Plum Health Blog
Plum Health DPC Specializes In Comprehensive Women's Health
Plum Health DPC Specializes in Comprehensive Women’s Health
We strive to deliver excellent care and services for women in our community. We are fortunate to have two excellent female physicians at Plum Health DPC who go above and beyond for their patients at Plum Health DPC.
Specific Services Offered for Women’s Health at Plum Health
We offer a range of services for women in our community, both at our Detroit and Farmington Hills Office. Dr. Raquel Orlich practices at our Detroit office and Dr. Jamie Qualls practices at our Farmington Hills office. Both physicians are excellent in caring for women’s health concerns, including but not limited to:
Birth Control Services
IUD Insertion and Removal
Pap Smears or Pap Testing
Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) Testing
Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) testing
Implanon Insertion and Removal
Dietary Counseling
Weight loss management
Aesthetics like Botox at our Detroit office with Dr. Raquel Orlich
Affordable and Accessible Health Care For Women
Health Insurance can often create a barrier for patients getting access to primary care services. If you’re uninsured or underinsured, getting access to a doctor’s visit can be difficult and expensive. With our direct primary care model at Plum Health DPC, we do not bill or use insurance. Therefore, most of our patients pay $49 or $69 monthly to be a part of our health care service (see our prices based on age, here).
In addition, many of the procedures and services that we offer at Plum Health are included in the membership. Included services include:
visits with the doctor
phone calls, emails, and texting with the doctor
many procedures like IUD insertion, IUD removal,
motivational interviewing like dietary counseling
educational services like birth control management
If you need oral contraceptive pills or birth control pills from our office, prices range from $4 to $9 monthly for medications like Sprintec, Aviane, Junel, Junel FE, and Apri.
If you need lab work performed at our office, it’s roughly $75 for Pap Testing with HPV co-testing and it’s roughly $45 for Sexually Transmitted Infection testing like HIV, Syphilis, Chlamydia, and Gonorrhea testing.
How to Sign Up For a Women’s Health Doctor in Detroit and Farmington Hills
If you’d like to sign up for this type of health care service for yourself, your family, or your business, you can enroll online here.
Thanks for reading!
-Dr. Jamie Qualls, DO, MPH and Dr. Raquel Orlich, DO
Plum Health Takes Care of Patients of All Ages and Stages
Doctors at Plum Health DPC take care of Patients of All Ages and Stages
This week we welcomed the newest member of the Plum Pack, Zaya! 👶 We saw this bundle of joy for her newborn appointment and she was healthy and had a great cry (a sign of vitality).
At Plum Health, we take care of patients of all ages and stages. Our youngest member is now 4 days old and our oldest member is 93 years young 😊
We’re family medicine doctors 🥼 and we’re trained to take care of people as they age and transition through life’s many challenges
Happy birthday Zaya 🎁 🎈 🎂 and here’s to your health!
Thanks for letting us share this moment, and 📸 photo cred to @goodlifedetroit
Patient Ages at Plum Health DPC
At Plum Health, the vast majority of our patients are ages 18 to 39 (55% of our panel) or ages 40 to 64 (32% of our panel). However, we take care of children or pediatric patients ages 0 to 17 (9% of our panel) as well as geriatric patients ages 65 and above (4% of our panel). See below:
At Plum Health, the vast majority of our patients are ages 18 to 39 (55% of our panel) or ages 40 to 64 (32% of our panel). However, we take care of children or pediatric patients ages 0 to 17 (9% of our panel) as well as geriatric patients ages 65 and above (4% of our panel).
If you’d like to sign up to be one of our patients, you can enroll here - all ages welcome!
- Dr. Paul Thomas with Plum Health DPC
Plum Health DPC Featured in the Farmington Voice
Dr. Jamie Qualls of Plum Health DPC in Farmington Hills, Michigan was featured by the Farmington Voice this week. The Farmington Voice is a local paper that covers local news in the Farmington and Farmington Hills communities and Dr. Jamie Qualls and the arrival of her new primary care office therein received some nice coverage:
For a monthly membership fee, Plum Health Direct Primary Care (DPC) offers wholesale prices on medication and deeply discounted fees for x-rays and other tests. In addition, Dr. Jamie Qualls is available to patients anytime by text, email, or phone .
Having completed her residency in June, Qualls said this is the kind of medicine she has always wanted to practice. She chose the office in Civic Center Office Plaza, 25882 Orchard Lake Road, because of the central location and easy access to the freeway.
Here’s a link to the full article.
Dr. Jamie Qualls at her family medicine office in Farmington Hills, Michigan. Dr. Jamie Qualls is a family medicine doctor, using the direct primary care model, and is accepting new patients.
Great Feedback From One of Our New Members at Plum Health
This week, we got some great feedback from one of our new members at Plum Health DPC. Here’s what she had to say in a Facebook post:
I’ve been hearing about Plum Health DPC for a while, I signed up and was l was seen yesterday by them. It’s been 24 hours and I can’t stop raving about it! Everyone who is a small business owner or self employed knows that private insurances are a joke & so pricy.
