[gamby]

.

We do not get a news paper (The Sun) and don't wish to .


Guess I will have to just watch the forum for info or go to Mayo.

[mulligan]

You can read The Sun online.

[gomoho]

Originally Posted by bxmt54

That is what we were led to believe as well. Everything that Amy Wixted told us made it sound like when they were ready to accept patients they would go down their list and call people in the order they signed up. We received the letter yesterday as well and are told that we won't get in either due to our location. We are in St. James...really not that far from Colony, if you ask me. I called the number on the letter and was told today they were accepting patients by demographic areas, not the order of registering. We have put off for 8 months getting established with new doctors here because we were waiting for this and now we find out we won't be in the initial group. There are going to be seven centers built..theoretically it could be seven years before they are built and up and going. They could not commit as to which center would be built next but I was told that one will be close to Brownwood and one will be by the Sumter Cty. Offices/Library on 466A. Neither of those will be any closer to us than this one.....I called Amy today, left a message and never heard back. I am very disappointed and really don't know what to do next.

We are in the same boat except we've put off getting established for 7 months. Very disappointing how this is being handled and certainly doesn't speak well for the system that was supposed to be so patient friendly.

[blueash]

Mr. Morse's letter concerned me in two ways.

Firstly he used the term general practitioner to describe the type of doctor they are looking to employ. A GP is a person who has passed medical school thus has an MD or DO and done at least one year of rotating internship. The term is not synonymous with board certified Family practitioner who has done a 3 year residency in Family medicine (program designed to train the doctor in internal medicine (adult only medical care), pediatrics (child only medical care), obstetrics, gynecology, general surgery, and a little ER, hospital care, and psychiatry) Obviously trying to learn all these fields in a 3 year program means that one cannot get as much training as someone who does just one of these fields eg an internist or internal medicine doctor only does the adult medicine and adult hospital care training. A GP in the US has a lower level of training than a FP. You want your primary care doctors to be board certified minimum as FP or internists.



Second he frequently invokes the Mayo name as if the key part of Mayo is that the doctors are salaried. The key part is that they are very highly trained with specialty and sub-specialty experts in the same medical home who share resources and communicate as a team. There is nothing in the Morse letter to suggest that his new system will have anything other than primary care doctors on salary instead of fee for service, FFS. It is true that FFS can encourage excess office visits and in office procedures (beware of doctors with large in office labs and Xrays and cardiac testing and bone density... they have to run enough patients thru to pay for that stuff). You can be sure that you will not have limitless time for your visit. The office managers will know who is seeing fewer patients for the same salary. The practice will still be paid on volume as they are going to be billing the insurance companies based on services provided so for the practice to make money, the goal of all corporations, they will have to see enough patients per hour to make a profit meaning more than the cost of the doctor, nurse, manager, NP, secretary, billing clerk, receptionist in both salary and fringes, and the rent, supplies, insurance, utilities, maintenance etc etc . Don't think there wont be pressure to keep the patients moving. The only difference will be the doctor won't be paid per patient, but will not keep his/her job if working too slowly.

[applesoffh]

[Villages PL]

I disagree. We were told over and over that the doctors would be able to take their time and there would be no waiting to see the doctor (no appointment needed) because these doctors would be payed a generous salary. Therefore, there would be no need for them to see a lot of patients.

The one thing I don't remember being told is where the money will come from to pay the generous salaries. That's why I have stated in the past that it seems like it will be "concierge medical service". This type of service requires a monthly or yearly fee to be payed by each patient who joins.

Some concierge clinics around the country have even been known (or suspected) to cherry-pick the healthiest patients so as to keep the fees within reason and/or profits up.

[blueash]

Originally Posted by Villages PL

I disagree. We were told over and over that the doctors would be able to take their time and there would be no waiting to see the doctor (no appointment needed) because these doctors would be payed a generous salary. Therefore, there would be no need for them to see a lot of patients.

The one thing I don't remember being told is where the money will come from to pay the generous salaries. That's why I have stated in the past that it seems like it will be "concierge medical service". This type of service requires a monthly or yearly fee to be payed by each patient who joins.

Some concierge clinics around the country have even been known (or suspected) to cherry-pick the healthiest patients so as to keep the fees within reason and/or profits up.

