Since the arrival of COVID-19 it is rare to hear physicians talk about their work with excitement and enthusiasm. Yet, that is exactly what happens when you sit down for a discussion about Direct Primary Care (DPC). This new model of care is engaging physicians as much as the patients they serve. The only question is whether this enthusiasm will continue to spread.
Why Direct Primary Care?
Healthcare IT Today recently had the opportunity to attend the HINT Summit – a gathering for DPC practitioners and the companies that offer solutions to DPC clinics. The event was hosted by Hint Health, makers of a platform that handles employer enrollment, administration, billing and invoicing for DPC clinics. Check out the summary of the event in this article: Momentum Growing for Direct Primary Care
Everyone at the Summit spoke enthusiastically about the DPC model and how it was the complete antithesis of the pressure-cooker fee-for-service model at other primary care clinics. In fact, many physicians talked about how they learned about DPC after becoming frustrated with traditional care.
That’s how Dr. Kyle Rickner, owner of Primary Health Partners which has clinics in multiple states including OK, MO, IA, and KS, joined the DPC movement:
Dr. Emilie Scott, Co-Founder & Family Physician at Halcyon Health Direct Primary Care put it best when she said: “There was a misalignment of incentives and the true customer wasn’t the patient that was in the room with me. That’s when I started to do some research and found Direct Primary Care.”
The story was similar for Dr. Delicia Haynes, CEO at Family First Health Center, who made the leap to DPC after realizing that things at her fee-for-service practice were not going to get better in 5 years, but worse.
It was clear from the physicians we spoke to that DPC was what kept them practicing medicine.
What Has Been the Most Pleasant Surprise Now that You are Part of the DPC Movement?
When physicians make the switch to DPC, there are many surprises…not least of which is that they no longer have to enter information into an EHR so that it can generate a claim to a payer. Many we spoke to at HINT Summit shared how happy they are, even though they are not earning nearly as much as they had under the fee-for-service model.
Dr. Haynes was pleasantly surprised at how DPC provided her the opportunity to learn more about her patients:
Dr. James Gaor, Co-Owner and Physician at Halcyon Health Direct Primary Care, was surprised at the demand for DPC from patients – especially since they have to pay out-of-pocket for DPC services.
Zak Holdsworth, CEO of Hint Health gave a thoughtful response when asked about the pleasant surprise of being part of the DPC movement: “There has been a lot of innovation in the movement. There has been a lot of growth, but the movement hasn’t been corrupted. That wasn’t necessarily a sure thing because there is so much pressure. I’m just really happy that the integrity of the movement is still very strong.”
What Are You Most Excited For in the Next 6 Months?
It was interesting to hear the different responses when we asked physicians what they were most looking forward to over the next 6 months.
In her response, Dr. Emilie Scott laid down a challenge for Health IT companies: “I really hope that more people who work in technology can see what we are doing and hopefully find that there is a market to build technology around a DPC practice.”
Hint Health and other companies have already jumped into the DPC space. More may join them if physician and patient enthusiasm for this model of care continues to grow.
