Let’s See What You’re Missing Out on in the System

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Do you sometimes wish you were back being employed by a hospital system? Probably not. But if you need a reminder then here it is:

Patient-authored portal messages increased 153% between 2020 and 2025

The American Journal of Managed Care (6/22, Shaw) reports, “Patient-authored portal messages surged 153% between 2020 and 2025, far outpacing growth in office visits and effectively creating a largely uncompensated layer of care that health systems and payers have yet to fully account for, according to a large cross-sectional study and editorialpublished…in JAMA.” This analysis, “drawn from approximately 8 billion encounters aggregated through Epic Cosmos across more than 2000 hospitals and 47,000 clinics…found that patient-authored messages climbed from 0.99 to 2.50 per active patient per year (PPPY) over the study period.” Meanwhile, “office visits rose 17%, from 2.37 to 2.77 PPPY, while telephone encounters among active patients fell 6% and among message senders by 7%.” The findings indicated that “overall, the increase in messaging was not associated with a decrease in office visits.”

153% more messages. 17% more office visits. No increase in compensation.

How can they fix that?

It’s called Direct Primary Care. Yes, you get messages, but you have fewer patients, and it’s not overwhelming. Also, you’ve done such a great job with more time during the office visit that most questions are answered there. Lastly, the compensation is baked into the monthly fee.

You made the right choice.

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About Douglas Farrago, MD

Dr. Farrago is a retired family physician based in Forest, Virginia. Since 2021, he has run DPCnews.com, a leading resource for the Direct Primary Care (DPC) movement. He is the author of three best-selling 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 Slowing the Churn in Direct Primary Care (While Also Keeping Your Sanity) In 2016, Dr. Farrago conceived the idea for the Direct Primary Care Alliance and co-founded the organization alongside other pioneering DPC physicians. He is widely recognized as a leading expert in the DPC model and frequently lectures to medical students, residents, and practicing physicians on how to successfully start and run their own DPC practices.Dr. Farrago sold his Direct Primary Care practice in October 2020 but continues to receive care there as a patient.