You may be right. If this is going to be concierge care then the letter from Morse is more than misleading as lying by omission is just as egregious. However everyone can see the fallacy in being told that the doctor will give you as much time as you want and you will not have to wait or even have an appointment. That doesn't even work well for the 10 minute oil change business.

[Bonny]

We got our letter day before yesterday.

[gomoho]

boy talk about a can of worms!!!

[graciegirl]

We got our letter today.

I know that someone has to pay something, I don't live in a dream world, and I don't see how people can just go and stay for TOO long at a doctors office and some surely would, knowing people as I do.

I think ole Gar is trying to find a solution and it could be just for his bottom line but I doubt it is just that. He has made many fortunes over and he deserves the money..but I think his motives are different on this one. I think he would like his legacy to be a near perfect community.

I think that this would indeed make this place dang nigh perfect, but fixing affordable health care is being failed at by all takers if you ask me.

The companies that manufacture medicine and give care (hospitals) charge tooooo much to individuals for starters. AND so do some doctors, but certainly not good ones, ethical ones.

But they don't deserve a pittance either.

There is no easy answer.

I don't know how this idea will work, I am very sceptical.

[Suzi]

Blueash is ABSOLUTELY correct on everything stated. Mayo clinic is a wonderful
institution, however, board certified family physicians at Mayo or anywhere else are basically subsidized by specialized services such as labs, testing, surgeries and sub-specialists. Furthermore, if a family practice doctor does not "rub elbows" or practice in an intellectual enviornment like Mayo, Cleveland Clinic, etc. the quality of their practice will suffer. Doctors need to learn everyday, too, to keep up with advances. They need to learn from others and "share" what they may know or else they get stale and stagnant in their thinking. Don't think for a minute that reading a journal or going to a seminar once a year is enough. Mayo is fantastic because it has many great minds that daily collaborate on medical issues, injuries, diseases, current and trial treatments AND they contribute to the scientific world by the amount of research they fund. How much do you pay for that?
So, if Morse is going to plan clinics that will provide great care for medicare consumers, he better plan on subsidizing it heavily. Otherwise it will be "same ole', same ole'" or it will be destined to fail.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by svgephart

Blueash is ABSOLUTELY correct on everything stated. Mayo clinic is a wonderful
institution, however, board certified family physicians at Mayo or anywhere else are basically subsidized by specialized services such as labs, testing, surgeries and sub-specialists. Furthermore, if a family practice doctor does not "rub elbows" or practice in an intellectual enviornment like Mayo, Cleveland Clinic, etc. the quality of their practice will suffer. Doctors need to learn everyday, too, to keep up with advances. They need to learn from others and "share" what they may know or else they get stale and stagnant in their thinking. Don't think for a minute that reading a journal or going to a seminar once a year is enough. Mayo is fantastic because it has many great minds that daily collaborate on medical issues, injuries, diseases, current and trial treatments AND they contribute to the scientific world by the amount of research they fund. How much do you pay for that?
So, if Morse is going to plan clinics that will provide great care for medicare consumers, he better plan on subsidizing it heavily. Otherwise it will be "same ole', same ole'" or it will be destined to fail.

I agree.

[NotGolfer]

Got the letter! Now folks, I think I remember somewhere that there is a grant in place that will help with the salaries. I don't think there's a conspiracy going on here that is fishy. We all have enjoyed coming here, living here and enjoying the amenities. I know that healthcare doesn't fall into that...but I don't think that "powers that be" will set us up to something that won't pan out. We should know by now that this place we live in has been well thought out. I can only believe that this new clinic system has been as well.

Some of you have stated you think our health-care up til now has been "awful". Do you not think that the Morse family is trying to rectify this?? Just another opinion...which is mine!

[Challenger]

My wife and I have lived here for 18 months. Medicare. Both have reasonably significant health issues. Came from Md and previously belonged to a Johns Hopkins primary care group. Both have had surgical proceedures since comming here .

Are we the only people on this forum who have received what we believe to be very good health care from TV based physicians and our local community hospital ?

[Dr Winston O Boogie jr]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

Me too!

Gary Morse is the son or stepson of Harold Schwartz the founder of the Villages. Mr Morse is the one who is primarily responsible for the huge expansion of the development and the addition of amenities such as golf courses. Mr Morse and his family basically own and operate the Villages.