By Cos Barnes
My grandmother was always visited at home by her physician. I suppose doctors called on the elderly in their homes for the patient’s convenience.
One frosty cold morning when no traffic was stirring because of snow, we called a neighboring physician because my mother was wretchedly ill with a headache. It did not matter that he was an orthopedic surgeon, or a bone doctor, as many called them in those days. He gave her a shot and she never had another headache. This is a true story.
Now there are more than 75 clinicians who provide on-site, state-of-the-art medical care to residents in senior living communities, as well as patients in private homes. Their staff includes specialists in geriatrics, internal and family medicine, neurology, infectious disease, pulmonary medicine, palliative care, podiatry and ophthalmology.
DMHC, as they label themselves, Doctors Making House Calls, serve as the primary care provider as well as urgent care clinician for all DMHC patients. Their clinicians are available 24/7 for urgent care telephone consultation. They see patients seven days a week.
They accept and directly bill Medicare and Medicaid as well as all supplemental insurance care plans.
Gone are the days of appointments that are delayed, canceled or terribly detained, the days when schoolchildren had to miss class days because of appointments.
These doctors like seeing patients in their home setting with familiar surroundings.
The more things change, the more they stay the same. PS
Cos Barnes is a longtime contributor to PineStraw magazine. She can be contacted at cosbarnes@nc.rr.com.
