Treatment & Preventative Medical Services
At Palliser Medical & Travel Clinic, we serve patients throughout Lethbridge by providing a range of screenings and tests to help prevent illness or catch it before it gets worse. In fact, preventative healthcare is so important to us that we take measurements called "clinical indicators" to track how we're doing and maintain an above 70% average on all indicators.
On this page, you can learn more about some of the screenings and services we offer. Please note that these screening indicators are minimum standards of care and that we will create an individualized care plan for you that factors in your family, personal risk factors and presenting medical condition.
- General Services
- Depression Screening
- Weight Classification
- Tobacco Use Screening
- Tobacco Use Counselling
- Blood Sugar Screening
- Pneumococcal Immunization
- Breast Cancer Screening
- Colon Cancer Screening
- Cervical Cancer Screening
- Influenza Immunization
- Diabetic 6 Month Exams
- Diabetic Blood Sugar Monitoring
- Diabetic Eye Exams
- Yearly Complete Exams
General Services
Some of our services include travel medicine, family medicine, treatment and preventative medicine, influenza immunization, international travel consultation, travel vaccines (including for yellow fever), booster vaccines, prescription medications if required for your travel and refugee health.
Depression Screening
Our depression screening includes all patients ages 18 and over and is conducted once a year. We use a 9 item self-response questionnaire called a PHQ-9. This is an important screening because mental health can be difficult for patients to bring up on their own.
Weight Classification
The weight classification is for all patients ages 18 and over, and is conducted once a year. We measure both the patient's waist circumference and body mass index (BMI), which is a ration of height and weight.
Tobacco Use Screening
The tobacco use screening is for all patients ages 12 and over, and is conducted once a year. It's important for us to know if a patient has been a smoker in the past, no matter how long ago it was.
Tobacco Use Counselling
Our tobacco use counselling is for all patients who smoke. Every year, we offer assistance to our patients who smoke but would like to quit. This is approached during a separate smoking cessation appointment.
Blood Sugar Screening
This screening is for all patients ages 40 and over. This screening is done by performing a fasting blood test at a lab once every 3 years to check for diabetes or impaired fasting sugars, which may also be referred to as "pre-diabetes."
Pneumococcal Immunization
All patients ages 65 or older are eligible to receive this free vaccine. This vaccine is only needed once and is available in the clinic. It protects against bacteria that can cause inflammation of the brain and spinal cord, blood poisoning, lung infections and middle ear infections.
Breast cancer screening
This screening is for all female patients ages 50 to 70. This type of screening involves the patient having a mammogram performed once every 2 years.
colon cancer screening
This screening is for all patients ages 50 to 74. Patients in this age group should have a fecal occult blood test (FOBT) done every 2 years and a colonoscopy every 10 years.
Cervical Cancer Screening
This screening is for all female patients ages 21 to 69. Female patients in this age group should have a Pap test done every 3 years unless otherwise advised by a physician.
Influenza Immunization
This procedure is for all patients ages 18 and over. All patients should have an influenza immunization shot every year. The schedule for flu shot availability will be posted on the website each fall.
Diabetic 6 Month Exams
These exams are for all diabetics. Diabetic patients should have a 6-month check in between complete exams to get blood work done and prescriptions renewed if necessary.
Diabetic Blood Sugar Monitoring
This monitoring is for all diabetics. It is important for diabetics to have their blood sugar monitored through a blood lab test called "Hemoglobin A1C" every 6 months.
Diabetic EYE EXAM
These exams are for all diabetics, who should have a dilated fundoscopic eye exam done every 2 years.
Yearly complete exams
These exams are for all patients ages 18 and over. We believe it is important to have a complete exam every year.