Dimension Medical

What's the difference between a good family physician and a great one?

Is it knowledge base?

No - Every good family physician has a decent knowledge base. In fact, knowledge base is what separates a good physician from a poor one!

The difference between a good family physician and a great one, is attitude...

When you present with an unusual medical problem that makes you uncomfortable, is non-urgent but requires referral to a specialist, a good physician will refer you to said specialist. A great physician will pick up the phone, and call the specialist, and inquire if there are any treatment options that can be attempted in the meantime, while you wait for that specialist consultation.

When you present with a suspicious looking lesion on your skin, a good physician will determine its nothing to worry about and send you on your way. A great physician will dig a bit deeper and discover that the reason you're there is because your grandpa died of skin cancer 6 months ago- and it started with a lesion that looks a lot like the one you have (and it's freaking you out!) A great physician will realise the amount of angst this is causing you, and offer you the opportunity to have it removed to set your mind at ease.

When you present with an urgent medical problem that requires specialist care, a good physician sends a referral letter to a specialist and marks it as 'urgent'. 
A great physician picks up the phone, calls the specialist and makes it clear that this can't wait to be investigated...

Good physicians are often busy and hard to get in to, particularly when you need to be seen urgently. Great physicians ensure that they leave spaces in every day's appointment schedule so that they can accommodate their patients' urgent needs on short notice. This approach often means that they make a bit less money (those spaces are not always filled) - but a great physician cares more about the needs of their patients than they do about a few extra dollars.

In each of these instances, the good physician's management isn't incorrect or inappropriate, but the great physician is always willing to go the extra mile to ensure that patient care comes first...

At Dimension Medical, we hand pick the physicians we invite to join our practice. We believe that every physician is a reflection of the institution, and we work hard to find great physicians who truly care about patients to complement our group.

We consider ourselves very fortunate to have the physician group we currently have.