I switched Doctors for the exact same reason, only my Dr wanted $2,500. per year. She promised -as part of her new boutique plan- to handle all my after hours calls herself and spend more time with me as needed. No thank you.

Hmmmmm...

Is this due to that newer TV show set in the Hamptons(?) LOL!
Hate to admit, I like that show!

Is this gonna be a trend in medicine for some?!
I guess I can see the attraction for some Dr's....but...Wow!
PAYING to be a patient?!!?

I s'pose it's kinda like "Retainers" for lawyers, fees for "Personal shoppers", etc.?

Faron

If my pediatrician offered that when my kids were little I would have done it. When I think of the hours wasted waiting in the pediatrician's office with all those germy munchkins, I think it would have been worth it.

Actually when my kids got a little older, a dear friend's husband was a pediatrician. I'd try not to do it too much, but I would send the kids down the street to have Dr. Tom look at their ear, their sprain, etc. After every visit I would "pay" him with a case of good beer.

I am considering switching to a concierge doctor since my insurance is dropping my PCP and the hospital he has priviledges. The doctor in my area charges $1000 a year - but he maintains a small lab for routine tests, stitches lacerations, etc. He accepts no insurances. Oh yeah, does house calls as well. Will also see all dependent children as well.

I think it is a little like living in a gated community. Not something in which I have any interest. I actually asked our doctor at Georgetown University Hospital about it. He said he rejects the idea on principle. I hate how long it takes to get appointments with him and we often have to wait past our appointment times, but he does spend as much time as we need and there have been times when I have talked his ear off about issues we were having with an alcoholic in the family. I never feel rushed and we have his private number where we can leave a message or even catch him at his desk every now and then. I even got him one Saturday when we reached a crisis point and wanted to get into rehab immediately. He gave me names and numbers of places to call and set up an appointment first thing on Monday morning for us (the first place he recommended was incredible and so far so good now). We don't abuse the phone privilege and I suspect if we asked, he would make a house call. Hope we never need that.

Ummm . . . the retainer you pay your attorney is drawn against as your case is worked (if it's an hourly billing case, like a divorce, etc.). The retainer you pay to a criminal defense attorney is usually in essence a deposit -- part of the total cost that gets you through point X in the process.

It's not a fee that is pocketed with an assurance that you'll later get special treatment . . . for which you will pay full price.

Ann; type out a letter about the records- make sure you include which ones you want. You also may have to go to the new Dr to get their form for them to request the records- some doctors are like that. I would then fax it to his office.

No, I would not pay a doctor to be his patient unless I had a chronic illness.

Heck - I'd walk right into his office and stand there in front of the desk while the receptionist *fetched* them for me!

Each time she said she'd mail them, I'd respond pleasantly "No thanks - I'll just wait."

I think I'd give them a 48 hour notice before parking myself in the waiting room. (I hate to wait.) Plus, your DH may have to pick them up unless he has given authorization for you to do it...

Some of the doctors in our area have been going concierge but we're not interested given what they're "offering". As it stands, our pediatrician, PCP and DH's neurologist already give us lengthy visits. I've never felt rushed through a PCP visit no matter what the reason for the visit and DH & my father who have the same neurologist have never had an appointment that didn't last AT LEAST 45 minutes. We don't have the super duper coverage plans but our doctors obviously care about their patients.

I guess the concierge medicine concept works for some people. Our friends whose doctors have gone in this direction left those practices.

binsd, would your husbands neurologist be Dr. Rivera? I went to him when we lived in Houston.
dorothy

dorothy9 - no...DH's neuro is Dr. Jeffrey Jackson. :)

You'd be surprised at how long it can take them to copy records once the written request is made. The longest I ever waited was 2 month for my GYN records; plus they charged me $10. Some charge by the page.

Many doctors charge patients for copies of their records but will transfer the records free of charge to a physician who makes the request. Have the new physician request that the records be sent to his/her practice.

Ann - that's terrible that your DH was treated that way by his doctor of 10 yrs. It does make you wonder how much more this is about $$$ than providing better care for his patients. Surely, he realizes that not everyone will go into this "boutique" practice.

As some have already said, your DH's new doctor can request his records directly from Dr. Boutique. Definitely follow-up, too. I'm just reminded that I am STILL waiting for my daughter's vax records to be sent from her previous pediatrician - it's been 4 months!

With the first round of baby boomers hitting 65 this year and getting on Medicare, I'm afraid this will probably be more common in practice. Healthcare will be interesting in the next few years. Medicare pays very little and is very tightly controlled in their diagnosis/payment systems. Physicians are crunched right now to update their health records and having to care for an aging population often with chronic degenerative diseases.

To me, it is the convenience factor. If I had a chronic disease needing to see a physician often and had the extra money, I would pay.

Example, a busy executive has little time to take out of the day to spend 3 hrs at doctor's office. What is that person's time worth? This is where concierge doctors fill a need.

Smiles:)

I

We're covered by an HMO so we don't have this option. I'm very happy with what we have, tho. Our plan includes an on-line feature where I can send my Dr. emails, set appointments, fill prescriptions, view my health record, etc. If I feel I need a longer appointment than the standard, I ask for a 45 minute one. I've never had to wait longer than 10 minutes past my appointment time. The nurse told me they schedule the appointments with 20 minutes between them so to account for overages and give the doc time to get the records updated.

My only gripe is that the specialists are located within a hospital complex and hour away, but our GP's are close and we don't have to pay extra for the specialists.

I have a friend who is on a different plan, and she's really got hassles with it, most as you've all mentioned, no easy access, long waits, etc. She claims she's free to see any doctor she wishes, but we've never had any trouble changing providers. DH and I are lucky we like our docs, DH only has changed once; I've had my same doc for over 15 years.

I think the money can be better spent elsewhere..I am going to have some blood tests done that are not covered by insurance to get a better idea of where I stand health wise.

Manual lab tests are better than automatic ones and preventive blood tests are better than an waiting until you are sick and need to find out what's wrong.

I have no connection whatsoever from this company but heard about it from some friends who had preventive tests done- and found the beginnings of cancer. This is not a mlm either, btw.

Here is a link that might be useful: Your Future Health