What is Concierge Medicine?

Healthcare with no boundaries

A concept that originated in Seattle over 15 years ago, Concierge Medicine is a type of medical practice now found in many metropolitan areas across the country. Also known as “Concierge Health Care”, “Boutique Medicine” or “Retainer Medicine”, the concept has come to represent a higher level of healthcare for those who want a more personalized relationship with their physician.

In most concierge practices, doctors provide their patients with 24-hour a day access to them via cell phone, as well as offer their patients with the option of house calls in order to make their medical care as convenient as possible. This model has proven successful for those physicians who want to see a fewer number of patients on a day to day basis thus allowing them to spend more time nourishing individual patient relationships.

For patients, concierge healthcare has brought back an old-style format of medicine in a modern world. The concierge doctor serves as a family doctor for many concierge patients and allows families the comfort of knowing that medical advice is only a phone call away. For busy executives, the concierge doctor allows for these professionals to receive medical care at a time and place that is convenient. In some practices, the executive concierge model includes features such as executive physicals and the option of having a doctor come directly to the office during the workweek in order to maximize time.

At the upper echelon of concierge medicine are practices, like EliteHealth, which integrate the traditional concierge model and match it with an advanced level of diagnostic care and true concierge services.

In the case of Miami, FL based EliteHealth, members enjoy the benefit of having access to on-site laboratories and the best diagnostic equipment available in medicine today, including the latest in MRI, CAT Scanning and Ultrasound technology. The ability to make most diagnoses in a single visit saves concierge patients the time of having to return to the office for a follow-up visit. This, in complement with a dedicated Patient Care Concierge and the ability to network and consult online through a patient portal sets the EliteHealth model above most other concierge practices found nationwide.

While the amenities may vary from practice to practice, the common thread found in concierge medicine is a commitment to delivering the highest level of healthcare to member patients. While the level of customization may vary, the commitment does not. In a climate where the nation’s healthcare system is failing a great percentage of the population, the concierge medicine model has emerged as a way for people to have a direct relationship with their physician in order to ensure their healthcare needs are met. For doctors who are constantly under the pressure of seeing more and more patients in order to recuperate money lost to diminishing reimbursements (from insurance companies), concierge medicine has allowed them to get back to what they love – practicing medicine.

Author: Steven A. Schnur, M.D.
Date: 09/18/2008

Keywords: concierge medicine, concierge medicine practice, concierge medical