What is a General Medicine Polyclinic?
General medicine is the department in which general practitioners or family physicians specialize in many diseases that affect the body and do not involve surgery.
What Medical Conditions Can It Treat?
General medicine deals with all medical conditions, including those affecting the cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive, neurological, hematological, or endocrine systems. Examples of conditions your doctor may treat include cardiovascular system – hypertension (high blood pressure) – ischemic heart disease (angina, heart attack) – respiratory system – asthma – emphysema or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) – pneumonia – pulmonary fibrosis – gastrointestinal system – gastroenteritis – alcoholic dementia, liver disease, nervous system disease, cerebrovascular accident (stroke) – epilepsy (convulsions) – dementia – hematology – anemia – endocrine disease – diabetes – thyroid disease – and pituitary disease.
Do General Practitioners Have Special Areas of Interest?
Most general practitioners develop a specialized interest in one of the areas listed in the medical terms. While they may provide general medical knowledge, they generally tend to focus more on an area in which they have greater expertise.
What Tests Can General Physicians Perform?
Your doctor may order different types of tests depending on your condition. These include bedside tests such as an electrocardiogram (ECG), a urinalysis (U/A), blood sugar, blood pressure, and a fecal occult blood test. These tests often include laboratory tests, such as blood tests. The blood test is specific to your specific condition. In addition to blood tests, the laboratory may process other samples, such as urine or fluids from other parts of the body.
Sometimes, a biopsy or small piece of tissue is required for diagnosis. In this case, the patient is referred to a pathologist for complete analysis. Diagnostic imaging by radiologists is also part of the examination process and may include X-rays, CT scans, ultrasounds, or MRIs. Nuclear medicine tests are also used in some cases.
Finally, your doctor may refer you to another specialist for a specialized examination. Your cardiologist may refer you to an angiography specialist, gastroenterologist, or endoscopist. These results will be forwarded to your doctor, who will diagnose and treat your condition.
Some of the operations performed in the General Medicine Polyclinic are; Circumcision, ingrown toenail/nail extraction, ear washing, mole removal, wart removal, ingrown hair removal, abscess drainage.
What to Expect at a General Medicine Appointment?
General practitioners possess a wealth of medical knowledge and will tailor their examinations to your specific complaint. They will ask you questions about your current symptoms, onset, duration, characteristics, factors contributing to remission and exacerbation, and previous tests and treatments. Other medical problems, medications, allergies, and social and family history are also important. Throughout this process, a variety of techniques are used for diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up.