I was seen the day after I scheduled my appointment, No wait when arriving to the beautiful clinic. You pay a monthly fee for unlimited service (I’m paying $49, you can cancel at anytime), all services that they offer are very low cost, my blood work was $45, B12 injection $1.45, and a prescription for $1.39. They offer I’ll say most or all services that you’ll get at your primary care office. Apart from the affordable services I absolutely loved my doctor, I was not rushed AT ALL.
You also have the flexibility of texting your doctor, I was texting my doctor yesterday and I can’t even explain how that feels like.
Maybe I’m sharing a bit TMI, but I know so many self employed people and small business owners that have no insurance. I had not been properly seen by a doctor in over 5 years because of insurance so I wish I would’ve came across them sooner & I hope that others take advantage of how wonderful this service is.
They’re located in Corktown (Michigan & Trumbull)
Check them out if you want more information
Okay I’m done 🤣
If you’d like to to see for yourself why people love our direct primary care services at Plum Health, you can sign up here.
Thanks for reading and have a wonderful day,
-Paul Thomas MD with Plum Health DPC
Plum Health DPC was recently given a glowing review on Facebook by one of our new members!
Dr. Jamie Qualls to Start a Plant-Based Blog
Dr. Jamie Qualls is a family doctor in Farmington Hills Michigan and she focuses on a food-as-medicine approach. She will be writing about her approach on a monthly blog and we post her insights and wisdom here. If you want to follow Dr. Jamie Qualls on Instagram, she’s at @jamie_plumhealthdpc.
vegmichigan
We at VegMichigan are so excited to be partnering with Dr. Jamie (@jamie_plumhealthdpc) for this new, monthly feature to our blog!
Dr. Jamie is going to be sharing years and years of knowledge through her blog and we are so lucky to have her share her wisdom!
Subscribe to our newsletter (link in bio) to find out each Health Corner topic of the month 👍
#herbivore #eatplants #plantbased #nomeat #meatfree #plantbasedhealth #vegmichigan #veganmichigan #govegan #plantbased #plantstrong #vegandetroit #plantbaseddoctors #michiganeats #michiganfood #veganeducation #veganfoodshare #veganforbeginners #howtovegan #poweredbyplants #healthylifestyle #michiganmade #michiganvegan #michiganvegans #michiganhealth #detroitfoodie #michiganeats #whatveganseat
Family Medicine Doctor Accepting New Patients in Farmington Hills Michigan
Dr. Jamie Qualls is a Family Medicine Doctor practicing in Farmington Hills Michigan with Plum Health DPC. She is accepting new patients.
Dr. Jamie Qualls is a family medicine doctor accepting new patients in Farmington Hills, Michigan. She is a Board Certified Family Medicine doctor who completed her residency here in Southeast Michigan at Ascension Providence Hospital. She is a graduate of Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine.
Dr. Jamie Qualls practices full time at the Plum Health DPC office in Farmington Hills, Michigan - the address is 25882 Orchard Lake Road, Suite 200B, Farmington Hills, MI 48336.
As a family medicine physician, Dr. Jamie Qualls has a broad scope of practice. She helps patients manage chronic conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure, depression, anxiety, mood disorders, asthma, COPD, and many more. Dr. Qualls is also proficient in caring for urgent concerns, like urinary tract infections, laceration repairs, ingrown toenails, strep throat, viral gastroenteritis, and others.
Finally, Dr. Qualls excels at integrating plant based nutrition into her care plans to produce optimal health outcomes for her patients. Dr. Qualls can collect blood work in the office to test for cholesterol levels, thyroid disorders, electrolyte imbalances, and kidney or liver disorders. She can also coordinate imaging studies that may be needed to make an accurate diagnosis.
To become a patient of Dr. Qualls, please sign up here.
Plum Health Featured in The Jewish News
Plum Health DPC Featured in The Jewish News
This week, Plum Health DPC was featured in The Jewish News by writer Ben Falik. My favorite excerpts are as follows:
It’s simpler to describe how direct primary care works than how — let me count the ways — traditional fee-for-service, even with “good” insurance, does not:
I am a member of Plum Health Direct Primary Care. Membership costs $49 a month. Raquel Orlich is my doctor.
I guess she’s other people’s doctor too. But I can call, email or text (from my $50/month phone) Dr. Orlich anytime I’m having an issue and, if she can’t solve it remotely, she can always see me that day or the following.
At one point, there were some balloons celebrating Dr. Orlich’s 300th patient. Ultimately, she’ll have around 500. That seems like a lot, I thought, especially compared to my prior impression that I was her only patient.
The writer, Ben Falik, discusses when his daughter got a splinter in her finger and she was brought to our Plum Health DPC office for care:
Phoebe got a splinter in her finger recently. We texted “Dr. Raquel.” She wrote me right back with her availability. I brought Phoebe to the office at Michigan and Trumbull. Free street parking. Splinter gone. Respectable Band-Aid selection. No charge. And now Phoebe wants to be either a doctor or Great Dane when she grows up.
Dr. Raquel Orlich removes a splinter within 24 hours of being notified of said splinter.
