Primary care is the ongoing, first-contact medical care that manages your overall health rather than a single organ or disease. Your primary care physician diagnoses new problems, treats common illnesses, manages long-term conditions, orders and interprets screening tests, prescribes and monitors medications, and directs you to the right specialist when one is needed.
Service overview
Primary Care in Miami, FL
Primary care in Miami, FL is comprehensive, ongoing medical care for adults, delivered by Lisette Portes, MD, a board-certified family medicine specialist. Services include new patient exams, preventive screening, chronic disease management, acute illness treatment, prescription management, and specialist referrals at the Coral Way office in Miami.
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What Is Primary Care?
Research consistently shows that adults with a consistent primary care doctor have lower rates of hospitalization, better-controlled chronic disease, earlier cancer detection, and lower total healthcare costs than adults who rely on urgent care and emergency departments. The mechanism is simple: someone is watching the trend line, not just the snapshot.
Primary Care Services Offered
New Patient Comprehensive Exam — A complete baseline including medical history, surgical history, family history, medication reconciliation, social and occupational history, full physical examination, and appropriate laboratory work.
Preventive Care and Screening — Blood pressure, cholesterol, blood glucose and A1C, thyroid function, kidney and liver function, cancer screening scheduling including colonoscopy, mammogram, and cervical screening, plus immunization review.
Chronic Condition Management — Diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, obesity, thyroid disease, asthma, and chronic pain, managed with scheduled follow-up and objective targets.
Acute Illness Care — Respiratory infections, influenza, COVID-19, strep throat, sinusitis, bronchitis, urinary tract infections, gastrointestinal illness, skin infections, and minor injuries.
Medication Management — Prescribing, refills, dose adjustment, interaction review, and deprescribing when a medication is no longer earning its place on your list.
Laboratory and Diagnostics — Blood work, urinalysis, EKG, and coordination of imaging when clinically appropriate.
Referral Coordination — Direct referral to cardiology, endocrinology, orthopedics, gastroenterology, neurology, pain medicine, dermatology, and surgery, with results routed back to your chart.
Care Transitions — Follow-up after hospitalization or emergency department visits to reconcile medications and prevent readmission.
Who Should Have a Primary Care Doctor?
Every adult, but the case is strongest if you are over 40, managing any chronic condition, taking two or more prescription medications, over 65 or on Medicare, planning surgery, new to Miami, or currently relying on urgent care for problems that keep coming back.
If you cannot name your primary care doctor, you do not have one — and that is the single most common gap in adult healthcare in Miami-Dade County.
What to Expect at Your First Visit
Your first appointment with Dr. Portes runs longer than a typical follow-up, because it is designed to build a complete baseline rather than solve one complaint.
Expect a full review of your medical and family history, an inventory of every medication and supplement you take, a discussion of sleep, diet, movement, alcohol, and stress, a head-to-toe physical examination, vital signs, and a lab order tailored to your age and risk profile. You will leave with a written plan and a scheduled follow-up.
Bring your insurance card, photo ID, medication list, pharmacy information, and any records from previous physicians.
Primary Care vs Urgent Care vs Emergency Room
Primary care is for ongoing health, prevention, chronic conditions, and non-emergency illness — and it is the only one of the three where the doctor knows your history.
Urgent care is for acute problems outside office hours when your primary care office is closed. It does not maintain your longitudinal record.
Emergency departments are for life-threatening symptoms: chest pain, difficulty breathing, stroke symptoms, severe bleeding, or major injury. Call 911.
Because Dr. Portes offers same-day sick visits and telehealth, most concerns that patients bring to urgent care can be handled in the office by the doctor who already knows their chart.
Serving Miami and Miami-Dade County
The Coral Way office at 7171 Coral Way, Suite 500 serves Miami, Westchester, Coral Terrace, Olympia Heights, Coral Gables, Little Havana, Brickell, Sweetwater, and Doral.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
A primary care physician provides first-contact, continuous medical care: preventive screening, diagnosis and treatment of illness, management of chronic conditions, prescription oversight, and coordination of specialist care. They are the physician responsible for your overall health rather than one body system.
Dr. Lisette Portes meets all five criteria.
Yes. Dr. Portes is accepting new adult and Medicare patients at the Coral Way office.
With insurance, most patients pay only their plan's office visit copay. Preventive annual visits are covered at no cost under most plans and under Medicare. Self-pay rates are available on request — call 305-328-5079 for current pricing.
Yes. Dr. Portes accepts Medicare and can be designated as your primary care physician, including for Medicare Advantage plans that require a PCP assignment.
Same-day and next-day appointments are typically available for acute illness. New patient and physical exam appointments are usually available within one to two weeks.
New patients welcome
Establish Care With an Experienced Miami Primary Care Physician
Call 305-328-5079 or request your new patient appointment online.