This post is going to be relatively short, and may seem a bit frivolous, but I wanted to write it because it’s about a seemingly small thing that reveals a much deeper truth about DPC (Direct Primary Care) and how it differs from a traditional primary care setup.
Recently I purchased a Nespresso Vertuo machine for the office. I’m a bit of a coffee snob, and let me tell you – this thing makes amazingly delicious espressos.
This post will be extremely short. Back in October of 2023 – when I was still employed at my former practice – I was asked to give a lecture at a conference of physical therapists in Rhode Island. The theme of the conference was lifestyle (nutrition, exercise, sleep, etc.) and how it can positively impact joint health. The focus of my talk was on nutrition, with an emphasis on how proper nutrition can support better joint health and ease chronic pain, as well as on tips for losing weight. If you are interested, the folks who sponsored the conference have now posted a video recording of the talk on YouTube, embedded above.
Special bonus: if you forward to the 24:28 mark and watch just the last seven minutes of the video, you will hear my thoughts on what we can learn from the ancient Romans about how to have better health today – a topic that I will be returning to in another blog post soon.
There are so many problems with our current healthcare system. The difficulty getting appointments. The rushed visits. The paperwork. The surprise bills. I’ve addressed how Direct Primary Care solves a lot of these in my last post. But there’s another element I haven’t touched on yet, but that’s ultimately even more important: insurance driven care is very standardized, which means that it’s often five, ten, or even twenty years behind the science.
To illustrate this point, let me give an example. Let’s suppose that tomorrow a new test was developed that could accurately diagnose pancreatic cancer (one of the most lethal types of cancer) years before it could otherwise be detected by current means. You would think it would be adopted right away by the medical establishment and that doctors would be offering it to every patient at their annual physical starting immediately. But it’s almost certain that would not happen.
