Dear fellow AAPP members:

I would like to take a moment to reflect on who we are, what we are doing, and why it’s so important. The American Academy of Private Physicians was founded on a simple premise: more time and better care for our patients while freeing doctors from complex payment schema and contracts by ‘third party payers.’ Simply put, we are held accountable to our patients, not to insurance companies. Full stop.

The organization, which began with the efforts of the indefatigable Jack Marque and John Blanchard, MD has evolved into a national voice: “Of the doctors, By the doctors, For the patients.” Our efforts are centered on making sure that physicians, patients, policymakers, and media all know that our movement represents a necessary path forward in the reform process. By elevating the nature of the doctor-patient relationship, we are in a unique position to define what the ‘future’ of primary care and all medical care could look like.

As ‘healers,’ we need to move away from the ‘Don’t just stand there, Do something’ model to the “Don’t just do something, Stand there” model. That is, medicines and procedures should not be a tool to use just because they exist. Rather, cogent and contextual thought should define the right thing to do. The private physician model is predicated on more time, more thought and less pills and procedures.

We are building the wellness model of the future and actively critiquing the circular illness-model. The common denominator that sets us apart is our desire to listen longer, ask more questions, and take the time to work through a complex problem in the spirit of healthy living and longevity.

We have a lot of work to do and we need your help. I am personally asking you, our members, to get your fellow private physicians involved. We will be revamping our web presence to generate more leads for your practice and create a certification platform for practices as well as vendors. I would like to personally thank Shelly Banyay and Tom Blue for their remarkable work. I hope to see you in Scottsdale!

In Health,
Jordan Shlain MD

Hello and Happy Holidays!

This is the first of what I hope to become a regular tradition with the AAPP and that is a monthly “note from the president.” I hope that we can start to open a dialogue about issues that matter to you and to your patients.

It is hard to keep up with all the regulatory changes, mandates, and government programs. That said, I am SO grateful that I work for my patients and feel somewhat immune from those who would want to get into the exam room.

I am finding that business is plentiful and patients are looking for a doctor who will really listen, spend time, and work on their behalf. I hope that you are finding the same. The economy has surely made things difficult for every line of business but it is reassuring to know that patients still want to invest in their health. That conversation is coming back. In fact, I am happy to announce that the AAPP will be working with the Benjamin Rush Society. The Benjamin Rush Society is devoted to educating medical students and even college students about the opportunities that can be found in the private market place. While we all believe in pluralism and patient choice, I think that we would all agree that students have not had the benefit of knowing the kind of work we do and that there are opportunities to start a practice, gain the trust of our patients and really do an A+ job: all the while making a living. Let me know by responding to this email that you might be interested in participating in going to various college and medical school campuses and advancing that discussion.

After the first of the year, AAPP will be launching a slew of business opportunities for our members. I think that the most important opportunity will be to take a seat at the table in the world marketplace of medicine. AAPP members will be able to market their practice to the world thru the mediguide website (free for a year). It is clear that our patients want us to provide every opportunity for their better health even when that means traveling to Singapore (for instance). But, did you know that tens of thousands of patients throughout the US are looking for that same opportunity but perhaps outside the direct practice model. A woman may be looking at plastic surgery, for instance in Brazil… or a person without insurance may find himself wanting and needing to go to Thailand for heart surgery where the cost is less than $15,000 (total) (and the outcomes are at least as good) rather than paying an American hospital close to $75,000. These patients will need to utilize our network in order to get their pre-op and to provide all methods of communication to doctors all over the world. Let’s not kid ourselves. This is a world marketplace and America is going to have to step up to the plate. AAPP is thrilled to working with other doctors across the world to provide the best of care for all the world’s patients.

Some words of caution: recently, we have seen incredible breaches of privacy across the internet. One of the things that most AAPP members offer our patients is absolute privacy. Please use every consideration when emailing anyone about just about anything… There is no privacy across the net.

Wishing you the best of holidays! Please use this introduction as an open invitation to email me anytime about anything. Join the AAPP in Phoenix on the 29th of January.

Follow my blog: http://www.thezlifemag.com/meet-dr-z/blog/

Be safe and well…

Yours,

marcy

It is truly an honor to accept the presidency of the American Academy of Private Physicians.  My friend, Tom Lagrelius, has left some rather huge shoes to fill.  We started 2009 walking in the right direction and with Tom’s determination and passion, this organization is running toward a brilliant future.

I don’t have to remind our physician members that the world is NOT about us.  It is about our patients.

They are why we go to work, and it’s their successes and wonderful life stories that make us smile and give us cause to pause a moment…. knowing this is the way it was meant to be.

2010 is going to be more than dynamic.  Direct practices are exploding all over the country.  The AAPP is going to be there to help any and every physician who wants to engage in what has become known as “old fashioned” medicine.  I, like Tom, am determined to be sure that any and every patient in this country who wants to invest in their personal health will have the opportunity to befriend a direct practice primary care physician.

This effort will take a team, not a village, just a team of dedicated like-minded doctors who know that the success of this movement is the reform that this nation needs to bring affordable health care to all Americans.  It has NEVER been about insurance.  It has ALWAYS been about the patient-doctor relationship and about doctor-doctor collaboration.  It has NEVER been about the paperwork but ALWAYS been about the passion.  It has NEVER been about the MONEY but has ALWAYS been about the dedication to duty.

I want to end my remarks with a little story about my daddy.  I asked my dad about President Obama’s gift to the Queen of England.  You may remember that he gave her an IPOD.  My father thought that that was a foolish gift.  I asked him what he would have taken across the Atlantic to give to the Queen and he answered immediately.  ”Well, a box of See’s candy, of course.”  In my mind, I remembered the boxes of See’s candy and the Apple pies my family made for our neighbors and friends when we wanted to say “hello” or “thank you.”  Health care is no different, is it?  It is not about the computers or the iPhones.

Those are great tools.  But, its the boxes of candy and the home made apple pies that come with love and the wanting to share that make America’s healthcare the success that it is.  It is the ability to apply the science to the person ….. not the person to the science.

My daddy took a box of See’s candy down the street to share with the family of Polly Morrison, the wife of our pediatrician who died many years ago.  She is ill with cancer and is under the care of hospice at the age of 92.  While there, he was able to make a donation to Dr. Morrison’s foundation, the Morrison House, and in exchange, Mrs. Morrison gave my daddy an original piece of artwork, done by her husband during his retirement.  I brought it back from Ohio and it will hang in my office to remind me of the legacy that my family pediatrician left with us.  The legacy is what we all know and practice and what we want for our patients.  We want them to know that good “old-fashioned” medicine is here to stay.

And as one my patients said to me today when she “came back” to the practice,  ”It feels like I’m home again.”