ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) – Health is a big part of our lives, we need it to do most things and have a high quality of life. But sometimes people, especially men, may find themselves nervous about getting checked up.
WALB’s Jim Wallace sits down with Dr. Derek Heard, a family medicine physician to talk about men’s health.
“You are concerned about men’s health a lot. And men are thinking now that the COVID pandemic is winding down, you have concerns about what men should be doing right now about their health,” Wallace said.
“Yes, Jim, thank you for having men on today. Here at Phoebe, we talk about the fact that your healthcare can’t wait. And so what we are finding is that people are slowly starting to trickle back into physicians’ offices. But we are still needing to get our men back out and with June coming up, being Father’s Day month, we thought it prudent to kind of have a discussion with men about getting back out and getting their health taken care of. Because the health care issues in men have not stopped just because of the pandemic,” Dr. Heard replied.
“Men, a lot of times say, if they feel well they don’t need to see a doctor. I guess this is something down through history that has remained the thought among men. I know it remains in South Georgia,” Wallace said.
“No Jim, it is. A lot of times as the man in the household you feel like you have to keep pushing. You have to keep going to work, regardless if you feel well. I’m here at work today even though I don’t feel well. And so it’s one of those things that we find we have to talk to men about, the fact you still have to get seen. You still have to get checked out, because again, health care problems don’t stop. We know that about 13% of men are considered to have poor health in this country. As of statistics of 2020, 13% of men are considered to be in poor health, that’s not good. We know that COVID, stroke, are all things that are killing men. Because of that, we need to make sure that we are getting men checked for that, and screened for it. Because these are things that can be screened for. If you are seeing your primary care doctor, you get an opportunity to go over these types of issues with them and we can prevent those kinds of illnesses that can cause a lot of damage. And one thing I want men to understand is that if you get one of these chronic illnesses, regardless of how much you try to push and push through and go and keep working. The fact is these can devastating to not only you but your family. So it’s important as men we get out and get seen,” said Dr. Heard.
“Good advice. Dr. Derek Heard, thank you very much for joining us. We appreciate your help.”
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https://www.walb.com/2022/05/31/phoebe-doctor-talks-importance-mens-health-screenings/