Not to sound like a greeting card, but your health really is the most important thing you “own”. You really don’t have anything if you don’t have your health. It’s important to find the right practitioner to become a partner in maintaining your health, not the cheapest.

I had a phone inquiry the other day when I got into the office.\u00a0 The message said “I want to know more information, please call me back at 818.xxx.xxxx”.\u00a0 No name, no other info.\u00a0 So I returned the call and, after some explanations, got through to the person with the question.<\/p>\n

\u00a0She wanted to know what services I offer.\u00a0 I explained to her that I practice Traditional Oriental Medicine, which means I combine needles, herbs, dietary advice, exercise and other treatments, as appropriate, on a case-by-case basis.\u00a0 I then told her that, in general, my patients all receive acupuncture and most of them opt for herbal formulae as an adjunct.<\/p>\n

\u00a0She asked me about fees, and I countered by asking if she was coming in as a cash or insurance patient.\u00a0 She said her insurance wouldn\u2019t cover acupuncture, so I told her that acupuncture was $190 for the first visit, $85 thereafter and the herbs were usually between $5 and $10 per bottle and that a bottle tends to last for two weeks to a month.\u00a0 I also explained that if she needed acupuncture with electrical stimulation the fees are $200 for the first visit and $95 thereafter.\u00a0 I also explained that additional therapies might be needed depending on her individual case.\u00a0 I said we would discuss those fees and treatments as the need arose.<\/p>\n

\u00a0She had started sputtering whilst I was speaking, and she burst out \u201c$85?\u00a0 For that you only get acupuncture?\u201d\u00a0 I said, yes, acupuncture treatments cost $85, and she countered with \u201cand that\u2019s all, for $85?”\u201d\u00a0 Her voice was rising, and in the background I heard someone asking if she was okay. She got herself under control and managed not to hang up on me, but it was a near thing and I MAY have been imagining the good-bye.<\/p>\n

\u00a0I hung up, shaking my head, and went about my day.\u00a0 But the whole thing has been bothering me.\u00a0 I live in a large city, where people regularly go to Whole Foods for their lunch and Starbucks for their lattes.\u00a0 They drive their large SUVs or their import cars through miles of miserable traffic, getting the worst possible mileage and pay some of the highest petrol prices in the country.\u00a0 They have housekeepers.\u00a0 They think nothing of going to Burke Williams for a massage and spending upwards of $150.\u00a0 They regularly buy new clothes, eat out, buy music, and go to movies or the theatre.\u00a0 The spend money like it\u2019s Monopoly money, until it comes to their health.\u00a0 Then, they want the most health care for the lowest price.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Now, I\u2019m not talking about the folks on a strict budget.\u00a0 From those folks, I tend to get \u201cMoney\u2019s really tight right now . . .\u201d to which I say \u201cAs you probably saw on my website, I offer a hardship discount.\u201d And they make an appointment, come in, and get their health back together.<\/p>\n

\u00a0So what do really get for the price of a treatment in my clinic?\u00a0 You get a health care practitioner who has spent more than 3000 hours in her initial training, as well as extensive, and on-going, post-graduate studies.\u00a0 A practitioner who applies her knowledge of herbs, human physiology, diet, the five elements, Daoist study, theology and human nature to every treatment.\u00a0 A practitioner who takes the time to talk, and more than that, to listen, with every patient.\u00a0 To really hear what the underlying issue is.\u00a0 A practitioner who won\u2019t dismiss your health concerns, and who is part of a larger referral community so you are referred to other practitioners if that\u2019s the most appropriate for your case.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Not to sound like a greeting card, but your health really is the most important thing you \u201cown\u201d.\u00a0 You really don\u2019t<\/em> have anything if you don\u2019t have your health.\u00a0 It\u2019s important to find the right<\/strong> practitioner to become a partner in maintaining your health, not the cheapest.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Think about it at least, and then go find the right health care practitioners to be on YOUR health care team.<\/p>\n\n