IM&PC Cares: What you shoud know about annual Medicare wellness exams

Leanne Lewis, Certified Family Nurse Practitioner, Internal Medicine & Pediatric Clinic, New Albany.

At IMPC we offer an Annual Wellness Exam for those patients with Medicare benefits. Every year at this appointment, we will review your current medicines, review any specialty providers that you may see, and conduct a range of screenings to ensure your safety in your home, as well as in your activities of everyday living.

The Annual Wellness Exam is not a complete head-to-toe assessment, rather a chance to take advantage of your benefits that Medicare offers.  Some of the benefits include:

Bloodwork

• Cholesterol to identify any cardiovascular risks
• Glucose to screen for Diabetes

Education opportunities

• Diabetic Education for those with Diabetes
• Nutritional Education for those with Diabetes or Renal disease

Bone Density

• Every 2 years for those at risk of decreased bone mineralization or fractures

Colonoscopy

• To screen for colon cancer

Eye Exams

• To assess for those at risk for glaucoma

HIV

• For those living in high risk populations

Tobacco Cessation

• To help navigate, and manage, any treatment plans to quit smoking/using tobacco products of any kind

Vaccinations

• Yearly flu vaccination during flu season
• Pneumonia vaccination
• Hepatitis B vaccination for those at increased risk
• Tdap vaccination if criteria are met

Pelvic Exam

• Recommended every 3 years for patients up to age65. This is not recommended for patients who have had a benign hysterectomy, or those who havepreviously had 3 consecutive normal pap smears.

Mammogram

• Recommended yearly to help screen for breast cancer.

PSA

• Recommended to screen for prostate cancer

No matter your age, it is important to discuss these topics, and more importantly to take advantage of these benefits.  Let us help you stay on track and get the most of what Medicare has to offer.

By: Leanne Lewis, FNP-C

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