Thanks for reading and have a wonderful day,
-Dr. Paul Thomas with Plum Health DPC
Dr. Jamie Qualls is a Family Medicine Doctor Accepting New Patients in Farmington Hills
Dr. Jamie Qualls is a Family Medicine Doctor Accepting New Patients in Farmington Hills, Michigan
Dr. Jamie Qualls has joined the team at Plum Health DPC. She is accepting new patients at our new location in Farmington Hills, Michigan. Dr. Jamie Qualls is trained in Family Medicine and she takes care of patients of all ages and stages, from birth to children, from adolescence to adulthood, from older adults to the elderly. She focuses on using plant-based nutrition to help her patients heal themselves by using food as medicine.
Thanks for reading and have a wonderful day,
-Dr. Paul Thomas MD
Help Protect Other People From Coronavirus, Wear A Mask
How can you help protect yourself and other people from coronavirus? Wear a Mask
This week, Daily Detroit asked me a ton of questions about the Coronavirus and how to protect yourself, your family, and your community from the spreading virus. It boils down to wearing a mask. I answer many other questions during the podcast, listen here:
Why Should I wear a Mask?
You should wear a mask to prevent the spread of coronavirus. Here’s why:
Coronavirus has a long incubation period. People can have the virus without knowing it or having symptoms for about 4 to 5 days on average. This 4 - 5 day period of having the virus without showing symptoms is known as the incubation period. Some people can be in this incubation period for up to 14 days! Therefore, you could be walking around, infected with coronavirus and unknowingly spreading the virus to your friends, family, coworkers, and vulnerable people in your community. This is the main reason why you should wear a mask.
Coronavirus does not always cause symptoms. For COVID-19, data to date suggest that 80% of infections are mild or asymptomatic, 15% are severe infection, requiring oxygen and 5% are critical infections, requiring ventilation. So, in most cases, if you get the Coronavirus, you’ll be asymptomatic. If you’re asymptomatic, you can still spread the virus, so it’s important to wear a mask to prevent spreading the virus to your close contacts.
Wearing a mask prevents you from spreading the virus via respiratory droplets. When you talk, cough, sneeze, sing, yell, or breathe, you give off tiny respiratory droplets. These droplets carry the coronavirus and can land on surfaces or land in the noses or mouths or eyes of your close contacts. Wearing a mask puts a physical barrier between your nose and mouth and those around you, and therefore decreases the spread of droplets and the spread of coronavirus. If you want to explore this further, check out this blog post from Indian Express. Briefly, if you wear a mask it reduces the amount of bacterial and viral particles that you expel from your mouth when talking, as demonstrated in this image.
This PhD Scientist demonstrates bacterial growth related to wearing a mask vs not wearing a mask.
Why are bars being told to shut down?
Many bars in Michigan are closed or being ordered to close after outbreaks of coronavirus. There are four big reasons why bars are the best places to get coronavirus:
People drink at bars, and it’s difficult to wear a mask while drinking. Without a mask, it’s easier to spread Covid 19.
There tends to be loud music at bars, so people tend to raise their voices and speak more forcefully. This forceful speech tends to spread more respiratory droplets, which leads to an easier spread of coronavirus.
People tend to get closer to one another at bars - the less physical distance between people, the easier it is to spread Covid 19.
Bars are enclosed, intimate spaces, usually with poor ventilation. Many bars are windowless with low ceilings and poor ventilation systems. This can serve as a great space for a virus to circulate.
This is why bars like Harper’s in East Lansing have seen outbreaks of Coronavirus.
Here’s what Daily Detroit had to say:
Welcome to the holiday weekend, everybody. This is certainly a strange one, with coronavirus numbers once again on the upswing in Michigan and across much of the country, adding a complicated wrinkle to what is normally one of the busiest travel weekends of the year.
On today’s show, we make a house call to our friend Dr. Paul Thomas, founder of Plum Health Direct Primary Care in Detroit, for help answering your burning questions about COVID-19. We talk face masks, whether it’s safe to eat at restaurants or fly on airplanes, what to make of coronavirus liability waivers and more. And we’ll remind you that if you’ve got health-related questions about coronavirus, send ’em to us at dailydetroit@gmail.com and we’ll do our best to include them in future episodes with Dr. Paul. You can even send us audio of your question and we’ll try to work that audio into the show.
Also, we talk the latest, dispiriting COVID-19 data from the state and how we’re holding up from a mental health perspective more than three months into this weird, horrible quarantine that unfortunately shows little sign of ending anytime soon.
Thanks for reading, and stay safe out there!
-Dr. Paul Thomas with Plum Health DPC
Warning: Dog Bites Can Be Painful and Costly
Dog bites can be painful and costly, but it doesn’t have to be that way. We go above and beyond for our patients to try to prevent any unnecessary emergency department visits. We can treat dog bites, cuts, asthma attacks, and several other urgent care-type concerns in our office. This goes a long way for our patients, giving them the assurance that their doctor is available to them and protects their pocket books from over charges at the hospital.
Thanks for reading and have a wonderful day - Dr. Paul Thomas with Plum Health DPC
Dog Bite Laceration on lower lip before
Dog Bite Laceration on lower lip, after 3 sutures at Plum Health DPC in Detroit Michigan
Plum Health grows with a second location in Farmington Hills, hires a third physician
Plum Health grows with a second location in Farmington Hills, hires a third physician
Detroit, Michigan, June 23, 2020 - Plum Health DPC is pleased to announce that they have expanded access to primary care resources in Metro Detroit by creating a second clinic location in Farmington Hills, Michigan.
