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Discussion

Concierge Doctors

One thing I learned from the aging trophy wife was about 'Concierge Doctors'. Have you all heard about these? She has one in a city that is about 2 hours from her home. Since her husband needs frequent medical attention, she says that she is unable to find one close enough for his needs. Her doctor only charges $180 a month a limits her practise to 500 patients, compared to the 2500 patients a regular doctor has, according to this lady.

A Concierge Doctor is a doctor who limits his/her practise to a few hundred patients. The patients pay a monthly fee. The more exclusive ones charge $1000 a month, she said. She told me that they limit their practise to 200 patients. Regular insurance covers the normal medical costs and the $1000 monthly fee covers having access to the doctor at all times by having his/her cellphone. These doctors also make house calls. They spend a couple of hours on physicals.

Here's some links about this:

http://www.bankrate.com/brm/news/insurance/20040519a1.asp

http://www.qconciergephysicians.com/

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/31/business/yourmoney/31doctor.html

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This was part of the plot in 'Crisis' by Robin Cook.

http://www.bookreporter.com/reviews2/0399153578.asp

Oh, and I just know this kinda thing is going to go over well LOL:

Should a trip to the Emergency Room become necessary, Q will facilitate the process by relaying your urgent medical condition to the appropriate hospital parties, including emergency room staff, and specialists if needed

During hospital stays, one may be visited by up to 15 health care workers a day. Your familiar personal physician will visit you daily, ensuring that your hospital needs are being met to your satisfaction.
It's one thing for concierge physicians to pamper their patients, quite another to expect the rest of us to do so too.

Unless of course, we get a cut of the action ;)

Yep...a few doctors are doing this in the Pittsburgh region.

I know a doc who moved up to Napa with his SO, who is also a doc. The SO was approached by a very wealthy woman who asked SO to be her concierge doc. SO said "No flippin' way"........can you imagine never having your own time? Not to mention the rep of being a concierge, "pampering" doctor.

Yeah, I've heard of them.

Given some of the WPB richy rich patients that expect nursing to drop everything if they so much need their coffee stirred, I feel sorry for the MD that has to be non-stop "on-call" for them.

There isn't enough money in the world.

  • Author

How about #5 from their description of services?

5. All-Physician Care

Q feels that although help from nurses, patient advocates, and physician assistants can be beneficial, the health needs of member-patients are best served directly by private physicians. Consultations are with physicians every time, a promise Q is proud of. Even basic tasks like vital signs are considered extremely important, and are personally taken by your Q physician during each visit.

That's it......I've been relegated to the trash pile...........I'm no longer needed.......:scrm:

  • Author
That's it......I've been relegated to the trash pile...........I'm no longer needed.......:scrm:

Heh, heh, you'd think that these doctors would want nurses in traditional attire, nursing cap, starched white uniform, white stockings and all, to stand when they enter the room :clown:

Just my opinion, but I guess this just reminds me of what I always thought a "family doctor" used to be. Someone who you could go to and they knew everything about you and your family. Someone you could call on in the middle of the night when you needed them. Someone who when they delivered your baby says " I remember the night you were born", etc. I know times have changed and this "concierge doctoring" is probably seen more as a status symbol than anything else, but having a doctor limit the number of patients in a practice to be able to deliver more individualized care seems nice. I get frustrated being shuffled around like cattle at auction and having to explain numerous times about the same ailment or problem and getting (sometimes) five different explainations or opinions.

This rose colored glasses scenerio is from a patient viewpoint which I realize is a different perspective than working in health care.

Course the world being what it is now, my take on how things should be and how things really are is two very differently traveled roads .:smackingf :lol2:

  • Expert
Just my opinion, but I guess this just reminds me of what I always thought a "family doctor" used to be. Someone who you could go to and they knew everything about you and your family. Someone you could call on in the middle of the night when you needed them. Someone who when they delivered your baby says " I remember the night you were born", etc. I know times have changed and this "concierge doctoring" is probably seen more as a status symbol than anything else, but having a doctor limit the number of patients in a practice to be able to deliver more individualized care seems nice. I get frustrated being shuffled around like cattle at auction and having to explain numerous times about the same ailment or problem and getting (sometimes) five different explainations or opinions.

This rose colored glasses scenerio is from a patient viewpoint which I realize is a different perspective than working in health care.

Course the world being what it is now, my take on how things should be and how things really are is two very differently traveled roads .:smackingf :lol2:

You're right -- this is what all doctors used to do for everyone. I have read interviews with some of the docs that have gone this route in which they say that the point (from their perspective) of limiting their practice is to be able to spend the time and attention with clients that they expected to be able to when they went into medicine. The docs who first came up with this didn't envision it is an easy way to make a lot more money (or further indulge spoiled rich folks), but as an attempt to escape the "hamster wheel" life of 10 minute office visits all day every day. Docs are just as fed up with the negative aspects of medical practice as nurses are with the negative aspects of nursing practice -- the difference is that they have more control over their working conditions, and greater ability to make changes that they want to make.

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