Keesler Medical Center to begin empanelling patients into its Family Health Clinic Published Dec. 10, 2008 By 011208 Keesler Air Force Base, Miss. -- By Capt. Robert Flemming 81st Medical Group Keesler Medical Center will soon begin empanelling patients into its Family Health Clinic. The Air Force Surgeon General and his staff have developed a Family Health Initiative that promotes patient-provider continuity with a strong focus on preventive care. A primary tenant of this plan is that patients see the same provider or a provider in their team on a consistent basis when they have a health problem. Providers and their professional staffs also will provide patients educational information on keeping healthy and let them know what exams they need. They will help patients stay current and will be very familiar with the patient and the patient's health. To provide patients the best possible care, the Family Practice Clinic will assign patients to a provider who is part of a small team that includes other providers, nurses and medical technicians. The provider for active duty members usually will be the provider assigned to each member's squadron. In addition, family members not empanelled to another clinic also will be assigned to the sponsor' s provider. This allows each team to become familiar with the family's health conditions so that their medical histories and general health status are available if there is a medical concern. Providers and their staffs also will assist patients in preventive health maintenance ensuring they are scheduled for required exams based on age and other risk factors. Patients soon will be notified of their provider teams. The goal is to maximize continuity with respective providers or their colleagues so that when patients arrive for their medical appointments, providers will be familiar with them. Once empanelled, whenever patients call for an appointment, the appointment clerks will provide them one with their assigned provider or team. Clinic providers also will schedule visits to squadrons to become familiar with work-related exposures and stressors. Provider teams will work with patients to ensure they are up to date with their preventive health exams, such as your PAP smears, preventive health assessment exams for active duty members, immunizations and follow-ups for cholesterol, blood pressure and other tests. The Keesler Medical Center staff also encourages members of the Keesler community to take advantage of the preventive services the Health and Wellness Center offers, including a full range of exercise counseling and health improvement programs.