When most people in the western world think of a doctor’s visit, they think of close quarters and the exchange of private, sometimes embarrassing information.
Sometimes, people leave doctor’s visits devastated, frustrated and out of money.
According to an article from the Los Angeles Times, doctors have been opening their doors to shared medical visits, specifically for patients with chronic ailments such as diabetes, HIV and obesity.
The doctors get patients in and out more quickly, and patients save money on the grouped visit.
The LA Times article said that these group visits will become more common under the Affordable Care Act, which will call for more doctors for newly insured patients.
According to the American Diabetes Association website, some of the meetings are educational and can involve a nurse educator, dietitian, a pharmacist and a behavioral therapist.
These group sessions, which patients give consent for, serve like self-help meetings such as Alcoholics Anonymous.
Patients who share an ailment can also share their struggles, experiences and hopes together in a comfortable setting with others who understand what they’re going through.
Not only are they sharing energies and positive encouragement, but patients are able to build off of one another and progress as a whole as they hear each other’s questions and concerns.
Despite the time shared with others, patients still get longer sessions with their doctor in a new, dynamic setting.
Patients fighting obesity can share a room that turns into a gym, minus the apprehension of actually going to the gym. They can exercise gently, surrounded by others who are battling the same problem.
In the instances mentioned in the article, patients return for their doctor’s visits consistently, enthusiastic and improved each week.
Sure, these group visits may be seen as a privacy breach for those who prefer one-on-one sessions with the doctor.
The beauty of it is, though, that the group sessions are completely voluntary. Participants are expected to fill out confidentiality waivers beforehand.
According to the ADA website, the Cooperative Health Care Clinic offers a model of group medical visits that include a health education session on a variable topic, a Q-and-A period and even a break during which the doctor circulates to answer individual questions and listen to concerns.
While ADA says the group sessions are most popular, there are other models available such as drop-in, 90-minute Q-and-A sessions followed by brief examinations.
From one model to the next, all of them share a focus on patient education and doctor involvement, a couple aspects lacking from the rushed one-on-one visits we know well.
The group sessions also allow a physician to examine and compare patients, their interactions and concerns in a more informal setting.
As atypical as these sessions may be, shared medical visits could benefit certain individuals. For all we know, they could end up saving lives.
Danielle Carson is a junior double major in journalism and anthropology and is the diversions editor at the Daily 49er.
These sessions could be a step in the direction of holistic medicine, a practice that accompanies mind, body and spirit, focusing in part on a patient’s relationship, or lack of, with others.
In the group visit setting, patients gain not only the doctor’s expertise, but shares positive energy with their peers as well, a model that satiates human’s need for contact and interaction to survive.