Balloons, confetti and blood pressure screenings were how two doctors celebrated the opening and rebranding of a family medical clinic in the heart of the city. Dr. Sharmaine Gray-Stuart, who has been practicing medicine for the past 15 years and who specializes in family medicine and occupational medicine, and her partner, Dr. Karis Thompson-Major, who also specializes in family medicine and has been in the field since 2001, have opened Executive Family Medical Center, located at #65 Mackey Street Plaza (Meldon Plaza).
The clinic offers both walk-in services and appointments. It also offers expanded hours of service to include Saturdays, having acquired additional staff to help satisfy the community's healthcare needs. During the open house, blood pressure screenings, sugar screenings, and assessments of body mass indexes were given to people taking advantage.
"People came here who didn't realize that their blood pressure was high. There were some who were checked and their sugar was high; we did their height and weight to assess the body mass index [of people] and the results for some were astounding. We ensured that everyone saw a doctor for free that day, " said Dr. Gray-Stuart. The great thing about this was that after their screening, everyone received free individual consultation with a doctor. Everybody got to see a doctor. We just wanted to give back to the community and make them aware that we are here," said Dr. Gray-Stuart.
"Family medicine is important to me as it allows for a wide scope of medical management. We are able to treat and control many conditions, but we are also great advocates for prevention of many of the diseases that we know our communities are inflicted with. Part of the challenge is to get persons to understand that it is important to not just see your physician when you are ill but to come for at least annual check-ups to see if things may be progressing in a negative way," she said.
For Dr. Thompson-Major, it was a sweet occasion to put into practice what she is passionate about.
"For me family medicine allows for more comprehensive care of not just the person, but the family. I enjoy the variety of circumstances and ages that you can encounter in family medicine. From simple cough and cold to acute management of asthma, repairing a laceration, performing pap smears, prostate exams, school physicals, annual exams, immunizations, ECGs, dispensing medications, to managing headaches to chronic conditions such as hypertension and diabetes or thyroid disease to lifestyle factors, preventative care such as wellness and nutrition and exercise and safety issues, in addition to aviation pilot medicals," she said.
"Family medicine specialists pride themselves on being the caring, compassionate, coordinators of the family's care. We are the gatekeepers of the healthcare field --stressing continuity of care. We see patients from babies to the elderly, and encourage persons to find a physician that they are comfortable with for their family's needs. Consistency in seeing the same doctor on a regular basis has been shown to increase the quality of service that a client receives, as well as build a mutually good working relationship between the physician and patient," she said.
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