I see patients and patients’ families everywhere I go: the grocery store, church, school, restaurants. I quite honestly miss the anonymity. Now, I feel like I am always “on.”
My former practice was a hospital-run faculty practice, and even though I was there for over eight years, I was always in the shadow of our senior partner. And I only lived in the same town where the office was for a year or so. I felt like my partner knew everybody and everybody knew him. He had “people.” He had a “guy” for everything. And I felt as if everywhere we went together (which wasn’t often), there were people he knew.
Now, I work in the same town I live in. I don’t have “people” yet, although I was blessed to find that someone who worked for our town was a very anxious mother of a type 1 diabetic. Without her, I don’t know if the office would have opened in time when I first started. I have another who works for a snack company who always brings some of his wares for my staff and me. I jokingly ask him if that is his co-pay.
And I see patients and patients’ families everywhere I go: the grocery store, church, school, restaurants. I quite honestly miss the anonymity. Now, I feel like I am always “on.” Not that I go out looking shlubby (at least not often), but I feel that I need to pay more attention to how I appear in public. I also feel like I need to behave better in public. No more screaming crazy mother, no matter how utterly annoying my kids are. And I feel like I have to look over my shoulder every time I put a * gasp * French fry in my mouth.
And, of course, while I love saying “hi” to my patients in public, I have to contend with the “Oh, I’m so glad I saw you. I wanted to ask you something…” followed by the usual favorites “why am I so tired” and “it hurts when I do this.” I wonder if there is an E&M code for “five- minute face-to-face in school cafeteria during bingo.”
The benefits of direct primary care
March 25th 2025Direct primary care is transforming the healthcare landscape by replacing insurance-driven models with affordable, membership-based care that strengthens patient-doctor relationships, reduces costs, and improves access to personalized treatment.
Considering AI for Your Practice? Uncover Key Takeaways from This Case Study.
March 21st 2025The main goal is to provide decision-makers in healthcare with clear, actionable insights and data. By simplifying complex challenges, we ensure they understand the issues facing the sector, such as healthcare call centers, AI service agents, and front desk staff overload. We equip them with the knowledge needed to navigate these challenges and highlight how AI tools can help overcome them, empowering them to thrive in an evolving healthcare landscape.