Here we interview innovator Dr. Jay Parkinson; especially note #5 below.
1. We see you as the first "Health 2.0" doctor-- comment?
ANSWER: I don't feel as if I am any sort of Health 2.0 doctor. I simply use the internet to communicate with my patients. It's really a simple concept. You go online, tell me what's wrong, and I show up at your house to meet you and examine you. We then follow up online and sometimes, if needed, in person. I came up with this idea because it simply makes sense to me. The current practice of medicine disavows proper and normal communication because of reimbursement from insurance companies. Reimbursement policy reform is probably the most important strategy toward solving a healthcare crisis created by insurance companies. Instead of financially rewarding specialists who do procedures, we should reward primary care doctors who keep people healthy so patients don't have to have those expensive procedures.
Instead, our current policies only reimburse primary care doctors for volume, not quality or customer service.
2. Would what you're doing work in places other than NYC?
ANSWER: Of course. It depends on a few things such as population density, what those doctors are doing during travel time, etc.
3. How important is video to what you're doing, and what learnings do you have from utilizing it to date?
ANSWER: Video is not all that important. The current state of video technology is pretty dismal. Even when you aren't sick, webcams make you look sick. The audio portion isn't always in sync. It's a difficult way to communicate given the current state of the technology. Also, you have to be in a fairly private area to video chat with your doctor. People really want to email, IM, and text their doctor because that's how the vast majority of my generation communicates professionally and socially.
4. Are you able to charge-- or do you see a day when you can charge-- for remote "patient visits"?
ANSWER: Of course. It's my time. I'm a professional who spent 9 years in school or training since graduating college. I have a very important service to offer that focuses on your health. Would you ask this question to a lawyer or a broker or any other professional? It blows my mind how insurance companies have cheapened doctors. They've distilled the profession down to either a $5 or $10 copay so that gradually over the course of years, patients have become used to thinking that medicine should be something that is essentially free. Doctors need to free themselves from insurance companies and take back the freedom they once had to practice medicine as they see fit.
5. Where will you take what you're doing next-- any plans for a model that enfranchises other docs in other geos?
ANSWER: Yes, there are plans and funds and it's happening right now. I've taken a break from my practice to build this concept out. It's a fascinating ride and you should be looking for this kind of practice all over America in the next year or two. There will be different flavors, but the essence will be the same -- your own personal doctor that you can communicate with just like you communicate with everyone else in the world. It will be a reasonably priced, personalized consumer experience (on par with any enjoyable retail experience such as the Apple Store) based on cash for primary care with all of the services and tools you need to spend your money as a wise healthcare consumer.
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