SophiMed Wellness operates outside the traditional insurance system. Instead of billing your insurance for every visit, you pay an affordable membership fee.
So, Why Membership Medicine?
To Get the Time and Respect YOU Deserve!
Ok, so as we all know, healthcare has NOT been putting out the friendliest of vibes. It keeps trending away from quality and seems to be focused on quantity. Show Me The Money Monty! Or at least your insurance cards. No insurance cards oh, no care for you. Ugh! Insurance companies are the ones dictating the time Providers can spend with patients and often, the treatment. And sometimes you are waiting forEVER to actually get seen by anyone. It’s impersonal, cold, and wonky. How often are we greeted at our Doc’s office by, “Insurance Cards please,” and sometimes without even a “hi!” It’s like being pulled over by the fuzz. “License and registration please.” Are they going to frisk us for the payment as well. Shake us upside down to get their hands on our last quarter!
As a provider, I have watched as patients/people get shuffled into categories to save time. Oh, you have high blood pressure, let’s send you to the heart doctor. Or you have a weird colored leg, let’s send you to the skin doctor. And really, unfortunately it is necessary. In many practices, providers aren’t given the time to really dive into the problems of their patients. It’s not their fault they just aren’t given the luxury of time.
Now, Is it absolutely true that we as patients must take responsibility for our health as well, Heck Yeah! Could we NOT ask Bob to hold our beer and “watch this” as we sail off the side of a house to show how cool our newly created sledding jump is, yep! And yes, we can’t expect one person or provider to Bam! fix things with a snap of their fingers.
BUT, if given more time, attention and tools, I feel a Provider and a Patient can make an unstoppable team in optimizing one’s health! (And maybe get Bob to stop us next time…)
How is Membership Medicine Different?
In a Membership format, Providers have the freedom to create a Health Partnership. One where we can take time, set goals and meet as often as needed to attain them. You will not be told oh, only one complaint today. Or Hey, we only have 15 minutes to figure out your entire medical profile.
Attaining Optimal Health doesn’t get done in a 15-minute window of time!
Membership Medicine offers a softer, more personal approach to Primary Care. If you’ve ever left a medical appointment feeling unheard, rushed or like you forgot to ask the one question that actually mattered, you’re not alone. If you want your healthcare to feel like a friendly team sport, not dodgeball, a Membership Practice may be for you.
Some Specific Reasons Why Membership:
1 – More Time: Because You’re not a Speed Bump on the Schedule.
In traditional models, visits are often scheduled back-to-back like Dominoes. Blink, and your appointment is over.
- Your provider has time to ask why, not just what.
- Longer visits improve diagnostic accuracy, shared decision-making, and adherence to treatment plans. Patient-centered visits are associated with better chronic disease control. (JAMA, Annals of Family Medicine)
2 – Simpler Access (aka You Don’t Need a PhD in Phone Trees)
If you’ve ever spent your lunch break navigating the “press one if you’d like to speak to a receptionist, press 2 if you’d like to speak to anyone, anyone with a human voice,” while hold music slowly erodes your will to live, you’re not alone.
- Membership practices often have Direct Messaging or email so you can access your provider quickly.
- If you do get a voicemail, not a phone tree but a voicemail, you’ll get a call back quickly.
- Fewer hoops, fewer headaches
3 – Preventive Care Gets the Attention it Deserves
Most people don’t wake up wanting to develop chronic disease. But prevention take time – time to talk about sleep, habits, diet, exercise, nutrition, hormones, and the things that don’t fit nicely into billing codes.
- Membership allows you and your provider that time to get into the nitty gritty of your health, lifestyle choices, etc.
4 – Clearer Relationship Around Cost
Healthcare billing can feel like a surprise party you didn’t ask for – and definitely not the fun kind. More like confetti made of fine print.
- Memberships have monthly fees that usually include many costs.
5 – Care that Sees the Whole Person (Not the Problem List)
You re not a collection of diagnoses. You’re a human with a history, a family, stressors, goals.
- Memberships offer Continuity of Care, you generally see the same provider which builds trust and a deeper understanding over time.
Membership Models often have smaller Patient Panels (the # of patients they see). Traditional models often have patient panels of 2-3000 patients. In the Membership model, it is general 300-600. Lower panel sizes are associated with improved continuity of care, reduced Provider burnout, fewer hospitalizations, and lower mortality. (BMJ, 2018)
