'Boutique' health care: The patient's view 'Boutique' health care: The patient's view (June 08, 2005)

Bettina and Tyrone Pike are Woodside residents with four young children ranging in age from pre-schooler to young teen. Joining the Village Doctor has been "one of the best improvements in our lives," Ms. Pike says.

When their 4-year old son seriously hurt his arm in a playground fall, Ms. Pike found the pediatrician's office closed for lunch. She had heard of the Village Doctor from friends, and decided to call.

Dr. Eric Weiss responded immediately by meeting her and little George at their home; he then accompanied them to the emergency room, and stayed to oversee George's care.

The experience, she says, "sealed the decision" for her family to join the Village Doctor practice.

She and her husband, she says, "had bottled up our own medical issues" because of the sheer hassle of trying to fit doctors' appointments into their erratic schedules. The Village Doctor "makes it simple," she says.

The proximity of the clinic to their home is a "major advantage," and Dr. Weiss has often come to the home for check-ups with her husband before he leaves for work.

The out-of-pocket expense is worth the benefit, she states without hesitation.

George Phipps and his wife have four small children under the age of 5, and live in Woodside. "When one child gets sick, it runs through the whole family, one at a time, and that used to mean multiple visits to the doctor, each a two-hour excursion," he says.

Now, the children can stay comfortable at home and Dr. Raquel Burgos comes to see them all at one time.

Ellen Montgomery-Wright lives in Half Moon Bay and describes herself as a "young senior." She says she had started to "feel like a number" at her doctor's office and knew it was time to make a change.

"I want to be healthy in the coming years of my life," she explains. Dr. Weiss has helped her feel "more knowledgeable and more in control of her own health care than ever before."

"My dad was a doctor and this is the kind of medicine he would have thought was really good," she says, adding, "The extra expense is worth it, and I am lucky enough to be able to do it."

Linda Lawrence, a professional and mother of two, is in her late 40s and has been "burning the candle at both ends." Taking care of her health had typically been at the bottom of her list.

"I want a full, long healthy life and a fitness level to keep up with my lifestyle, but I didn't know how to accomplish that," she explains.

When she found Menlo Medical's Health for Life, she signed on for a program that combined nutrition counseling, personal training, and a fitness program.

She says she has reclaimed her fitness and has cut her medications in half. "I feel like I have Team Linda!" she says.

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