A superior attraction doc for astir of his 3 decades successful medicine, Dr. Whitehead has joined the rapidly increasing Greenville-based company.
Chuck Milteer | TALK Greenville
Dr. Doug Whitehead has been a superior attraction doc for astir of his much than 30 years successful medicine.
After aesculapian schoolhouse astatine MUSC successful Charleston and residency with the Greenville Hospital System (now Prisma Health), helium was a founding spouse of Greer Family Medicine. In 2019, aft astir 25 years astatine the practice, helium joined Simpsonville-based Proactive MD.
At Proactive MD, Whitehead has cared for patients astatine the company’s Spartanburg Health Center and is presently astatine the company’s caller Greenville Health Center, which opened successful January connected Villa Road.
John Collier, CEO of Proactive MD, founded the institution successful 2016 to beryllium a catalyst for alteration successful the mode healthcare is provided — returning the absorption to precocious superior care, and the patient.
Proactive MD partners with backstage and nationalist employers to supply their radical with precocious prime attraction astatine a conveniently located, dedicated Health Center — often on-site for larger companies. The effect is amended diligent outcomes and healthier, much productive workers astatine a little outgo than accepted healthcare plans.
The institution is increasing rapidly and operates successful 17 states and has much than 70 wellness attraction centers, including 11 successful the South Carolina.
It’s a exemplary that Whitehead says is the culmination of what he’s spent his vocation trying to provide.
“We are lone and ever astir the patient,” helium says. “We committedness to combat for their top good.”
Whitehead lives successful Greenville with his woman and family.
TALK GREENVILLE: Thanks for taking the time. Talk a small spot astir your travel to becoming a physician. Why did you privation to beryllium a doctor?
DR. DOUG WHITEHEAD: I’ve ever been fascinated by radical and science. Not lone bash I find joyousness successful improving people’s well-being, but I besides bask proceeding people’s stories — what makes them tick, what limits them, wherever they came from, and however they got to wherever they are, etc. Especially erstwhile it meets their wellness needs.
TG: What gives you the astir occupation satisfaction?
DW: Connecting with my patients. It’s rewarding to spot patients enlightened erstwhile we observe the root of their wellness issues and for maine to beryllium capable to supply them with a solution that is going to thrust them backmost connected the way to health.
TG: Is that what you expected erstwhile you archetypal got retired of aesculapian school?
DW: Not necessarily. Medicine has transformed importantly implicit the years, becoming much blase and complex. When I archetypal graduated from aesculapian school, medicine was similar a one-way street, wherever the supplier came up with the solution that was close for the patient, period. Now, medicine is much of a two-way street, wherever you tin signifier medicine portion connecting with patients connected a deeper level to find the close answers to their wellness problems together. It’s absorbing present to spot however people’s stories, and wherever they travel from, tin impact their wellness issues today.
TG: You spent a agelong clip moving successful a much accepted exemplary of providing wellness care. What are immoderate of the limitations and challenges that presents?
DW: Traditional models incentivize volume, often astatine the disbursal of value. Volume-driven models tin pb providers to suffer show of a patient’s top bully and alternatively absorption connected the wellness system, security plan, oregon a hospital’s bottommost line. This leaves the diligent feeling similar a cog successful a referral instrumentality without a existent aesculapian home.
TG: In an interrogation with The Greenville News, your CEO, John Collier said straight-up that the existent wellness attraction strategy is broken. What’s the astir breached part?
DW: The referral engine. When determination is nary healthcare supplier to instrumentality ownership of the patient’s full wellness journey, the diligent often faces months-long waiting periods to spot a referred specialist, who whitethorn oregon whitethorn not beryllium capable to lick the problem. They walk him oregon her to the adjacent specialist, which creates a frustrating cycle—and much expenses for employer-sponsored wellness plans.
TG: How does Proactive MD’s precocious superior attraction conception code those issues?
DW: We enactment the diligent first. We connection employers a personalized attack to attraction for their diligent populations, focusing connected prime and reducing costs. We’re capable to tackle immoderate of the systemic healthcare problems arsenic good arsenic unsocial leader healthcare concerns. We bash this by prioritizing the supplier and diligent narration with longer assignment times and easy accessible appointments.
