Square Medical Group in Youngstown, Ohio, Gregory J. Facemyer, MD, FAAFP, and his expert team offer chronic care management services to help patients take control of their long-term health. Book an appointment online or by phone for chronic care management today.
It’s not unusual for people with more than one chronic illness to find themselves focusing on little more than managing their day-to-day symptoms. Chronic care management is designed to keep your primary care team fully engaged in managing your chronic illness and overall health by simplifying your care and providing intensive, personalized support.
Some of the chronic conditions that patients most often need help with include:
Chronic care management includes a comprehensive, individual care plan that takes every aspect of your health into account. It involves ongoing communication between you and your provider at Austin Square Medical Group, as well as oversight and coordination for all your medications, ancillary testing, and specialty coordination for referrals.
The traditional medical model for people with one or more chronic diseases tended to emphasize the illness over the patient. This model addressed the patient’s symptoms while de-emphasizing the effects of certain lifestyle factors.
Successful self-management care includes:
Because this method is often more expensive and less effective than the healthy lifestyle strategies patients can manage on their own, chronic care management is designed to teach you how to make beneficial lifestyle changes. Such changes can prevent further complications, improve your daily function, and help you manage your symptoms.
Just as certain lifestyle choices can contribute to the development of disease, managing your conditions carefully and adopting healthy habits can lessen their severity and keep them from progressing. Patients who have coordinated, ongoing care and who commit to making better choices for their health are more likely to:
Chronic care management services can also help you save money by reducing necessary medications and helping you avoid costly emergency room visits and unnecessary hospitalizations.
If you need chronic care management, book an appointment online or over the phone with Austin Square Medical Group today.