Dr. Lloyd Purdy

Dr. Lloyd Purdy provides comprehensive family medical care for a wide variety of health concerns affecting patients of all ages, including but not limited to:

Preventative Health Topics

• Weight Management & Obesity Prevention/Treatment: Supporting individuals in achieving and maintaining a healthy body weight through non-stigmatizing, patient-centered approaches that focus on sustainable lifestyle habits, improved metabolic health, and overall well-being rather than solely on rapid weight loss or restrictive dieting.
• Comprehensive Lifestyle Counseling (Diet, Exercise, Sleep, Stress Reduction): Providing personalized, evidence-based advice on adopting and maintaining a balanced diet (e.g., Canada's Food Guide, Mediterranean diet, plant-based options), engaging in regular physical activity (aerobic, strength, flexibility - meeting Canadian Physical Activity Guidelines), achieving optimal sleep hygiene, and implementing effective stress management techniques (mindfulness, relaxation) to promote overall health, prevent chronic diseases, and enhance well-being.
• Driver's Medical Examinations (Routine, Age-Related, Commercial): Performing comprehensive driver's medicals to ensure individuals meet the health standards necessary for safe vehicle operation, promoting road safety for all.
• Travel Medicine Advice & Routine/Travel Vaccinations: Helping you prepare for safe and healthy international travel with essential medical guidance, ensuring you are up-to-date on immunizations and equipped with preventative strategies and medications for common and serious travel-related illnesses.

Dermatological Skin Conditions

• Acne Vulgaris (Mild to Moderate) & Rosacea Management: Helping adolescents and adults manage these common and often distressing inflammatory skin conditions effectively to improve skin appearance, reduce symptoms (redness, papules, pustules, flushing), prevent scarring (acne), and enhance quality of life.
• Primary Care Skin Cancer Screening & Early Detection (Suspicious Mole/Lesion Assessment): Educating patients on sun safety measures (sunscreen, protective clothing, avoiding peak sun hours), the importance of regular skin self-examination using the ABCDEs of melanoma, and encouraging prompt reporting of any changing or new skin lesions.
• Fungal Skin, Nail & Hair Infections (Tinea species, Candidiasis, Onychomycosis): Diagnosis (clinical, skin scraping/KOH preparation, fungal culture if needed) and treatment of common superficial fungal infections including tinea corporis (ringworm), tinea pedis (athlete's foot), tinea cruris (jock itch), tinea capitis (scalp ringworm - requires oral therapy), tinea versicolor (pityriasis versicolor), cutaneous candidiasis (e.g., intertrigo, diaper rash), and onychomycosis (fungal nail infections). Treatment involves topical antifungal creams/lotions/shampoos (e.g., clotrimazole, miconazole, terbinafine, ketoconazole) or oral antifungal medications (e.g., terbinafine, itraconazole, fluconazole) for more extensive, resistant, or nail/hair infections.

Adult Common Health Issues

• Allergic Conjunctivitis & Dry Eye Syndrome - Primary Care Management: Diagnosing and managing common eye conditions like allergic conjunctivitis (itchy, red, watery eyes often seasonal or related to specific allergens) with advice on allergen avoidance, cool compresses, artificial tears, and topical/oral antihistamines or mast cell stabilizers. Assessing and providing initial management for dry eye syndrome (keratoconjunctivitis sicca - gritty, burning, foreign body sensation, intermittent blurry vision) with education on environmental modifications, regular use of artificial tears/lubricating ointments, and advice on blinking exercises/lid hygiene. Referral to ophthalmology if symptoms are severe, persistent, vision is affected, or diagnosis is uncertain.
• Anemia (Iron Deficiency, Vitamin B12/Folate Deficiency - Diagnosis & Management): Investigating causes of anemia (e.g., symptoms like fatigue, pallor, dyspnea on exertion, dizziness, palpitations, restless legs) through thorough history (diet, medications, menstrual history, GI symptoms), physical examination, and targeted blood tests (Complete Blood Count - CBC with differential and red cell indices, iron studies including ferritin, serum vitamin B12, serum folate, reticulocyte count, LDH, bilirubin if hemolysis suspected).
• Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) Infection - Testing & Eradication Therapy: Confirmation of eradication testing post-treatment to ensure successful clearance of the infection and reduce risks of H. pylori-related gastroduodenal diseases.
• Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) - Symptom Management & Monitoring: Assessing and managing lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) in aging men commonly due to benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Symptoms include urinary frequency, urgency, nocturia (waking at night to urinate), weak or intermittent stream, hesitancy, straining, and incomplete bladder emptying. Assessment involves history, International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) questionnaire, digital rectal exam (DRE) to assess prostate size/consistency, urinalysis to rule out UTI, and serum PSA discussion (for prostate cancer screening context).