We make a aesculapian location for patients that offers broad-scope attraction and actively maintains connections with patients passim their attraction journey. We besides person diligent advocates connected our staff, to conscionable patients wherever they are and supply resources, outreach and support.
TG: What’s the biggest vantage of the model?
DW: Patient experience. We ever look for ways to optimize each azygous attraction touchpoint. For example, our patients person nary hold times. We bring our patients straight to the provider. We docket longer appointments to let plentifulness of clip for the diligent to inquire questions. Our Patient Advocates thrust the referral process -- what we telephone continuum of attraction -- which removes the load from the diligent and streamlines the process. That besides reduces costs for the employer.
TG: Are determination lessons that much accepted providers tin oregon should instrumentality from this concept? In different words, this is large if you enactment for a Proactive MD lawsuit institution oregon municipality, but what astir folks who don’t?
DW: The main takeaway I’d share, whether you are a accepted provider, leader oregon individual: There is an alternate exemplary of attraction that puts the diligent first. Yes, the healthcare strategy is analyzable and determination are galore players, but astatine Proactive MD we’ve recovered that erstwhile we pb with the extremity of highest imaginable prime diligent outcomes, the remainder falls into place. And that’s usually the astir cost-effective route.
TG: What’s thing you privation everyone paid much attraction to astir their wellness – what would marque your occupation easier?
DW: There is simply a batch of mythology retired determination astir however to amended your well-being, and I privation everyone would wage much attraction to what really works. It sounds simple, but bully wellness lies wrong you. There are 3 basal things that tin importantly amended your health: eat, sleep, and move. If we each ate a much balanced diet, exercised more, slept more, and paid much attraction to however our regular routines tin interaction our aboriginal well-being, I deliberation radical would beryllium amazed astatine however overmuch this tin amended our health.
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TG: What’s the biggest acquisition the pandemic has taught you arsenic a doctor?
DW: During the pandemic, we saw much distrust successful the aesculapian assemblage than ever before. The mode radical received communications passim the pandemic I deliberation caused a batch of skepticism and part successful our communities. As providers, I deliberation we request to admit the value of wide connection with our patients to clasp people’s trust.
TG: What bash you anticipation for arsenic Proactive MD grows?
DW: I anticipation that much and much radical and businesses go alert that determination is simply a antithetic attack to attraction that is solving immoderate of our biggest healthcare headaches. I would emotion to spot a wide paradigm displacement passim the federation and, of course, would emotion to spot Proactive MD astatine the helm. As we proceed to turn and connection attraction passim the nation, I’m hopeful we stay focused connected impacting attraction passim our location basal present successful South Carolina. We present person 4 nonstop superior attraction locations successful the Upstate alone, truthful I americium excited to spot what the aboriginal holds arsenic we proceed expanding to amended service much lives.
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TG: You’ve been moving successful the Greenville country for rather a while. Are you from this area? What bash you deliberation of the region’s growth?
DW: I’m primitively from Murrells Inlet. However, I’ve lived and worked each implicit South Carolina. I’ve been successful Greenville for 33 years present and person watched it turn from a tiny textile municipality to a beauteous thriving assemblage wherever radical tin live, work, and rise a family. I find the maturation successful Greenville to beryllium exciting, and I look guardant to seeing however it volition proceed to alteration for years to come.
TG: What’s your favourite happening to bash erstwhile you’re not working?
DW: You tin find maine traveling oregon hiking done each the fantastic spaces astir Greenville and Western North Carolina. I besides bask golfing successful my escaped clip and spending clip with my 2-year-old granddaughter.
TG: The country has developed varied and affluent eating country and nutrient culture. Does that marque your occupation easier oregon harder?
DW: I’m not definite if it needfully makes the occupation easier oregon harder, but it surely makes my beingness better! I’ve truly enjoyed trying caller restaurants successful Greenville and deliberation our city’s divers culinary country tin beryllium steadfast overall. Exploring antithetic restaurants and cuisines is simply a large mode to animate radical to spell location and observe their ain recipes.
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