Concierge medicine is a private healthcare model that combines personalized medical care, advanced medical technology, and immediate access to experienced physicians.
Concierge benefits
While every practice is different here are a few benefits you can expect to receive in concierge medicine:
24/7 access to your doctor often via their personal cell phone
Longer appointment times
Shorter waiting time to be seen
Coordination of care should you ever be in a hospital. Your doctor will often assist with emergency medical treatments
Hormone optimization
State-of-the art equipment & procedures
Peptide therapies
Lifestyle and fitness performance help
Advanced blood panels
Access to high-quality specialty networks
House calls
How are concierge doctors able to provide such high quality services?
Having a smaller panel of patients allows concierge doctors to provide far more personalized service.
In traditional medicine you may wait days or even weeks to see your doctor. In concierge medicine you may be seen the same day, with many even willing to do house calls.
Your average traditional doctor sees over 20 patients a day with a panel of up to 2,500 patients (Source: Elation Health)
This means your average doctor has a very limited amount of time they can spend on any given patient.
Inversely, concierge doctors often have a panel size of 300 or fewer patients allowing deep personal relationships with their patients and their families. This allows substantially more time, attention and care per patient.
What is the difference between Direct Primary Care, Concierge Medicine & Traditional Primary Care Doctors
In short, concierge medicine tends to be the highest end offering when it comes to private medical care. You have a smaller panel size, a higher monthly or annual fee and a closer relationship with your doctor.
The chart below gives a quick breakdown of basic differences in price and panel size.
Direct Primary Care | Concierge Medicine | Traditional Primary Care Doctors | |
|---|---|---|---|
Typical Annual Membership Cost | $1,000 to $3,000 | $4,000 to $40,000 | Not Applicable |
Average Number of Patients Seen Per year | Typically up to 300 to 600 | Typically up to 75 to 300 | up to 2,500 |
Typical level of relationship between doctor and patient | Greater relationship than typical Primary Care Doctors | Highest level of care & relationship | Standard care, spread across a large number of patients |
How long to see a doctor | Often within a day or two | Same day or next day | High variance. Sometimes next day sometimes over a week |
Concierge doctors tend to be the highest level of private medical services
Directly below concierge are private group direct pay. Lower fees, larger panels but still more attention from a doctor than traditional medical services
The doctor patient relationship
Concierge physicians often focus heavily on preventive medicine, personalized treatment plans, longer appointments, and proactive health management. This means you are forming a deep bond with your doctor and working as a team to help you be in the best possible physical health.
Historically, this is how medicine was practiced for centuries. Physicians maintained close relationships with patients and their families and often treated multiple generations within the same household.
The goal of concierge medicine is to provide more time, better access, and a deeper doctor–patient relationship.
What happens if I go to the hospital?
While every concierge physician practice is different, many concierge doctors remain actively involved if one of their patients is hospitalized.
Concierge doctors often act as a personal medical advocate for their patients during hospital stays.
Because they have a detailed understanding of your medical history and often maintain relationships with specialists and hospital physicians in their community, they can help coordinate care and ensure treatment decisions are made with the full context of your health history.
Some concierge physicians maintain hospital privileges or remain affiliated with hospital systems, while others coordinate closely with hospitalists and specialists.
Their role is often to help patients navigate complex healthcare systems and ensure continuity of care during major medical events.
How can I find a concierge doctor for me?
NextMD was designed to help you find the right concierge or direct primary care doctor for you. Simply click the link below and search our directory of top practices organized by location and style of care.
Browse Concierge Medical practices on NextMD. To find the perfect practice for you.