{"id":1253,"date":"2017-06-05T17:03:22","date_gmt":"2017-06-05T21:03:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.healthinaging.org\/blog\/?p=1253"},"modified":"2017-06-05T17:03:22","modified_gmt":"2017-06-05T21:03:22","slug":"should-your-primary-care-physician-be-a-generalist-or-a-specialist-new-study-sheds-light-on-benefits-vs-costs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.healthinaging.org\/blog\/should-your-primary-care-physician-be-a-generalist-or-a-specialist-new-study-sheds-light-on-benefits-vs-costs\/","title":{"rendered":"Should Your Primary Care Physician be a Generalist or a Specialist? New Study Sheds Light on Benefits vs Costs"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"JAGS<\/a>Journal of the American Geriatrics Society<\/em> Research Summary<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Your primary care provider (PCP) is usually your first medical contact when you\u2019re ill. Beyond taking care of you when you\u2019re sick, PCPs help coordinate your health care and make sure you\u2019re up-to-date with your check-ups, tests, and immunizations.<\/p>\n

Typically, PCPs are family medicine practitioners, general internists, pediatricians (for children) and geriatricians (for older adults). Some health plans, such as health maintenance organizations (HMOs), require you to choose a PCP whom you must see first before being referred to specialists when necessary. These PCPs play a special role in coordinating your care.<\/p>\n

However, other plans\u2014including traditional Medicare and most preferred provider organizations (or PPOs), don\u2019t require you to see a PCP before seeking more specialized care. As a result, many people may see a specialist as their main doctor rather than a PCP who would act as \u201cgatekeeper.\u201d<\/p>\n

Recently, researchers studied which option provided the best outcomes for older adults: Seeing a PCP or seeing a specialist for most of a person\u2019s outpatient care (care you receive outside a hospital). The research team published their findings in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society<\/em>.<\/p>\n

The researchers studied data from nearly 4 million Medicare beneficiaries over the age of 65 who had at least two or more chronic conditions<\/a>. The researchers compared the number of hospitalizations the participants experienced, as well deaths and total medical costs for the people who saw PCPs versus the people who saw specialists without a PCP \u201cgatekeeper.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to study findings:<\/p>\n