Published in The Woman Today Magazine, October/November issue
Where do you go when you have a pressing health concern? The two main options
are scheduling a visit with your primary care physician or going to urgent
care. Today, some people are choosing to forego a primary care physician
and depend solely on urgent care. This option may seem more convenient.
However, focusing on staying healthy instead of waiting until you are
sick to see a doctor is a better option in the long run.
St. Luke’s growing team of skilled and approachable primary care
physicians is committed to helping you manage your health in this way.
Meet Dr. Rasmussen
A recent addition to St. Luke’s team is Dr. Carl Rasmussen. He hails
from a small town in South Dakota (Sisseton, if you’re curious),
loves the outdoors, and has a passion for people. “I take pride
in being able to do what I do every day: helping patients care for themselves
and partnering with them in their health care,” Dr. Rasmussen said.
Family medicine encompasses a wide range of medical care, and he enjoys
the challenges that come with the variety of patients he sees on a daily
basis at St. Luke’s Mount Royal Medical Clinic near the UMD campus.
Dr. Rasmussen particularly enjoys partnering with his patients to help
them stay active. With his completion of a Primary Care Sports Medicine
Fellowship, he has additional training that enables him to provide help
with sports-related injuries. This training also helps him promote physical
activity and wellness within his practice. His goal is to help patients
stay healthy and continue in the activities, sports, and outdoor recreation
they enjoy most.
He strives to stay active himself and strongly supports the role that exercise
plays in a person’s overall health. Getting outside and breaking
a sweat every day is one of Dr. Rasmussen’s tactics to maintain
his own physical and mental wellbeing. In addition, he has a balanced
approach to what he eats and drinks, feeling that ‘everything in
moderation’ is a good rule to live by.
The Benefits of a Primary Care Physician
While he may obviously be biased, Dr. Rasmussen believes that having a
primary care physician is the smartest way to manage your health. He pointed
out that urgent care is an important part of the health system and definitely
has its role to play. However, by only seeing a doctor when you are sick,
preventive care is missed, and this kind of care is vital to long-term health.
“The goal of health care should be prevention. This investment in
your short-term health can prevent detrimental outcomes down the road,”
Dr. Rasmussen explained as he continued to emphasize the benefits of establishing
care. Beyond having someone to see when you do get sick, annual check-ups
can recognize health concerns early, and are generally covered by insurance.
This enables prompt treatment and offers more successful outcomes. Some
examples of preventive care include mammograms, pap smears, and other
cancer screenings, as well as immunizations that help prevent disease.
In addition, primary care physicians are a great resource when it comes
to helping you identify and meet your health goals. Developing a plan
for a healthy lifestyle is a large part of preventive care. A primary
care physician can provide guidance in that process, as well as connect
you with any specialists you may need along the way.
Establishing care is as easy as making a phone call to 218.249.4000. Based
on your preferences for clinic location, how quickly you’d like
to be seen, and the gender of the provider, a St. Luke’s representative
will help you schedule your first appointment with a primary care physician
that best suits you.
“The most rewarding part of my job is being able to work with patients
in managing their health,” Dr. Rasmussen said. “There’s
a lot of responsibility in that, but there’s a lot of reward too.
And so, I take it very seriously and I enjoy it.”
St. Luke’s works to provide exceptional care for the community by
maintaining a team of doctors who are passionate like Dr. Rasmussen. These
physicians are available at 14 primary care clinics across the region.
To establish care at St. Luke’s, call 218.249.4000 or visit
www.ChooseStLukes.com.
BELOW: Dr. Carl Rasmussen, St. Luke's Mount Royal Medical Clinic