What is Functional Medicine?
Functional medicine aims to determine how and why illness occurs in a particular individual and to restore health by addressing the root causes of disease with a personalized approach. A more detailed explanation can be found here.
What does IFMCP stand for?
IFMCP stands for Institute for Functional Medicine (IFM) Certified Practitioner. I received my certification in functional medicine through IFM’s program, which required a weeklong foundational program, six 20-hour in-depth educational modules, a case report submission, and a half-day exam.
Why don’t you take insurance?
Many people ask why I don’t take insurance for my functional medicine practice. The answer is that the medical system is not set up to adequately compensate for functional medicine work. Procedures (especially those done in a hospital setting), specialty care, medical equipment, and pharmaceuticals are typically well-reimbursed by insurance companies. What is not well-reimbursed is time spent with patients.
In a primary care setting, reimbursements tend to be low and overhead is high. In order to make a primary care practice work financially when accepting insurance, the physician must see as many people as possible during a work day. This results in short, rushed appointments that are not conducive to the in-depth exploration needed when doing functional medicine. Most primary care appointments are 15-30 minutes long. In contrast, functional medicine appointments typically last 1 hour. I have found that I am not able to give people the time, attention, and care they need for a functional medicine approach if the visits must be limited in time to fit into a primary care work day.
What should I expect at the first visit?
The initial visit typically takes one hour, and before we meet I’ll have you complete several detailed intake forms. I’ll review the forms before the visit to get an idea of what your main concerns are as well as get a head start on learning your history, current lifestyle, and goals. At the visit, I take an extensive history, we review lifestyle factors, and I come up with some initial intervention recommendations based on your history and goals. We may discuss recommendations for lab testing and a few nutritional supplements, depending on what is most appropriate for your situation. I may suggest that you see a health coach to help you make some of the recommended lifestyle changes. The initial visit offers me an opportunity to really get to know you, and for us, together, to come up with a plan for healing.
What happens after the first visit?
You may be asked to work with a health coach, start an elimination or other specialized diet, begin some supplements, and make some other lifestyle adjustments, depending on what your particular concerns are and what you are willing and able to do. I may order some lab tests. Some of these may be completely covered by insurance; some may be partly covered or not covered at all. I do try to find the most cost-effective way to proceed, especially with appropriately using insurance coverage when possible. Follow-up plans and time frame are individualized.
What conditions do you address?
I can address most chronic conditions and symptoms with functional medicine. Explore some of the questions I help my patients address.
Do you see children?
I am able to see pediatric patients. I am also a board-certified family medicine physician and am trained to treat people of all ages, however, I no longer provide primary care.
How much do you charge?
Please contact me for more details about pricing.