Mon. Apr 29th, 2024

I found this article in Medical Economics to be very inspiring but not in the way the author, Dr. Auren Weinberg, thinks. As a huge advocate for Direct Primary Care, this article talks about DPC without mentioning it though does highlight the principles behind it. 

Here are some highlights with my thoughts in parenthesis:

Nimbleness

The health care environment is constantly changing – and independent practice allows providers to adjust quickly. When COVID-19 limited in person visits, independent practices could pivot to telehealth without needing multiple committee approvals and complex workflows. 

(This happened RARELY in the industrialized model but DPC docs were the first to do this right).

Innovation

Independent primary care doctors are innovating and adapting to ever-changing demands of patient needs, technological advancements, and the greater health care landscape. One study published in The American Journal of Managed Care showed small practices reduced patient spend greater than large practices. 

(The author tries to tie in quality metrics garbage. It is DPC that innovates the quickest, however, and dramatically reduces patients’ spending by navigating the system for patients with cheaper labs, diagnostic tests, etc.)

Satisfaction

Working in an independent practice can have a team-like feel where everyone can provide input on leadership decisions. Having worked as both an independent and employed physician, I found it much more difficult to have this sense of belonging and control over the direction of the employer organization compared to private practice.

(This is DPC in a nutshell. Control and ownership make doctors happy and DPC doctors epitomize this).

I recommend you read the whole article but I will tell you that the author’s attempt to placate Medicare and insurance companies is NOT the answer to fix our system or keep doctors from burning out. Therefore, I deleted a lot of his crap and fixed the article for him. Sorry, Dr. Weinberg. 

173250cookie-checkThe Last Hope of Medicine: Independence
(Visited 165 times, 1 visits today)

By Douglas Farrago, MD

Douglas Farrago MD is board certified in the specialty of Family Practice. He is the inventor of a product called the Knee Saver which is currently in the Baseball Hall of Fame. The Knee Saver and its knock-offs are worn by many major league baseball catchers. He is also the inventor of the CryoHelmet used by athletes for head injuries as well as migraine sufferers. From 2001 – 2011, Dr. Farrago was the editor and creator of the Placebo Journal which ran for 10 full years. Described as the Mad Magazine for doctors, he and the Placebo Journal were featured in the Washington Post, US News and World Report, the AP, and the NY Times. Douglas Farrago, MD received his Bachelor of Science from the University of Virginia in 1987, his Masters of Education degree in the area of Exercise Science from the University of Houston in 1990, and his Medical Degree from the University of Texas at Houston in 1994. His residency training occurred way up north at the Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor, Maine. In his final year, he was elected Chief Resident by his peers. Dr. Farrago has practiced family medicine for twenty-three years, first in Auburn, Maine and now in Forest, Virginia. He founded Forest Direct Primary Care in 2014, which quickly filled in 18 months. Dr. Farrago still blogs every day on his website Authenticmedicine.com and lectures worldwide about the present crisis in our healthcare system and the effect it has on the doctor-patient relationship. Dr. Farrago’s has written three books on direct primary care: The Official Guide to Starting Your Own Direct Primary Care Practice, The Direct Primary Care Doctor’s Daily Motivational Journal and Slowing the Churn in Direct Primary Care (While Also Keeping Your Sanity) are all best sellers in this genre. He is a leading expert in direct primary care model and lectures medical students, residents, and doctors on how to start their own DPC practice. He retired from clinical medicine in October, 2020.

Comment Here and Join the Discussion