Number One Reason for Transitioning to a Concierge Medical Practice

If you’re a physician considering a conversion to a concierge medical practice, you’re probably weighing a number of factors in your decision. When it comes to the number one reason for converting, we’ve found that it really depends on the doctor and what he or she values.

As such, we spoke to SignatureMD-affiliated physician Dr. Joel Meshulam about his number one reason for converting to a concierge medical practice:

As Joel explains, for him, it was really about being able to connect more with his patients:

I have a story for you: I’m sitting with a friend of mine, he’s a doc, we’re in a bar – and now, by the way, I have a drink because I feel like having a drink, not because I feel I need to have a drink. I’m sitting with this buddy of mine, and he says, “What do you think? Should I do this?” Why would you not do this? What possible reason would you have for not doing this? He went through the typical things that I thought about before I started: “What if my patients all leave?” He works in a different city, but a city environment like me. “My patients don’t make any money.” I said, “First of all, don’t worry about the patients that are going to leave because if they leave, you don’t want them anyway. Second of all, think about how you’re going to do it. Don’t just say, pay me $2000 or you have to find another doctor. Say, hey, I want to spend more time with my patients. That’s why you want to do it.”

You want to do it because you want to get back to being the kind of doctor you were when you first started.

He and I graduated the same year, but he went to a different city. I said, “Remember how it was when we graduated? We were just starting out. We had time in our schedule. We saw patients. We actually did a complete history and did a complete exam.” And he said, “Yeah, sure, I remember that.” I said, “Are you doing that now?” He said, “No.” “Do you like what you’re doing now?” “No, I don’t.” And I said, “That’s why you do it. The reason to do it is to get back to being the doctor that you were when you left school and left residency. It’s to be able to actually make a connection with your patients, actually know them, know about their children, know about their job, know who they are. How are we supposed to help patients unless we really know who they are and what they’re going through and dealing with?”He said, “I’m going to buy your next drink.” I said, “Cool. Buy my next drink.”

If you’re unhappy with the grind of traditional medicine and want to get back to being the doctor you want to be, concierge medicine may be a good fit for you. Are you a good fit for concierge medicine? To find out, learn more about physician eligibility and fit for concierge medicine.

About SignatureMD

SignatureMD is one of the nation’s largest firms providing initial conversion and ongoing support services to concierge medicine physicians. SignatureMD currently partners with over 200 affiliated primary care physicians and specialists across 35 states, and its network is rapidly expanding.