Recently Williamsburg doc Jay Parkinson unleashed his revolutionary idea onto Brooklyn -- a doctor for the uninsured, medical advice through emails, and the return of the housecall. The word spread fast and now much of the world is looking his way to see if he can change the way healthcare is provided.
How did your non-conventional idea come about and become a reality?
I don’t really fit in very well to the traditional doctor mold and don’t have a lot of doctor friends. Many of my friends are youngish like myself, involved in the creative industries, and don’t make a hell of a lot of money. They’re often coming to me for medical advice trying to save the absurd amount of time and money it takes to see a doctor when not insured or under-insured. Many of my friends make too much money or are otherwise disqualified from obtaining low-cost health insurance. Most of the time, they would IM, email, or video chat me. I thought it would be a great idea to treat this demographic -- young, uninsured or under-insured, wired, health conscious, and those who are sick of paying too much to wait four hours for a five minute doctor visit. Many people in this age group have acute illnesses and injuries that need timely treatment. Timely doesn’t seem to be in the vocabulary of the modern healthcare system unless you consider paying $2,000 for an ER visit “timely.” I figured I could develop a high quality medical practice based on very accessible low-cost, nearly immediately available house calls, for people who have been priced out of the absurdly expensive traditional health insurance plans. Of course, this type of practice couldn’t survive in a place that wasn’t as densely packed as Brooklyn and lower Manhattan. I’m obviously very mobile and very wired. My schedule is integrated on my website via Google Calendar. My patients can see an open slot, text me with their desired appointment time, and I’ll come see them...even if it’s the next hour. My entire practice, including my electronic medical record, runs on my iPhone. My practice depends on instantaneous communication and mobility.
Aside from offering the uninsured masses healthcare, you also offer housecalls and consulting via IM, email and video conferencing. Do you think you'll run into a lot of electronic patient/doctor scenarios where you'll need to see the patient in person?
Nothing can replace the value of seeing a patient when making a diagnosis. When someone signs up for my service, I make an appointment to come to their house and perform a physical exam, talk with them about their health history, discuss how to use my service, and ways to optimize their health. After this first meeting, I will still almost always visit the patient in person at their home or work. However, there are some diagnoses that are just so obvious I won’t need to go see them. Acne, depression, allergies, and a growing list of other conditions are successfully being managed in a rapidly emerging field called Telemedicine. At the same time, say someone falls on their wrist and thinks it may be broken...most people would go immediately to the ER and get an X-ray. Say it’s not broken...they just spent $2000 on a negative X-ray. If you are my patient, you would call me and describe what happened. I’ll ask you some questions to assess the injury and then send you to a radiologist I know who charges $80 for an X-ray. If it’s not broken, hot damn you just saved $1920. If it is, I’ll be on the phone with orthopedists finding one who can see you in their office to cast your wrist for $400.
I use IM, email, and video conferencing as a supplement to a person’s care to follow up on patients I saw recently and to manage how well a treatment is working. It’s one of the most fulfilling things in the world to wake up in the morning and read an email from a patient I treated yesterday that says she’s feeling so much better.
You've traced your publicity from Noah Kalina's Flickr account to the NY Post in just ten days, did you expect that kind of attention so fast?
I knew I was doing something that had the potential to be revolutionary. One thing that makes me so angry about the healthcare system is a concerted, widespread policy of keeping their prices hidden from the public until you receive your bill a month later for services already rendered. I’ve called a few thousand physicians, radiologists, ERs, and pharmacies to get their prices they charge for certain services and tests. Healthcare prices are absolutely unregulated and the prices vary tremendously. For example, the cost of a brain MRI (same quality facilities mind you) ranges from $500 to $1750. This is absurd. If you are unlucky enough to have chosen the one that charges $1750, you just made a $1250 mistake. I hope that the general public becomes aware of this issue and forces the Industry to be more up-front with their prices. There needs to be more of a free market system in healthcare services and tests. I hope that, through this media exposure, I’m able to raise the issue enough to force the healthcare industry to stop taking advantage of people who are willing to spend anything just to get back on their feet.
But, yes, the offers I’ve gotten from the media and entertainment industry has blown me away. They don’t teach you how to find an entertainment lawyer in medical school.
How many patients do you currently have? Are you feeling a little overwhelmed with the recent response?
I’m feeling more overwhelmed with the media response. Keep in mind, the demographic I’m trying to treat are essentially pretty healthy people. The healthcare industry calls them the invincibles. Young people unfortunately don’t see the value in having their own doctor until they absolutely need medical care. I’m waiting for people to get sick who have heard about me either through the internet or word of mouth to sign up for my service. Once they do experience what it’s like to have such an accessible physician, they’ll understand what they’ve been missing for so long. I promise. Everyone I’ve treated so far thinks it’s the best thing since wheels on luggage.
Have you really been offered a tv show? Would you think about saying yes to such an offer?
I’ve been offered an ungodly amount. Books, TV series, a full feature romantic comedy from one of my favorite producers who produced some of my favorite movies (who actually personally called me). Yes, I would consider these offers. Especially if I could use some of the money I make from these ventures to make my service even more affordable.
Do you think your press schedule will now offer you less time to treat your patients?
I’m a multi-tasker. All of my press began three days before I “opened” my practice. In reality, “open” means, I enabled the link where people could sign up. As in every type of new business, it takes some time to build a client base. Fortunately, the press I’m getting is happening when my client list is small but growing.
