What is Primary Healthcare Consulting?
Healthcare isn’t what it used to be! Ever wish you could blend a nurse’s care with a physician’s knowledge and have enough time to address your health concerns in a healing way? Want to be the driver in your medical care and treatment? You can!
Our person-centered medical diagnostic and treatment consultations offer this vision directly to patients without the limitations of the corporate structures dominating healthcare. The goal is to intentionally augment the existing medical, therapeutic, and complementary modalities people use while making patients feel like people, not numbers.
This modality is an unhurried approach to best of standard healthcare, recognizing it often takes more than a short visit to uncover insights from our health stories. Through deep listening, reflective practice, and space to explore health issues, we can make more accurate diagnoses, develop better treatment plans, and increase your confidence to navigate the healthcare system with an ally in your corner.
Person-Centered Medical Diagnostic and Treatment Consultations offers high-level service, quality conventional healthcare insights, and therapeutic intentionality for a fraction of the cost of concierge services or pre-deductible medical visits, allowing you to invest in your health when and how you need to. Many save money by reducing repeated or unneeded appointments with the wrong specialists, expensive tests or treatments that don’t address the real problems. More importantly, patients leave feeling empowered and knowledgeable in their treatment options and plans.
I am a Board-Certified Family Nurse Practitioner (NP). Though I worked as an NP for years diagnosing and directly treating health problems, my passion lies in helping humanize the experiences of the people living with illness, optimizing wellness, and navigating the healthcare system.
Who should consider Primary Healthcare Consulting?
This service is intended to support anyone feeling frustrated with conventional healthcare services and seeking to improve their experience through personalized knowledge of their medical conditions and treatment options, and better health outcomes through working smarter the system not harder.
Specific services provided include:
Co-creating a health and wellness plan that feels right for you!
Knowing when a symptom or issue needs medical attention
Knowing what setting or provider can help with a problem
Respectful discussion of the risks and benefits of choosing to do a health intervention or not
Understanding the limitations of conventional healthcare
Using over-the-counter medications safely and smartly- what actually can help and what can hurt
Liver health check-up for people regularly using supplements and herbal preparations
Comprehensive wellness assessments
Explaining the medical jargon of your unique situation in understandable language
Understanding test results in context- what results tell us and what they don’t
Healthcare coaching with insider knowledge (e.g. how to get what you need from conventional healthcare services)
Healing from negative healthcare experiences
Processing and learning about a new diagnosis
Exploring unclear cause/s of health problems
Education about diseases, treatment options, your own or for a loved one.
Comprehensive medication review
Customized medical research about a disease or treatment, either standard practice or emerging scientific literature
Empowering support for young adults transitioning into adult healthcare
What can I expect from a treatment or a series of sessions? What do I need to do to
prepare for it?
During a free 15-minute phone call you’ll discuss your goals with the NP to ensure our services will benefit you.
After completing health history forms, you will have a comprehensive intake with the NP. At that time, we will set the primary goals and plan for follow-up visits, which are typically needed to address most chronic or complex issues. At the end of the first visit, you should have a better sense of the scope of your health problem/s and have a preliminary plan to address them. The process includes reflective practice: unlike many rushed standard healthcare appointments, we build in time to reflect on and research your health concerns. The NP may ask you to get additional information (test results, labs, symptom diaries, etc) and may have new questions after this reflection. Subsequent visits will be more focused based on the agreed-upon plan; some people like regular check-ins or the ability to have access for a quick consult when new test results arrive or health situations change.
Just like a CSA doesn’t replace a grocery store, I do not replace your PCP or specialists, but I will enrich your healthcare experience and you will support local practitioners! As an independent consultant working directly for your interests is my top priority. This outside perspective allows me to see your issues with a fresh perspective and avoid the constraints in conventional healthcare settings.
Similarly, I typically do not prescribe medications or tests (except for Liver Health Check-ups), though I will review them and may recommend your other healthcare providers consider them with rationales. This enabled me to focus on you and the big picture objectively and clearly- like how an individual therapist helps with relationship issues.
I don’t treat acute medical problems like urgent care, however, if I have concerns for one I will recommend appropriate evaluation through traditional channels.
I meet people where they are: choose telehealth or an in-person appointment. Telehealth appointments are available to anyone in Massachusetts at the time of the visit. You may already have key test results or other medical information related to your concern, but I will help you figure out what is important so it’s not essential to do a lot of work ahead of time.
Come with your questions and an open mind!
Anna Paskausky offers Primary Healthcare Consultations at CLINIC Thursdays 9am- 5pm.