Whenever I ask the urgicare doctor, the pharmacist or any specialist a general medical question, they tell me,“That’s something you should discuss with your primary care physician.”
As if.
I haven’t had a primary care physician in 20 years. Instead, I had insurance plans that changed every single year, even when I hadn’t changed jobs. At times, my plan forced me to choose a PCP because they would not pay for me to see a specialist without a referral. As I became familiar with plans, deductibles and the medical insurance bureaucracy, I learned to choose plans where I could see a specialist without a referral – thus saving me time, money and hassle.
My experience with PCPs sucked. First, I had to find a PCP who accepted my insurance and was accepting new patients. Then I had to make an initial appointment. These were usually unavailable for several months since all appointments were booked far in advance.
Making an appointment for anything quickly was usually impossible. If I needed something quickly, I’d go to Urgicare or Minute Clinic. On the rare occasions when I visited my PCP for anything other than a routine exam, they would refer me to a specialist anyway!
A few weeks ago I asked my pharmacist )who has done all of my vaccinations for the past 5 years) if she recommended I get an MMR booster. She told me I should discuss it with my PCP.
Gee thanks.
Then yesterday I visited the urgicare because I had something in my eye for a week. While there, I asked the physician the same MMR booster question. Her reply was, “That’s something you should discuss with your primary care physician.”
Thanks for nothing, Doc.
If I didn’t have to wait 6 months and pay $250 for an appointment, I might do that.
“Talk to your PCP” is buck passing. It’s a convenient blow off statement used by someone in the medical community to pass off responsibility while following acceptable norms without helping the patent.
I imagine that this will eventually change as medical providers who do this lose business while those who actually take ownership of helping their patients reap the rewards.
Concierge medical care practices are springing up in high income communities around the US. They recognize their is a market demand for this type of service and affluent individuals who will pay extra for this service.
Eventually, I suspect I’ll be doing this too, if the pricing and ROI make sense to me.
Until then, I’ll rely on Dr. Google and being my own PCP.
As for the MMR vaccine, I am still undecided on the MMR booster. I am certain I had one in the 1970s. I think I may have been required to get a second one before attending college in 1986. Since one shot is 94% effective and two are 97% effective, I’m still on the fence about getting another – which might be my third vaccine. My regular grocery store pharmacist won’t administer it without a prescription, so I’ll check with other pharmacies nearby. Since measles in now spreading around the US and little kids often swim in the pools I use, I’ll probably get it just to be safe.