Common Acute Conditions

• Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs - Cystitis, Pyelonephritis - uncomplicated initial): Prompt diagnosis (e.g., urinalysis, urine culture if needed) and treatment for uncomplicated urinary tract infections such as cystitis (bladder infection) and initial assessment/management of suspected uncomplicated pyelonephritis (kidney infection) to alleviate discomfort (dysuria, frequency, urgency, flank pain) and prevent complications.
• Acute Musculoskeletal Injuries (Sprains, Strains, Minor Back/Neck Pain): First-line care for everyday musculoskeletal injuries, supporting recovery, reducing pain and inflammation, restoring function, and providing referrals for imaging or physiotherapy if conservative measures are insufficient or red flags are present.
• Headaches (Tension-type, Migraine - Acute Symptomatic Relief): Management of acute migraine episodes or severe tension headaches, including advice on abortive medications, lifestyle adjustments during an attack, and strategies for future prevention.
• Gastrointestinal Infections (Gastroenteritis, Food Poisoning): Advice and supportive care for managing symptoms of viral or bacterial gastroenteritis ('stomach flu') or mild food poisoning, such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal cramps, with a primary focus on preventing and managing dehydration, especially in vulnerable populations (children, elderly).

Mental Health Concerns

• Insomnia & Chronic Sleep Disturbances: Helping you identify and address factors contributing to poor sleep, and develop effective, sustainable strategies to improve sleep quality, duration, and daytime alertness and functioning.
• Anxiety Disorders (Generalized Anxiety, Panic Disorder, Social Anxiety - Management): Ongoing management and support for anxiety disorders, helping patients develop coping strategies, achieve symptom remission or reduction, and improve overall well-being.
• Initial Assessment & Referral for Other Mental Health Concerns (e.g., OCD, PTSD, Eating Disorders, Bipolar Disorder, Psychosis): Ensuring individuals with complex or acute mental health needs are connected with the right resources and expertise for effective and safe management.
• Depression & Other Mood Disorders (e.g., Dysthymia, Seasonal Affective Disorder - Management): Assessing symptoms of depression (low mood, loss of interest/pleasure, fatigue, changes in sleep/appetite) and other mood disorders. Offering empathetic supportive counseling, discussing and initiating treatment options including lifestyle interventions, evidence-based antidepressant medications, and facilitating referrals to psychotherapy or psychiatry for moderate to severe or treatment-resistant cases.

This list offers some examples of common conditions managed in family practice. A diagnosis is always based on an individual assessment by Dr. Purdy. If your specific health concern isn't listed, please contact the clinic to discuss your needs.

• Smoking & Tobacco Cessation Programs & Support: Providing evidence-based resources, behavioral strategies, and relapse prevention planning to overcome nicotine addiction and achieve long-term cessation.
• Eczema, Psoriasis (Mild) & Other Common Rashes: Comprehensive primary care for chronic inflammatory and allergic skin conditions to alleviate symptoms and improve quality of life.
• Comprehensive Periodic Health Exams (Check-ups): Regularly scheduled check-ups to monitor overall health, update immunizations, perform age-appropriate screenings, and provide personalized lifestyle counseling.
• Care for Minor Injuries & Acute Musculoskeletal Complaints: Management of uncomplicated musculoskeletal injuries and skin wounds in a primary care setting, with referrals to specialized care when necessary.
• Skin Lesion Assessment, Biopsy & Minor Excisions (Benign Lesions): Differentiating between benign and suspicious skin lesions, with prompt biopsy or referral to dermatology if skin cancer is suspected.

Note: This list highlights some of the key services offered by Dr. Purdy. For a comprehensive understanding of all services, or to discuss your specific health needs, please schedule a consultation.

All services are provided in accordance with the scope of practice for Family Doctors in BC and the ethical and professional standards set by The College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia (CPSBC).