Plum Health DPC currently operates a thriving location in Corktown Detroit with Doctors Paul Thomas, MD and Raquel Orlich, DO. Plum Health has selected Farmington Hills for its second location because of the increasing demand for Plum Health’s innovative services and the desire to be more easily accessible to patients throughout Metro Detroit.
Jamie Qualls, DO, MPH will start with Plum Health DPC at their new office location in Farmington Hills, Michigan on July 1st, 2020.
The Farmington Hills location opens on July 1st, 2020 and will be led by Jamie Qualls, DO, MPH who is passionate about forming strong relationships with her patients. Her clinical interests include community health, chronic disease prevention and reversal using food as medicine, LGBTQ-friendly medicine, and osteopathic manual medicine for chronic musculoskeletal issues.
Dr. Qualls is a graduate of Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine and completed her residency training at Ascension Providence Hospital. Further, she is excited about expanding access to primary care in Metro Detroit.
“Direct Primary Care gives me enough time to work with my patients to address the root cause of chronic illness. In short, I have enough time in the DPC model to be comprehensive in my care,” noted Dr. Qualls when asked why she chose to join a direct primary care practice over a traditional fee-for-service model.
"We believe that healthcare should be affordable and accessible for everyone, that’s why we’re growing into this second location – to expand access to care," says Dr. Paul Thomas, who for the last three-and-a-half years, has been serving residents in Detroit and beyond from Plum Health's Corktown office.
There are currently 750 members in the practice who are cared for by Drs. Paul Thomas and Raquel Orlich. Dr. Qualls' arrival will allow Plum Health to care for an additional 500 patients.
Direct Primary Care (DPC) physicians do not bill or use insurance, which means they can provide their patients with steeply discounted medications, labs, imaging services, and procedures. This practice model allows patients to have a direct relationship with their primary care physician by enrolling in an affordable subscription-based service.
A Plum Health subscription is between $10 and $89 per month. Further, DPC doctors like Dr. Qualls make themselves available by phone, text message, or video call. This connectivity makes getting care even more convenient for their patients.
The new office is located at 25882 Orchard Lake Road, Suite 200B, Farmington Hills, MI 48336.
Media Contact
Dr. Paul Thomas, MD
Founder & Physician
Plum Health DPC
(313) 444 - 5630
More about Plum Health DPC
At Plum Health, we believe that health care should be affordable and accessible for everyone. Members of the practice can call, text, or email the doctor anytime they need health care services. We guarantee same-day/next-day appointments. Additionally, patients have access to wholesale medications, at-cost imaging services, and at-cost lab work. Plum Health began in November 2016 with 8 patients, and now has 750 active patients, spanning in age from 4 months to 101 years of age. Our vision is to provide the best healthcare experience in Detroit and beyond.
More about Paul Thomas, MD and Jamie Qualls, DO, MPH
Dr. Paul Thomas is a board-certified family medicine physician practicing in Southwest Detroit. His practice is Plum Health DPC, a Direct Primary Care service that is the first of its kind in Detroit and Wayne County. His mission is to deliver affordable, accessible health care services in Detroit and beyond. He is a Clinical Assistant Professor at Wayne State University School of Medicine. He served as Chief Resident at Oakwood Family Medicine Residency Program. He has been featured on WDIV-TV Channel 4, WXYZ Channel 7, Crain's Detroit Business and CBS Radio. He has been a speaker at TEDxDetroit and is an author of the book Direct Primary Care: The Cure for Our Broken Healthcare System.
Dr. Jamie Qualls, MD, MPH is both a family medicine physician and a master of public health. She is able to take care of patients individually and the greater community with her additional training. She is passionate about forming strong relationships with her patients. Her clinical interests include community and public health, chronic disease prevention and reversal using a food as medicine approach, LGBTQ-friendly medicine, and osteopathic manual medicine for chronic musculoskeletal issues. She is a graduate of Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine and completed her residency training at Ascension Providence Hospital.
More about Direct Primary Care
The direct primary care (DPC) model gives family physicians a meaningful alternative to fee-for-service insurance billing, typically by charging patients a monthly, quarterly, or annual fee (i.e., a retainer) that covers all or most primary care services including clinical, laboratory, and consultative services, and care coordination and comprehensive care management. Because some services are not covered by a retainer, DPC practices often suggest that patients acquire a high-deductible wraparound policy to cover emergencies.
Direct primary care benefits patients by providing substantial savings and a greater degree of access to, and time with, physicians.
Taken from the American Academy of Family Physicians website.
This Detroit Doctor's Office is Open For Business
Plum Health DPC is Open in Detroit’s Corktown Neighborhood
We have been continually working and continually serving our patients during this time. We are proud to do this work and proud to be making health care more affordable and more accessible in Detroit and beyond. Everyday, we work diligently to deliver excellent care and service to our patient and we work diligently to lower the cost of health care in our community.
We are a family medicine practice and our staff includes myself, Dr. Paul Thomas, and my practice partner, Dr. Raquel Orlich, DO. We are both Board Certified in Family medicine and we take care of patients of all ages and stages here in Detroit and beyond. Many people ask us if you have to live in Detroit to be a member of our practice, but you should know that we see patients from all across Metro Detroit and the State of Michigan.
