Stephanie Mitchell was tired of the usual annoyances when visiting the doctor, such as hours spent in the waiting room and rushed appointments with doctors too busy to give her their full attention.
“Navigating the health care system with its long waits for short appointments and depersonalized care can be a hassle,” says Mitchell, a working mom of two in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. “Sometimes it treats a patient more like a number than a person.”
“I was looking for a more personalized health care experience, and I wanted a doctor
who really listens and takes the time,” she says.
In an effort to find a good doctor, Mitchell finally found Dr. Louis Minsky, a concierge medicine physician at Minsky & Carver Medical Center for Personal Wellness, an affiliate of MDVIP, a national primary care doctor network that provides concierge medicine services.
The word “concierge” conjures an image of a well-dressed employee at an expensive hotel who arranges restaurant reservations and caters to your every need. Concierge medicine isn’t exactly like that, but it does aim to be more attentive and patient-focused – and often comes at an expense.
“I like to think of myself as removing the hurdles of medical care,” Minsky says.
We asked our experts to explain how concierge medicine is structured, how it’s different from a regular doctor’s practice, and who stands to benefit the most from using a concierge practice.
Concierge medicine is a health care model in which patients pay a monthly or annual membership fee for enhanced access to personalized care.
In concierge medicine, most providers are primary care physicians, also called general practitioners or family doctors.
Some may be pediatricians, which can benefit parents whose children seem to be always getting sick.