At Dr. Lloyd Purdy's practice, family medicine is centered on a collaborative partnership to help individuals like you achieve significant improvements in your health, manage ongoing conditions effectively, and enhance your overall well-being. Dr. Purdy frequently works with patients towards goals such as:

• Dr. Purdy assists individuals in navigating a follow-up for a recent concussion to ensure they are recovering properly. A successful outcome, like noticeably reducing their reliance on, and need for, urgent care clinics or hospital emergency room visits for conditions that are now being effectively managed or prevented through proactive, continuous, and comprehensive primary care with Dr. Purdy, means they can get back to proactively, responsibly, and knowledgeably caring for their own comprehensive health needs and the diverse preventative care requirements of their entire family, fostering a culture of wellness at home.
• Patients with needing a medical form filled out for insurance claims, disability benefits, or a new job application can find relief and achieve successfully achieving their specific, meaningful, and personal health goals, whether it's achieving sustainable and healthy weight management, successfully quitting smoking or vaping after multiple attempts, consistently maintaining improved physical fitness levels, or achieving significantly better daily pain control and function under Dr. Purdy's care, often allowing them to resume feeling mentally clear, exceptionally sharp, highly focused, and consistently productive throughout their demanding workday, during important decision-making processes, or when engaged in complex cognitive tasks without former limitations.
• It's rewarding for Dr. Purdy to see patients with wanting to understand if genetic testing is appropriate for them based on family history achieve having all their health concerns, no matter how seemingly small or 'embarrassing' they felt, listened to attentively, validated with respect, and addressed thoroughly and with genuine empathy, dignity, and professionalism by Dr. Purdy and return to important activities like actively participating in ongoing professional development activities, industry conferences, or learning new, marketable skills for their current career path or potential future career transitions.

Your personalized healthcare plan, developed in discussion with Dr. Purdy, will be thoughtfully designed to help you reach your specific functional, preventative, and wellness objectives. He believes in empowering patients with the knowledge and support needed to take an active role in their health journey.

Dr. Purdy's practice is located at a family medical clinic in Vancouver, situated in the Grandview-Woodland (Commercial Drive area) neighborhood. The clinic is conveniently located near Heritage Hall and is accessible via TransLink (SkyTrain Expo/Millennium/Canada Lines, Bus, SeaBus, West Coast Express - Waterfront). Ample parking is generally accessible close to the clinic entrance; please observe local signage.

What happens if Dr. Purdy determines I need to see a medical specialist?

Seeing a medical specialist in Canada usually requires a referral from your family doctor, like Dr. Purdy. After assessing your condition, if Dr. Purdy believes specialist care is necessary for diagnosis or management, he will discuss this with you and make the appropriate referral. Our office will handle sending the required information to the specialist. You will then typically be contacted by the specialist's office to arrange your appointment. Remember that specialist wait times can sometimes be long, so Dr. Purdy will continue to manage your care and provide support in the interim.

What exactly is a family doctor (Family Doctor) and what is their role?

Your family doctor (BC) is your primary healthcare provider, expertly trained to care for a wide spectrum of health issues, from newborns to seniors. He manages acute illnesses and injuries, oversees the care of long-term chronic diseases, provides routine health screenings and lifestyle counseling, administers vaccinations, and ensures you get access to specialized medical services through referrals when needed. The continuity of care he provides, understanding your health history and individual needs, is fundamental to effective family medicine.

How can I find a family doctor (Family Doctor) in BC who is accepting new patients?

Finding a family doctor in BC who is accepting new patients can be challenging. The College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC often has a 'Find a Doctor' tool or list on their website. You can also ask friends, family, or colleagues for recommendations. Contacting local community health centres or new patient clinics directly may also be helpful. It may take time to find a suitable doctor.

Is seeing a family doctor (Family Doctor) covered by Medical Services Plan (MSP) of BC in BC?

Medically necessary visits to a family doctor are typically covered by the Medical Services Plan (MSP) of BC for eligible residents with a valid provincial health card. However, some services, such as cosmetic procedures, most travel medicine consultations, sick notes for work/school, insurance forms, and driver's medicals, may not be covered and might have an associated fee. Please confirm with our clinic if you have questions about specific services or potential fees.

Do I need a referral to see a family doctor (Family Doctor) in BC?

Generally, you do not need a referral to see a family doctor in BC if the doctor is accepting new patients. However, finding a family doctor who is accepting new patients can be challenging. Provincial resources, such as a local health authority website or the College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC's patient-doctor matching service (if available), may be helpful. A referral from a family doctor is usually required to see most medical specialists.

1145 Commercial Dr, Family Physician, REACH
Vancouver, BC, V5L 3X3

Phone: (604) 216-3134

Dr. Lloyd Purdy is regulated by the Health Professions Act (British Columbia) in BC and is a registered member in good standing with The College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia (CPSBC).

Registration Number: 67365

Verify registration with The College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia (CPSBC): https://www.cpsbc.ca/public/registrant-directory/search-result/354445/Purdy%2CLloyd

Family doctors like Dr. Purdy are skilled in managing a wide range of health issues. For urgent or life-threatening emergencies, please call 911 or visit the nearest emergency department. It is always recommended to maintain open communication with your family doctor about all aspects of your health, including any treatments received from other practitioners.