Thanks for reading and have a wonderful day,
-Dr. Paul Thomas MD with Plum Health DPC
Primary Care Doctor Delivers Medication by Bike in Corktown Detroit
Sometimes we’re able to go above and beyond for our patients at Plum Health. This week, one of our patients was having an allergy flare up and needed a refill of some allergy meds, but couldn’t make it into the office because of a scheduling conflict. So, I rode my bike over to their home and delivered the medications. It’s a little thing, but it makes a big difference!
Here’s the LinkedIn post I made about the medication delivery in Corktown:
If you’re looking for compassionate family medicine or primary care doctors in Detroit, you can sign up for our service, here.
Thanks for reading and have a wonderful day,
-Dr. Paul Thomas with Plum Health DPC
Plum Health Office Vandalized, but we will continue to serve
Plum Health Office Vandalized
Saturday, our medical office was vandalized by a man with a can of spray paint.
This is an unfortunate event, but it doesn’t define who we are. We are a family medicine practice and we believe that health care should be affordable and accessible. We exist to actively lower the cost of healthcare for our neighbors in Detroit and beyond. We are successful because we’ve met an unmet need in the community and we’ve been embraced by people in the community.
In response to seeing the vandalism on Twitter, I replied in a tweet: “While we respect your right to protest, and we agree with the reasons why you’re protesting, please don’t vandalize the office where we lower the cost of healthcare for Detroit residents #PlumHealth.”
On Sunday, we’ll wash off the graffiti and on Monday we’ll continue to see our patients and continue to serve our community. Paint washes off easily, but the journey to justice in our country and the healing of racial injustices will take more intentionality and sustained effort.
Thanks for reading, and have a wonderful day.
-Paul Thomas, MD
P.S. Some people have reached out and asked how they can help. Here’s a few ways:
work towards making our community better, safer, and kinder. There are so many Detroit-based non-profits and groups that you can volunteer with or donate to, and many of them have been devastated by the Coronavirus. Here’s a few of my favorites:
Grace in Action - a network of youth-run collectives and worker-owned cooperatives rooted in Southwest Detroit
the Downtown Boxing Gym - providing Detroit youth with educational and physical activities (I volunteered with them as a ring-side Doctor)
the Detroit Historical Society (they did a fantastic exhibition on Detriot ‘67)
Eii (equitable Internet Initiaitve of Southwest Detroit address digital justice), a smaller initiative, is working hyper locally to address the gap in access to information
join the protests and ensure that they remain non-violent and non-destructive.
If you’ve used our service in the past, or believe in our mission of delivering affordable, accessible healthcare, you can leave us a review, here.
If you want to be a part of our service or if you want to sponsor a family member or a friend who needs this type of medical service, you can sign up, here.
Dr. Paul Thomas' Statement on George Floyd
This week has been a tumultuous week for our communities and our country. I’m proud to be an ally to those who face racial injustice and race-based discrimination and violence.
The vast majority of people were supportive of the post, but there were some negative comments. One person on Facebook said: “This was a terrible event. Likewise, Dr Thomas, there is no professional reason for you to comment on this.”
In response, I said “I respectfully disagree. I serve a diverse group of patients, some of whom have been exposed to trauma that can negatively affect their health outcomes. By communicating my understanding of these realities, I aim to help others and support those who've been affected by traumatic events like this. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29019632/”
Thanks for reading,
-Dr. Paul Thomas
Doctors Embracing Startup DPC Book on Social Media
Startup DPC Book Gets Great Feedback on Social Media
This week, we’ve been getting a lot of love for the Startup DPC Book on Social Media.
Let me preface this post by stating a few things. First, I’m a physician on a mission to delivery affordable and accessible healthcare here in Detroit and beyond. Second, I’m an educator. Not only am I a clinical assistant professor at Wayne State University School of Medicine, but I also teach in other ways. One of those ways is by teaching other doctors how to successfully start and grow their own direct primary care practices.
I truly believe that direct primary care is a better way of serving our patients - we have more time to listen to our patients, we have more tools to deliver compassionate care, and we can actively lower the cost of medical care for our patients. Therefore, I want to reach as many doctors as possible with this information.
My physician colleagues have responded and they’ve sent me some tremendous feedback via social media. Below are a few of those posts!
Direct Primary Care Doctor Inspired by Startup DPC Book
Recently, Rebecca Berens, MD of Vida Family Medicine in Houston Texas sent out very kind post on Instagram. She recently read the Startup DPC book, Startup DPC: How to Start and Grow Your Direct Primary Care Practice and she posted a quote on her Instagram that I used in the book from John C Maxwell, “Growth is the great separator between those who succeed and those who do not. When I see a person beginning to separate themselves from the pack, it's almost always due to personal growth.”
This is the quote that I used at the beginning of Chapter 6 on How to Prepare for Direct Primary Care While in Residency. I used the quote here because I believe that new doctors and residents have the greatest opportunity to learn a new system of care, and they have a unique opportunity to adopt the DPC model and the DPC mindset before getting enmeshed in the dysfunctional fee-for-service system as an employed physician.
