Any recommendations on Primary Care Providers in Greensboro?
I recently received a form letter saying that Dr. James Kindl, my physician for the past two decades, is joining MDVIP, "a national network of physicians who focus on personalized preventative healthcare." His letter goes on to say "In order to provide enhanced proactive care, I will be reducing the size of my practice to no more than 600 patients who may join on a first-come, first-served basis."
What his letter doesn't say, and what doesn't become apparent until one goes to his new website and actually tries to sign up for his new practice, is that this members-only service has an annual fee of $1,500, and that this fee only pays for membership; all the usual charges will still apply, billed to your insurance company.
His form letter says that he decided to take this step after he "recently commissioned an extensive telephone survey" and discovered that his patients had the following complaints about his practice:
"The staff is good but since my practice is so large, there are times when patients feel rushed or they may have to wait for an appointment."
And:
"Patients do not like the telephone system and are frustrated that they have difficulty reaching a live person."
A cursory google search suggests that this boilerplate is on all the form letters sent out by doctors who are signing up with MDVIP. It certainly doesn't jibe with my own experience of Dr. Kindl's practice. I've never had a problem reaching a real person when I called his office. The one time I called it for an after-hours emergency, when I had a food bollus stuck in my esophagus after attempting to swallow an insufficiently masticated piece of prime rib at M'Couls, I was immediately transferred to an after-hours physician. I've never had to book an appointment particulary far in advance, and when it was something that needed prompt attention, they scheduled me for either that afternoon or the next morning. And Dr. Kindl himself has always been friendly and attentive and has always seemed to take plenty of time with me. So what gives?
That's a rhetorical question. I assume he wants to earn more money for less work. That's his right, but I have no interest in helping him do so. So now I need to find a new goddam doctor n this town.
What his letter doesn't say, and what doesn't become apparent until one goes to his new website and actually tries to sign up for his new practice, is that this members-only service has an annual fee of $1,500, and that this fee only pays for membership; all the usual charges will still apply, billed to your insurance company.
His form letter says that he decided to take this step after he "recently commissioned an extensive telephone survey" and discovered that his patients had the following complaints about his practice:
"The staff is good but since my practice is so large, there are times when patients feel rushed or they may have to wait for an appointment."
And:
"Patients do not like the telephone system and are frustrated that they have difficulty reaching a live person."
A cursory google search suggests that this boilerplate is on all the form letters sent out by doctors who are signing up with MDVIP. It certainly doesn't jibe with my own experience of Dr. Kindl's practice. I've never had a problem reaching a real person when I called his office. The one time I called it for an after-hours emergency, when I had a food bollus stuck in my esophagus after attempting to swallow an insufficiently masticated piece of prime rib at M'Couls, I was immediately transferred to an after-hours physician. I've never had to book an appointment particulary far in advance, and when it was something that needed prompt attention, they scheduled me for either that afternoon or the next morning. And Dr. Kindl himself has always been friendly and attentive and has always seemed to take plenty of time with me. So what gives?
That's a rhetorical question. I assume he wants to earn more money for less work. That's his right, but I have no interest in helping him do so. So now I need to find a new goddam doctor n this town.
posted by Ian McDowell at 1:51 AM
2 Comments:
I see Stephen South, but I don't know if he's accepting new patients. I have seen a couple of the other and have found them all to be compassionate, efficient, and knowledgable. This is an internal medicine practice.
Guilford Medical Associates
2703 Henry Street
Greensboro, NC 27405
Phone - (336) 621-8911
Fax - (336) 621-6322
Thanks, jw. I also got some leads over on Facebook, but encourage others for more recs. I don't currently need to see a physician, but of course I need to go ahead and line one up, if I'm not going to continue with Dr. Kindl.
Potentially negative fallout from any local doctor signing with MDVIP is that there will suddenly be over a thousand people scrambling to find a new doctor.
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