Learning about Direct Primary Care (DPC)
The Shankx Web Development team was invited to travel to Chicago, Illinois on Friday, June 28, 2019 with Dr. Roger Moczygemba of Direct Med Clinic where hundreds of physicians and doctors in residency were called to step outside of the traditional health care system, create their dream jobs and join the Direct Primary Care Movement. The annual continuing educational conference, called the DPC Summit, featured prominent members of the medical world with bold strategies to change the accessibility of Primary Health Care for families around the nation. The DPC Summit is key in teaching family doctors, students, and partners on the DPC practice model.
The SHANKX team also took advantage of the opportunity to speak with public health specialists about the importance of public health in primary direct care. Ryan Neuhofel, DO/MPH, is owner and operator of one of the nation’s first direct primary care practices in the United States in Lawrence, Kansas called NeuCare.
“I think the notion of primary care becoming able to help with public health matters is easier because of the DPC model. More broadly as a physician who is trying to take care of their patients on an individual basis, we also should recognize that there’s other things in our communities and our environment that impact our health that maybe doctors should be more involved in promoting something within their own communities, whether it be parks or something that helps their patients live a healthier life. There’s not just primary care and public health. For me, it’s an integration totally. Just the nature of primary care. That’s what we’re doing.”
Knowing that doctors would also like to see more public health strategies integrated into family medicine through direct primary care gives even more relevance to having a public health specialist on the SHANKX team, such as Antréa, who is eager to put her MSc in International Public Health Nutrition from London to use in the states to educate the masses on preventing disease and prolonging life.
The Summit had a panel of experts in their field, who shared stories of overcoming adversity and the challenges that come along with building a Direct Primary Care Clinic. The Summit gave many opportunities for residents and those seeking to move into DPC ways to make connections and build relationships with participants and doctors who are also great mentors.
For residents, exposure to the DPC model could help impact their decision and ultimately, their quest into Family Medicine. The DPC Summit is an incredible opportunity to become familiar with the principal parts of DPC and allowing them to move into this space.
Although the conference participants were mostly doctors or aspiring physicians seeking to start a DPC or transfer into this model of health care, it was an eye-opening experience for supporters of the DPC model who are otherwise indirectly involved with the patient-doctor experience but undeniably important. Those involved in developing the platforms that help with Electronic Health Records or Electronic Medical Records (EHR/EMR), for example must fuse technology, ingenuity and their knowledge of health informatics to create a database of patient health information that hospitals and clinics will use to keep a record of clients, treatment, medication, etc. in a way that makes sense to users.
Shankar Poncelet and Antréa Ferguson had a chance to network with other speakers of the conference. Among them were Mr. David Contorno, Benefits Advisor and CEO of E Powered Benefits, Nathanael (Neal) Douglas, MD of Heritage Family Medicine, Philip Eskew, DO/JD/MBA of Direct Primary Care Frontier, Paul Thomas, MD of Plum Health, Mark Machalka, MD of Whole Family Direct Care, Clodagh T. Ryan, MD of Cara Direct Care to name some. Each one of these dynamic individuals sat with the SHANKX team and personally shared their joys and successes as well as some of their challenges in creating a DPC.