Here’s what Dr. Berens had to say:
I love this quote that Dr. Paul Thomas from @plumhealthdpc added to his new book, #startupdpc Direct Primary Care is a new concept to many patients (and even doctors), but it was truly personal growth that led me to take this path. I was so tired of churning patients through the system in 10 minute increments, never having enough time to really help them in the way I knew I could. Meanwhile, I was arriving home to my family emotionally drained and physically exhausted. Becoming a mother made me realise that I needed to do better, for my patients and my family. Starting your own business is a huge risk (even without a pandemic throwing a wrench in the mix!) but in the end all of the stress and uncertainty it will be worth it.
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Does spending more time at home during pandemic have you reflecting too? How have you grown over the last few months?
TESTIMONIAL FOR STARTUP DPC BOOK AND COURSES
Post from Dr. Prisiliano Salas about the Startup DPC Book and Startup DPC Courses:
Just finished a course by Paul Thomas, M.D. from Plum Health DPC and #startupdpc. Let me just say that Paul knows his stuff. I met him in 2018 at the Family Medicine DPC Summit. He gave a lecture about his experience starting a #DirectPrimaryCare practice and using social media marketing strategies. I've been following him on/off during this time but had not fully made the jump onto social platforms the way he describes it. Now two years later his practice growth is testament to this method. He's full and added a new doc! On top of that he remains faithful to his mission, to empower the #DPC community with his knowledge and reproducible success. I'm now ready to embrace social media to share my knowledge and experience with my patients (though still working up to youtube to get more camera ready 😎 ). Take one of his courses or read one of his 2 books, he won't disappoint. Keep the momentum going!
Thank you so much for the shout out Dr. Salas! and best of luck with your direct primary care practice. I know that you’ll have every advantage on attracting new patients after taking our Sales Funnel course.
Regina Allen Hardin, MD of Modern Medicine made this post on LinkedIn:
Medical Student gives a shout out to the Startup DPC book
This week, Startup DPC got a nice shout out from Pretty Girl Practice on Instagram. If you’re a direct primary care doctor, social media applications like Facebook and Instagram can be great platforms to reach new audiences and also to improve your branding. If you don’t have a Facebook Page or an Instagram page for your direct primary care practice, consider making one to improve how people in your community perceive your brand and your business. I teach doctors how to do this, step-by-step, in the Sales Funnel course on our website, here.
Here’s what Pretty Girl Practice on Instagram had to say about direct primary care:
You pay a monthly membership fee (like Netflix) to your Doctor
You can schedule as many visits as you like with your DOCTOR and text your doctor medical questions when needed (no more Dr. Google 🤓)
Hour long visits and you receive higher quality care (currently insurance companies often have quick 20 minute visits to see more patients and therefore make more money)
great for fields like Family Medicine, Pediatrics, even some Dermatologists use this model
allows Doctors to be entrepreneurs again! and brings back the treasured physician-patient relationship. Also, decreases burnout for physicians. Plus patients are more satisfied, win-win!
I really think DPC will be the practice of the future. It’s the practice a lot of us dreamt of when we first became doctors.
The following image is a screenshot from her story about Direct Primary Care:
Startup DPC gets a nice shout out from PrettyGirlPractice on Instagram.
Sincerely thank you to all of the doctors who’ve picked up a copy of the book and who’ve used their social media platforms to share about the book. I appreciate all of you!
-Dr. Paul Thomas with Plum Health DPC
Startup DPC Book Reaches Number 1 on Amazon in the Physicians Category
This is Dr. Paul Thomas with Plum Health DPC here in Detroit Michigan. We believe that healthcare should be affordable and accessible for everyone, and we are doing our part to make that happen here in Corktown, and Detroit, and beyond.
However, several doctors have reached out to me and asked how we made Plum Health such a successful direct primary care practice. How are we attracting new patients? How are we lowering the cost of healthcare? How are we lowering the cost of medications, labs, and imaging services? How are we cutting all of the bureaucratic red tape?
I answered all those questions individually for my physician colleagues, but I also saved those answers in a word document, which eventually became this book.
This book is intended to help family physicians and internal medicine physicians start and grow their direct primary care practices. We want to see more doctors adopt this model that lowers healthcare costs and puts patients first.
The response to the book has been tremendous, and we’ve received many great reviews and a ton of great feedback about the content of the book. Thank you so much to everyone who has purchased the book, thank you for everyone who has left a review on Amazon, and thank you for making us number one on Amazon in the physicians category. We sincerely appreciate all of you!
- Dr. Paul Thomas with Plum Health DPC
PS if you're a doctor looking to start a direct primary care practice, check out Startup DPC
Startup DPC: How to Start and Grow Your Direct Primary Care Practice is the number 1 new release on Amazon in the Physicians category!
Startup DPC Paperback is Now Available
Direct Primary Care Book Available in Paperback Format
The Startup DPC book is published and it feels amazing to have it in my hands. It took me 3 years to write this book, as I documented many of my experiences in starting and growing a direct primary care practice. I took all of my experience, knowledge, and wisdom and poured it into this text.
My goal is to help other doctors start and grow successful and thriving direct primary care practices. There are so many challenges and obstacles that they will face along the way, and I know that this book will help them overcome those challenges and obstacles.
