As the East Region medical director of men’s health for the Tallwood Urology and Kidney Institute, Dr. David Crawley sees firsthand the reality of the stereotype that “a lot of men don’t get the care they need.”

As a urologist, he has found that often what gets men in the door of the doctor’s office is something they can’t ignore anymore, such as urinary problems or erectile dysfunction. And Crawley will take that as an opportunity to identify gaps in their care, such as a patient being due for a colonoscopy or vaccine. He works with cardiologists, since erectile dysfunction can be an early sign of heart disease.

Crawley recalled that a man in his early 40s came in last year, and he sent him to a cardiologist. The man had severe coronary artery disease and required open-heart surgery soon after, which was “identified just from coming in with ED and asking questions.”

June is Men’s Health Month, and the basic message doctors have for men is: Go to the doctor and take preventative health measures.

Crawley said Tallwood has men’s health checklists for men of every age. For example, the checklist for men ages 50 to 69 includes an annual primary care visit, blood pressure check, urinalysis and rectal exam; a cholesterol/lipids panel every four years; a colonoscopy every 10 years for men without a family history of risk factors; and a shingles vaccine.

The Tallwood Men’s Health Center, in Waterford, is owned by Hartford HealthCare and includes access to specialists in sleep medicine, weight loss, endocrinology and mental health.

“Statistically, it’s more common for men to delay care or avoid seeing the doctor altogether,” said Dr. Brian Williams, a family medicine doctor with Yale New Haven Health’s Northeast Medical Group in Mystic, whose patient roster is about 75% male. He said delaying care has gotten worse since the pandemic began, regardless of gender.

“I put a huge emphasis on prevention, simply because in terms of impact on the individual, it’s immeasurably greater than waiting until someone is ill or has a condition,” he said. “Interventions done early in your life have a much larger payoff in terms of longevity down the road.”

For example, he said getting a 25-year-old into a regular habit of physical activity ― the “best kind of exercise is the kind you’ll do,” he said ― and healthy eating has a bigger payoff than for someone who’s 55.

With younger patients, he might talk more about high-risk behaviors, asking about helmet usage, sexual health and substance use. With older patients, he may focus more on stress management.

Williams recommends that men start screening for prostate cancer at age 50, noting that diagnosis and treatment has “improved tremendously,” and for colorectal cancer at age 45.

Colorectal cancer almost always starts off as a polyp growing inside the colon, which can be removed during a colonoscopy, Williams said. He said several polyps a week are removed among his patients, and not all would progress to cancer, but many would.

In addition, Pequot Health Center in Groton is holding free hernia screenings for men and women from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday. Registration is recommended at (800) 562-2537 or ynhhs.org/events.

e.moser@theday.com