The New Inconvenience of Internal Medicine

The New Inconvenience of Internal Medicine

I spoke to my friend Karen the other day, who recently visited her internal medicine physician for her annual physical. When she arrived at her appointment to see her doctor of more than 15 years, there was a sign that read, “Due to new insurance policies, you will need to make a separate appointment to see your physician for anything not typically handled in your annual exam.”

Karen was understandably bothered by this. Isn’t your annual physical the time to bring up all your concerns and issues, especially if you don’t see your doctor often? Although Karen’s physician let her discuss her ailments, her physician coded her visit twice, and Karen was billed by her insurance for the non-covered part of the exam.

Luckily, there is an alternative to this unpleasant phenomenon: concierge medicine. Concierge medicine is a growing trend, one that allows patients to see their physician as often as they like for as long as they like without limitations to time and attention. SignatureMD is at the forefront of this kind of personalized medicine, where doctors have fewer patients to tend to and more time to offer those they do care for. And at the core of the SignatureMD program is the annual Executive Physical which includes an in-depth examination of the patient taking into account his or her personal and family health history, lifestyle and overall wellness goals. A preventative measure, the Executive Physical is the cornerstone of a proactive healthcare plan.

In the coming years, personalized healthcare is sure to be a better use of time and money, for both physicians and patients. Have you made the switch?