Today was a big day for me, as I published the book on May 5th, and received my first few copies in the mail today. I'm really excited to see this direct primary care movement grow and I'm wishing all of the DPC doctors out there continued success. I know that we are improving health care for our patients, our communities, and our nation.
Thanks for reading and watching,
- Dr. Paul Thomas with Plum Health DPC
Personal Protective Equipment Being Made in Detroit and Michigan
This week, I wanted to highlight some of the incredible work being done here in Detroit and Southeast Michigan. Some community members have been very generous in their donations to our clinic of masks and face shields. We also picked up some hand sanitizer from a local bus company. In this blog post, I’m going to highlight some of the companies making a difference here in Detroit and Southeast Michigan by making Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).
MI Face Shields
First up, I wanted to highlight MI Face Shields. Tom, a member of MIFaceShields.com, delivered protective face shields to our office to help us slow the spread of coronavirus. We shot a video (below) about the product that is available for purchase on their website.
We discuss how the product is made in a no-touch environment and how it's made right here in Michigan (thus MI Face Shields). Tom also mentioned their Facebook page, and you can navigate to that site to find more information about the product.
I think that these are a great way to add an extra layer of protection for yourself and for your patients. I could also see this being used in bars and restaurants or grocery stores by checkout clerks. Again, it's an extra layer of protection that can help to slow the spread of the virus.
Hand Sanitizer at Detroit Bus Company
Hand Sanitizer has been hard to come by, but fortunately one of our neighbors has been making hand sanitizer for a relatively low price - The Detroit Bus Company. What’s really amazing is that the Detroit Bus Company shut down their usual operations and went all in on making hand sanitizer. They ship and allow for pick up on Saturdays and Wednesdays. You can purchase a bottle or more at their website.
Hand Sanitizer at Two James
Additionally, Two James, a spirits/beverage company in Corktown has also shifted to make hand sanitizer. Here’s what they’ve relayed to me:
We are selling hand sanitizer and bottles of Two James Spirits out of our tasting room Wednesday - Saturday from 12p - 4p. For tasting room purchases, there is a limit of 2 per person for all sizes. Please come down during our open hours to purchase. We accept cash or credit card. First come, first serve, no holds.
Availability and Pricing for Hand Sanitizer for Sale In Tasting Room
$4 - 8oz
$8 - 16oz
$16 - 32oz
If you require information regarding larger orders for yourself, corporations or organizations, please send an email to me with "Hand Sanitizer" in the subject line. I will get back to you asap.
I apologize that we cannot ship any orders at this time. Orders are pick up only.
I spoke with one of their managers, Erika Rice about why the project was important, and she wrote that:
"We saw a huge need for hand sanitizer when the pandemic hit and there was no question about switching gears to start the process of creating hand sanitizer to step-up to help the community. We are proud to be able to say that we have donated to our local police, fire and EMS departments as well as those working the front lines in the surrounding metro Detroit area. Family and community are the pillars of our business and it only made sense to help.”
Face masks from Commonwealth sewing
Commonwealth Sewing Company is a Detroit-based clothing manufacturer. They’ve shifted gears from making custom shirts to making cotton face masks. These are available for purchase at their Commonwealth Sewing Co website.
Face Masks from Detroit Denim
Another Detroit-based company making Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is Detroit Denim. Detroit Denim usually makes jeans and aprons, but now they’re switching gears and making masks and gowns. You can check out their products, here.
Face Masks From York Project
Yet another Detroit-based company making face masks is the York Project. They are selling two-ply masks on their website, here.
Thanks for reading and have a wonderful day,
-Dr. Paul Thomas with Plum Health DPC
Paul Thomas MD Publishes Startup DPC: How to Start and Grow Your Direct Primary Care Practice
Dr. Paul Thomas of Plum Health DPC Publishes a New Book
I am proud and excited to announce that my new book, Startup DPC: How to Start and Grow Your Direct Primary Care Practice has officially been published! And it is currently the #1 new release in Amazon’s Family Practice Medicine category!
Why This Book on Direct Primary Care Was Written?
I wrote this book for so many reasons - to begin with, starting and growing a Direct Primary Care practice has changed my life. I’ve been able to serve people in my community with a high-value family medicine service, I’ve been able to advocate for causes that I feel passionate about, and I’ve been able to be creative in my approach to solving people’s healthcare challenges. In short, I’ve been able to become the doctor I’m meant to be.
I’ve also learned a ton from my colleagues in the direct primary care movement, and I wanted to give back in a tangible way. So, I took all of my learnings, all of my knowledge and wisdom that I’ve gained over the past four years and put those lessons into this book. I’ve had a lot of victories, but I’ve also made a ton of mistakes and I’ve had my share of failures - I wanted to share about the spectrum of success and failure and give my primary care colleagues as many advantages as possible when they set out to do this kind of work.
What The Direct Primary Care Doctors Have Said About Startup DPC
"I have followed Dr. Paul Thomas' career since he started Plum Health DPC in 2016. His ability to integrate podcasts, blogs, and media appearances within his brand is incredible. Dr. Paul presents direct primary care to physicians in a digestible, seamless format that has solidified his position as a DPC influencer across the country. His branding and marketing techniques are top notch, and I can't wait to see what creative ideas he formulates in the future. Dr. Paul is truly a rising star in the DPC movement."
