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became
a cultural icon as he solved patient depression, helped
other clients with relationship problems or guided
wayward souls through mid-life crisis and serious
illness - apart from his office duties as a
pediatrician. Predictably, each patient found resolution
within the duration of a one hour show.
A
generation later, many adults who recall Dr. Welby
cannot themselves remember the last time they had an
entire hour to ask their doctor anything, let alone
speak to their doctor about lifestyle issues. Such is
the case in this era of restrictive insurance coverage
and hyper-competitive medicine.
Concierge
Medicine/L.A. was launched 18 months ago by Dr. Raphael
Darvish whose approach to patient care is summed up
thus: No insurance. No billing. No payments. No
paperwork. No waiting. No hurrying. No headache.
Darvish brings a unique understanding to practical
medicine. As a U.C. Berkeley alumnus and UCLA-trained
doctor. Darvish is a fourth-generation internist who
also holds an MBA from the Anderson School of
Management. Darvish's impressive credentials belie his
down-to-earth approach to his profession: He seeks to
bypass the fog of insurance hassles and return the
doctor-patient relationship to the bygone days of Marcus
Welby's unhurried face-to-face interaction.
This
type of boutique medical service, also referred to as
"retainer" medicine, is gathering growing interest among
middle-income patients who desire more personalized and
pleasant medical care. "We seek to treat the whole
patient more thoroughly than the 'factory model' of
healthcare most common today," said Darvish recently in
his Brentwood office.
For Darvish and his staff,
this "whole patient" approach includes sharing advice on
lifestyle and wellness issues with his clients and
Darvish has even been known to go to lunch with his
patients. Darvish also prides himself on his familiarity
with the latest advances in preventive care and how he
is quickly able to relate this information to his
patients. Darvish explains that his guiding principle is
to offer the type of treatment he would like for his own
family.
Darvish's patients pay a modest annual
fee between $1750 and $2900 directly to Concierge
Medicine to secure a number of preventive and checkup
services that normally aren't covered by some medical
plans or require mountains of insurance red tape.
Concierge Medicine also provides each patient with a
"Presidential Checkup" modeled after the detailed annual
medical checkup the President receives. This checkup
entails a battery of tests of the major organs and
detailed analysis of the patient's medical history.
Darvish and Concierge Medicine limits their
patients/doctor ratio to about 10% of that of
conventional practices, ensuring individualized care to
each patient. Additionally, patients have 24/7 access to
their personal physician via cell phone and same-day
appointments in a Brentwood office that resembles a
rizty spa more than a doctor's office.
Concierge
Medicine's approach is finding greater popularity among
increasing numbers of people of all income levels. And
as Dr Darvish continues to
bring back the personal practice of medicine that has
been only a t.v. memory, his patients look forward to
getting back more control of their healthcare from the
insurance companies. Marcus Welby would be proud.
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