EDITORIAL: Don’t put off preventative care

Published 10:36 pm Monday, May 17, 2021

According to the CDC, 41 percent of U.S. adults had delayed emergency and routine health care by the end of June 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Hundreds of thousands of people delayed appointments for everything from cancer screenings to teeth cleanings. What’s worse is many people with health conditions such as diabetes went without routine care their sorely needed. The CDC statistics also state that avoiding or delaying medical care was most common among people with disabilities and people with two or more underlying medical conditions.

Now that millions have been fully vaccinated and others have received at least one dose of a vaccine, it’s time for all of us to get back on track health-wise. 

The COVID-19 pandemic completely changed many aspects of our lives and how we go about our daily tasks. Masks remain commonplace in many instances, hand sanitizer is prevalent everywhere. If we are willing to take these preventative steps to care for ourselves and care for others, we must take the preventative step of getting back on track with our health care appointments and annual well-care visits. 

Remember that there’s a big difference from appearing healthy at first glance and actually being healthy inside and out.

Inside today’s paper, we’ve included our quarterly Health Directory, featuring contact information for many area health care professionals. Also featured in this latest issue is insight from Dr. Douglas Brewer, Chief Medical Officer of Atrium Health Navicent Baldwin, who shares more on the importance of scheduling routine health checkups. 

While telehealth has been a tremendous benefit during the pandemic, some health care practices require face-to-face care.

Preventative health care shouldn’t be looked upon as non-essential. In far too many cases, it’s lifesaving.

Don’t put it off any longer.