Typical Services Inside A DPC Office

July 20, 2015

When using a Direct Primary Care Doctor who includes a monthly, quarterly or annual membership plan, most practices will provide all patients with:
Unlimited Access to your doctor or doctor’s office.

Many DPC doctors and offices can provide same or next-day care for urgent medical issues such as sprains, respiratory illnesses, cuts requiring stitches, urinary tract infections, fractures, and more.  If you are not sure whether your condition is something your paricular DPC doctor/office can take care of, we recommend you call and they will help direct you to the best place to get it addressed.

Unhurried Appointments with doctors who focus completely on your health and well-being. Your visits may include extended consultations and personalized coaching to create positive lifestyle changes such as weight loss, smoking cessation, and stress management.

LAB TESTS –  Many DPC doctors/offices offer some basic onsite laboratory testing at no additional charge (such as pregnancy testing, strep throat testing, HIV screening, and others).  For other tests, your DPC doctor/office may send samples to their partner laboratories for processing or refer you to a local laboratory for testing, many times at a significantly reduced/discounted rate.  If you would like to use your insurance to pay for your tests, many 

DPC doctors will forward your information to the laboratory to be billed directly to your plan.  

Check with your DPC doctor/office and ask if they provide this service. IMPORTANT: If you would like to take advantage of discounted cash pricing, many DPC doctors/office often pre-negotiate discounts of up to 75% off of regular pricing for specific tests. Ask your physician/office about this. All testing and any associated costs should be discussed with you prior to ordering and processing any tests.

Receive health care support in person, by phone, or by email.

In the case of serious illness requiring emergency or hospital care, your DPC doctor can typically communicate with the hospital, send over any relevant records, and coordinate your care during and after discharge.  If you have a serious emergency requiring immediate medical attention, call 911 and then either call your DPC doctors/office or have the hospital personnel call them to let them know so they can participate in your care while staying at the hospital. 

 Most DPC doctors/offices can coordinate hospital and emergency care remotely, working with other doctors and care providers over the phone and touching base with you and/or your family members.  Some DPC doctors maintain hospital privileges and provide direct, bedside care and coordination at the local hospitals in and around their local practice. Check with your physician as to which hospital he/she may admit you to in the future.

Should you need to see a specialist, your DPC provider may coordinate your referral, communicate with your specialist, and work with you to make decisions about and follow through with your care plan.

No co-payments, co-insurance, or deductibles (Note: There are many practice/delivery models used by physicians at these offices. Please check with your physician/doctor’s office and ask them about this.)

Help in monitoring and managing chronic conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, asthma, arthritis, etc.

No long-term contracts when joining

No restrictions based on age or pre-existing conditions—everyone is welcome

Overall Benefits Also Include:

Uncompromising focus on personalized, high-quality primary care

Convenient in clinic, phone and electronic access

Qualified doctors, nurses, and medical teams providing comprehensive primary care services

Tanya Spoon

Posted from http://directprimarycarejournal.com/typical-services-inside-a-dpc-office/