Preventive medicine is integrated into all aspects of care at Avenues For Health. Prevention encompasses screening tests, nutritional evaluation, lifestyle changes, exercise recommendations, optimizing blood pressure, cholesterol and weight, smoking cessation, stress management, sexually transmitted disease prevention, contraception, recognizing and treating depression, referral for drug and alcohol dependence or co-dependence, resources for domestic violence and patient education and empowerment.
Screening test can include Pap smears, mammograms, colon cancer screening, bone density testing, STD screening, treadmill echo stress test, cholesterol lipid profiles and other blood tests as indicated by personal history, age and family history.
Spending time talking with our patients and getting to know them is also part of preventive medicine. Only with good communication and a trusting relationship can many aspects of preventive care take place.
If specific areas of prevention are a concern, for example reducing the risk of heart disease or osteoporosis, then a consultation can be set up to evaluate individual risk factors and plan for preventive strategies.