No one said being a DPC doctor would be easy. Sure, some of the red tape is gone but there are other things that get in the way, stress you out or make you cringe. What are they? Here are some ideas:
- Some patients that treat you as their bitch. The one time that you can’t accommodate them you are dead to them.
- Working with fee for service specialists that provide terrible service to their patients. I’ve had patients turned away at the neurosurgeon because they didn’t bring the disc of their images, wound care docs where there are so many patients stacked up that there is a two hour wait and no seats available.
- Feeling like if you screw up once and they are not happy, they are out and will give negative reviews.
- I always joke that patients are the worst part of medicine – but that’s just because there are 600 patients with 600 different personalities. As much as you love them, they can still be frustrating because they are still people.
- Weekend calls for a med refill from the *nicest * patient whose meds seem to always need filled at the last minute who hasn’t paid her family’s membership in 3 mos….(but comes in once or twice a year and pays about 75% of their balance)
- New patients who want to get in the same day for an acute issue, then never pay their bill.
- “Do you take my insurance?”
- Worrying that your partner’s patients won’t be happy with your care when she’s away!
- Have a patient tell you that they now have insurance so they are gone
- An employer ends their contract with you and almost all the employee patients leave, even though they would have saved money if they had stayed and paid for the subscription themselves