Division of General Medicine
The Division of General Medicine offers expert patient care, scientific research programs, and education and training opportunities.
Primary Care
Advanced care to manage your health
Primary Care Services for All Your Health Needs
When you partner with a primary care doctor, you work as a team to coordinate and manage all aspects of your health. At Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), we work with primary care experts to address all your health needs.
You receive routine and regular care from your personal doctor. This includes annual check-ups, ongoing mental health needs, seasonal vaccines and sick visits. We help you manage chronic diseases like diabetes and hypertension. When needed, your primary care doctor refers you to specialists for additional care.
Healthcare Associates
Healthcare Associates (HCA) is BIDMC’s primary care group practice and offers two convenient locations: Shapiro Clinical Center (East Campus) and Lowry Medical Office Building (West Campus).
Preventive Care
Your primary care doctor gets to know you more at each visit. Your doctor learns about and understands your health goals.
Over time, as you receive regular check-ups and screenings, your doctor can track any changes in your physical and mental health and make care recommendations. Your doctor also diagnoses and treats any new conditions you may have. With the goal of keeping you healthy in the future, your doctor provides guidance about recommended health screenings and personalized education based on your medical history.
When you need specialty care, your doctor gives you a referral to the doctors you need. Learn about the specialty and subspecialty services we provide.
Types of Primary Care Doctors
There are different kinds of primary care providers:
- Family medicine doctor: Treats children and adults of all ages, often caring for entire families
- Geriatric medicine doctor: Provides routine care and specialty referrals for older adults or seniors
- Internal medicine doctor: Treats adults and is trained in caring for simple and complex conditions
- Nurse practitioner: Provides a full range of care, writes prescriptions and is supervised by a medical doctor
- Physician assistant: Provides a full range of care, writes prescriptions and is supervised by a medical doctor
Preparing for Your Appointment
It’s important for you to feel comfortable and share any concerns about your health during your appointment. For you to get the best care, we need to review your health information before your appointment.
Telehealth Visit
Follow these tips for a successful telehealth or virtual appointment:
- Find a quiet spot: Find a private, quite place to be during your telehealth or online video visit.
- Check your Wi-Fi: Make sure your Wi-Fi is working well before you log on for your visit.
- Prepare your device: Consider restarting your computer or phone. Close open apps on your device before your visit. These steps allow the video platform to work at its best.
- Sign in early: Try to join the virtual visit 10 to 15 minutes before your appointment time. This gives you time to address any sign-on issues or delays.
In-Person Visit
Before you arrive at your in-person appointment, follow these tips:
- Check your insurance policy: Contact your health insurance company to make sure they cover care and treatment at BIDMC and HCA. We can help you understand your coverage. We’ll work with your insurance company to provide additional details to determine your benefits.
- When you schedule: Our office staff may ask you questions over the phone about your health, medicines you take and your personal medical history.
- Before the appointment: Arrange for us to receive your medical records and any recent test results.
- What to bring: Bring a current list of all medicines and supplements you take, your insurance card and a list of any questions you have. Consider bringing a notebook to write down what you learn during the visit and any instructions from your provider.
- Copayments: Any copayments you may owe are due at the time of your visit. We accept cash, check and credit cards.
