“I don’t like going to the doctor.”
Experience the Difference with Overland Wellness
Dr. Heather Overland, NMD LAc
Unfortunately, as a lifelong athlete and active person, I’ve gotten several injuries. Accidents happen and physician visits are needed. The waiting rooms almost always smell peculiar, and the chairs are both ugly and uncomfortable. When my injuries have been severe enough to force me into the doctor’s office as a patient, I’m not very comfortable to begin with. Between concerns about germs, feeling terrible for the screaming child or drilling noises coming from the next room and a generally uncomfortable impersonal clinical experience, it can be difficult to muster the motivation to get into a doctor’s office. For general check-ups and wellness care, it is nearly impossible to want to go into a place that is so unpleasant that just being there makes you feel unwell.
Not everything is bad, I’ve become very selective about where I receive care, I’m usually impressed by the friendly demeanor blended with professionalism of the medical assistants, the no-nonsense wisdom of the nurse, and the technical skill of the medical doctor, physical therapist or acupuncturist. There are aberrations, especially before I became a physician. Unfortunate experiences of being talked down to, dismissed, misdiagnosed and feeling worse after my visit than I did before. Despite the good medical care I’ve experienced, it is the bad that has stuck with me.
The worst isn’t the memory of a serious illness or injury, it is the sense of not being heard or recognized. The feeling that I wasn’t a person, just a hazy medical records number in a hospital gown. Rather than even being seen as a body, I felt reduced to my (broken and bent) parts, “the possible ACL in room 201.” It is frustrating, because a knee isn’t just a damaged part to me, its stability allows me to walk across fallen logs in the forest, its flexibility allows me to cope with snowboarding on bulletproof ice when my hope was for powder. Even beyond what a specific body part means to the person who has it, it is the feeling that there is so much more to the story than the injured area, the dietary preferences, the nutritional supplements, the ability to do recovery-promoting physical activities. Alternately, the whole picture includes the requirements of a job, event schedules and family obligations. Ignoring the whole picture can send even the best in-office treatment plan to disarray.
The Difference with Overland Wellness
As a practicing physician, I am particularly sensitive to the plight of the patient. I believe that the best medical care should recognize that the patient is a person. Patients aren’t just numbers, statistics, diagnoses or body parts. You are a person, you are loved by people important to you, you are needed at work, you are motivated and inspired by specific wonderful things. You are unique, and your medical care should be, too.
Why a Concierge Doctor & Wellness Care
This is why I’m a naturopathic physician, an acupuncturist and also a concierge doctor. I want to be part of the best experiences you’ve received, not just another cog in the machine of barely tolerable health care. An office visit shouldn’t be one additional stressor on your life, it should be a rejuvenating and inspiring break from your daily schedule. Treatments should be individualized and goal oriented. They should also recognize that you, the patient, are the one who sets the goals. As a concierge doctor, I see my patients when they need me to. Not to take care of emergencies or just “put out fires,” but to provide wellness care, luxury experiences, the best acupuncture and naturopathic medicine. Concierge visits can occur in the office at a time that works for your schedule. When my patients come in for an office visit, my office is tranquil, welcoming and very different from the stark white, shabby beige and awkward pastel doctors’ offices many of us grew up with.
As a naturopathic medical doctor, I have been trained to “treat the whole person” and recognize that there are complex processes and contributors to the onset as well as the experience of disease. I don’t specialize in fixing just one problem or managing a particular issue, I don’t even identify with a singular therapeutic technique, even though I am also a licensed acupuncturist. Instead, I recognize that one-size fits all approaches fall short of the human experience. You are more than your injury and you are not your disease. You are a complex and wonderful human being. As a doctor, I am focused on your wellness: actively helping you improve your wellbeing so that you can enjoy a full and high-quality life.
Because of my promise to focus on you and dedicate my time to optimizing your wellness, I don’t see the thousands of patients that other doctors do. As a concierge doctor, I limit the number of patients I see. This means that I can provide the highest quality rather than the highest quantity of care. This means that I set aside time so that you can have same-day appointments when necessary. You can have treatments when you need them, not days after. With me as your concierge doctor, you won’t be filtered out or disappear into a receptionist’s pile of messages. I’ll talk directly with you and respond quickly to emails, messages and phone calls. I’ll continually strive to improve your experience and hone my expertise so that you can have the best possible care. Together, we can transform the unpleasant stereotype of going to the doctor. Let’s replace it with the feeling of an individualized wellness experience.