Health Promotion, Patient Education, and Care Coordination
Prevention is a scored domain
Know the USPSTF grade framework: grade A and B services are recommended and generally covered without cost sharing, grade C is selective and depends on professional judgment and patient preference, and grade D is discouraged. Common anchors: colorectal cancer screening ages 45 to 75, mammography from 40 to 74, cervical screening starting at 21, annual low-dose CT lung screening for adults 50 to 80 with a 20 pack-year history who currently smoke or quit within 15 years, and one-time hepatitis C and HIV screening for adults. Separate screening from diagnostic testing and from surveillance - conflating them is a favorite distractor.
Immunizations
Be able to name the adult core: annual influenza, Td or Tdap every 10 years with Tdap in pregnancy, COVID-19 per current schedule, recombinant zoster from age 50, pneumococcal vaccination from age 50 or with risk conditions, and RSV for older adults by current age and risk criteria. Check contraindications, especially live vaccines in pregnancy or significant immunosuppression.
Education that actually works
Teach-back beats do you understand, motivational interviewing beats lecturing, and plain language at a fifth- to sixth-grade level beats a handout. Ask about cost, transportation, food access, and health literacy, because social drivers decide whether a good plan is followed.
Worked rule of thumb
A 52-year-old with no symptoms asks what screening he needs. He is inside the colorectal window, so offer colonoscopy or a stool-based test - and explain that the stool test is interval-based, not one-time, because the interval is part of the order.