At Functional Family Medicine, we pride ourselves in being Albuquerque’s best option for healthcare. As one of the city’s only Direct Primary Care provider, we stand out in a field dominated by insurance companies, short visits, and impersonal care. However, recent trends are showing that DPC is gaining popularity in the US, a trend that we believe will only improve the health of our citizens, as a whole. One example of Direct Primary Care’s rise in prominence is an article Time Magazine ran on their website at the end of 2014 which gives an account of a DPC provider’s experience in the field of medicine. In the article, the writer profiles a doctor running a DPC practice in Seattle, Dr. Garrison Bliss, and the benefits of Direct Primary Care.
At 69 years of age, Dr. Bliss is a seasoned veteran of the medical field, giving him a thorough knowledge of the daily realities of medicine. Although he is happy now, this was not always the case. When describing his time as a primary-care physician, the article states:
Bliss came to feel that he wasn’t in the business of caring for patients at all. His job was to feed payment codes into the grinding machinery of the insurance companies, rushing from exam room to exam room, ordering tests, making referrals, scheduling follow-up visits in which the cycle would be repeated. He knew that a proper exam, with time for counseling and questions, can take 45 minutes or more. Yet even a 15-minute session became a luxury.
After years of dealing with these conditions, Dr. Bliss reached the tipping point.
With two of his colleagues, Dr. Bliss began his own practice which catered to his wealthy patients and offered to them full access to their doctor, without waits, for a set yearly price. This did not satisfy Dr. Bliss, however, as he dreamed of providing this same level of healthcare for all his patients, not just the rich ones. To achieve this, he scaled down the unnecessary aspects of his operation so he could become a true direct primary care physician, offering affordable healthcare for all of his patients, at a reasonable monthly fee.
The story of Dr. Bliss is one we are all too familiar with at Functional Family Medicine. We understand the frustration that he and so many healthcare professionals feel with the current state of medicine. With the bureaucratic and money-minded nature of insurance companies, the medical process has been reduced to maximizing profits by cramming as many patients into healthcare provider’s schedules as possible. Not only is this disheartening for doctors and other medical professionals, but it comes at the expense of the patients, who truly suffer as a result.
At Functional Family Medicine, we stand alongside healthcare professionals who have rejected traditional healthcare methods and who are embracing DPC medicine. By embracing Direct Primary Care, our patients gain access to their provider around-the-clock, with no waits and no hassle. By providing more thorough appointments, without the constant need to move on to the next exam, our patients receive better healthcare, and are healthier as a result. We hope that more healthcare providers will embrace the benefits of DPC, and that practices such as our’s and Dr. Bliss’ will stand proud as examples of what healthcare can become.
If you would like to experience an exciting, new type of healthcare that is focused on patients’ health, and not profits, join the DPC revolution with Functional Family Medicine today!