- Dr. James Pinckney II, CEO & Founder Diamond Physicians
"Starting your own direct primary care practice can be a stressful and confusing endeavor. Dr. Paul Thomas does an excellent job alleviating much of that stress and confusion in this detailed, engaging account of starting a successful, thriving practice. If you have ever wondered whether direct primary care might be for you, do yourself a favor and read this book before making that decision - I bet you'll find it less intimidating than you expect."
- Tiffany Leonard, MD, FAAFP, Owner and Physician of Deer View Family Medicine
"Dr. Paul Thomas does it again! An easy to understand and implement guide to making your DPC practice as successful as it can be!"
- Eleanor Host, MD, Whole Family Direct Care
"Dr. Paul's content is simultaneously engaging and thorough, filling a void in the literature up until this point. His latest book is pioneering in its ability to walk someone through the process of starting a direct primary care practice from a to z, hitting on all of the most salient points and leaving nothing to the imagination."
- Phil Hellman, MD, Paradox Health
"Dr. Thomas' experience with personal branding is extremely helpful to budding direct primary care physicians. In this book, he walks you through the important steps, from creating a logo to engaging with local media and then using social media to market your practice. You really can't find this hands-on, real-life advice anywhere else. I wish his book had been in print when I opened my direct care practice in 2018!"
- Aleea Gupta, MD, Family First Direct Primary Care
"Dr. Thomas has been a huge inspiration to me as a new DPC doctor!His first book was an excellent introduction to the model, but this book really dives deep into the nuts and bolts of how to start and market your practice.As doctors we are not educated on how to run a business, but this guide answered all my questions and makes this scary process feel manageable!"
- Rebecca Berens, MD, Vida Family Medicine PLLC
"Dr. Paul is an influential thought leader of the direct primary care movement. His efforts to advocate for the doctor-patient relationship and assist his colleagues in navigating to the direct primary care model are exemplary."
- Dan Schaefer, M.D. Family physician, Owner and founder of Whole Health Family Medicine Clinic.
Startup DPC Book Description
We all know that our current healthcare system is broken, especially for primary care doctors and their patients. Primary care physicians have to see more and more patients in less and less time in order to keep up with declining reimbursement from insurance companies. This leads to rushed office visits, missed opportunities for genuine connections between doctors and their patients, frustrated patients, and burned out doctors. But it doesn't have to be this way.
Direct primary care offers a real opportunity at a fulfilling practice of medicine. It’s a golden opportunity to restructure your time, build the practice of your dreams, and spend your best hours taking care of patients and prioritizing your family life, rather than wasting time as a data entry clerk for an insurance company. In short, direct primary care gives you the opportunity to become the doctor that you're meant to be.
But how do you get this done? How do you go from a less-than-fulfilled doctor in the dysfunctional fee-for-service system to an empowered, entrepreneurial direct primary care physician capable of starting their own successful DPC practice?
The answers you're seeking are in this book!
My name is Dr. Paul Thomas, and I'm a Board Certified Family Medicine Doctor - I launched my own direct primary care practice straight out of residency in Southwest Detroit with over $100,000 in student loan debt. In my first month of practice, I had 7 patients. A few years later, we have over 700 patients, and I've hired a medical assistant and a second family doctor to help me manage the growing demand for our services.
I was named the entrepreneur of the year in 2018 by the Detroit Vanguard Awards, I gave a TEDxDetroit talk on direct primary care, and I've been featured in the Detroit Free Press, Reason Magazine, CBS Radio, Detroit's ABC affiliate WXYZ, Detroit's NBC affiliate WDIV, and Crain's Detroit Business. I've also been a speaker multiple times at the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) DPC Summit, the Direct Primary Care Nuts and Bolts Conference, and the Hint Health DPC Summit.
In this book, I'm going to teach you everything I know about direct primary care and about starting a successful direct primary care practice. Here's a smattering of the topics that we'll cover:
- How to have the right mindset to be successful in your direct primary care journey
- How to become the doctor you're meant to be
- What a typical day looks like for a direct primary care doctor
- How to finance your direct primary care startup
- How to raise money for your DPC practice
- How to overcome a lack of business training in medical school and residency
- How to construct the perfect timeline for starting your DPC practice
- How to write a business plan for your direct primary care clinic
- How to start a direct primary care practice straight out of residency
- How to convert an existing fee-for-service clinic to a direct primary care practice while remaining profitable
- What's the difference between direct primary care and concierge medicine
- How to hire a second doctor for your DPC practice
- How to find a profitable location for your DPC practice
- How to negotiate a lease deal for your medical practice
- How to build out the medical office of your dreams
- How to attract patients to your direct primary care practice
- How to brand your practice so you stand out in your marketplace
- How to build your personal brand to grow your direct primary care practice
And so much more!
By picking up this book, you may be taking your first step in starting your direct primary care practice, or you may be taking the next big leap in growing your direct primary care practice. I know that whoever you are, and whichever stage you're at in your DPC journey, this book will inspire you and demonstrate in concrete methods how you can be even more successful.
Here's to your success in the growing DPC movement!
- Dr. Paul Thomas with Plum Health DPC