Total Access Medical - Direct Primary Care Blog

William Kirkpatrick

Recent Posts

Need To Know: First Aid Skills

Apr 03, 2017 by William Kirkpatrick

Everyone should learn at least some basic first aid techniques because you never know when you could be the difference between life and death. The techniques mentioned in this post will give you the confidence to act in a serious situation because you never know when you might need them.

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These Foods Can Help Save Your Memory

Feb 09, 2017 by William Kirkpatrick

Just as your stomach, muscles, and heart feed on the nutrients that food supplies, so does the brain. So, what does the food you eat have to do with how your brain functions? 

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Primary Care Can Save America’s Hospitals

Jan 27, 2017 by William Kirkpatrick

Primary care serves as the cornerstone for building a strong healthcare system that ensures positive health outcomes and health equity. The function of primary care includes managing new health complaints that pose no immediate threat to life, managing long-term conditions and supporting the patient in deciding when referral to hospital-based services is necessary. A key aim is to keep people well, by providing a consistent point of care over the longer term, tailoring and co-ordinating care for those with multiple health care needs and supporting the patient in self-education and self-management. 

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Analyzing Direct Primary Care

Jan 25, 2017 by William Kirkpatrick

In a world created by non-physician administrators where 10 minutes per patient, 30 patients per day, little ancillary support and the constant threat of litigation is mixed with declining reimbursements and high debt loads, it comes as little surprise that primary care physician burnout is among the highest of any occupation.

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Tips To Create Your Personal Wellness Plan

Jan 23, 2017 by William Kirkpatrick

A wellness plan is a plan of action geared towards achieving personal wellness. Personal wellness implies a state of multidimensional health and satisfaction. There are many dimensions to personal wellness, and each must be nurtured, developed, and maintained for optimal overall well-being. 

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Aging Baby Boomers and the Future of Primary Care

Jan 13, 2017 by William Kirkpatrick

Have you ever heard of the "2030 Problem"? Well, the “2030 Problem” involves the challenge of assuring that sufficient resources and an effective healthcare system are available by the year 2030, when the elderly population is nearly twice what it is today. And, it's forecasted that this increase in population will have drastic affects on healthcare in the U.S. 

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The Simple Math Behind Weight Loss

Jan 11, 2017 by William Kirkpatrick

The pleasure of eating a candy bar lasts just a few minutes while burning off those calories can take nearly an hour.

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What Does a Trump Presidency Mean For Direct Primary Care?

Jan 06, 2017 by William Kirkpatrick

As Donald Trump begins to transition into his presidency, the healthcare community has begun to make predictions about the impact of Trump’s policies on independent physicians. But what can direct primary care providers expect to see the next four years?

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Why Won't Supply For Primary Care Meet Demand?

Jan 04, 2017 by William Kirkpatrick

Imagine if the only place you could bring your child when he develops flu-like symptoms, an ear infection, a nagging cough, a sore throat or needs a checkup or a refill for his asthma inhaler, was to a hospital emergency room. You would be paying an exorbitant amount for basic care. But, that is what's happening today. With dropping incomes coupled with difficulties in juggling patients, soaring bills and policies from insurance companies that encourage rushed office visits all mean that more primary care doctors are retiring or leaving medicine altogether. In addition, medical malpractice lawsuits, now are common, adding more layers of paper work, expense and stress to virtually every physician’s day.

Unless immediate and comprehensive reforms are implemented by the government, primary care—the backbone of the U.S. health care system—will collapse and the repercussions will be worse than the 2008 housing crisis. Luckily, there’s still time. Primary care isn't dead yet but it is on life-support.

Here's why there are more primary care physicians leaving the medical field than entering. 

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The Consequences of Emergency Department Overuse

Jan 02, 2017 by William Kirkpatrick

Hospital emergency departments are a critical and indispensable component of the U.S. health care system which is why overuse has become a national concern and worry amongst hospitals, policy makers and healthcare providers. 

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