This Tri-Cities native’s new health clinic is no ‘cookie-cutter’ care for patients

Sep. 1--RICHLAND, Wa. -- A new, more progressive healthcare clinic in Richland is offering something the Tri-Cities hasn't seen before.

Dr. Jessica Schneider created her clinic Empowered Health Institute to be outside the standard medical care model. It's membership-based and focuses on doctor-patient relationships.

Schneider grew up in the Tri-Cities and graduated from Hanford High.

After finishing her residency in internal medicine, she moved back to the Tri-Cities and started working for a big healthcare clinic. But, soon, she had a nagging issue.

"Each patient is treated much more like a conveyor belt, and there is a cookie-cutter way of approaching a visit," she said. "Nobody goes into medicine because they want to not spend time with patients. But when it comes down to it and you have 30 patients on your schedule, there is only so much you can do."

She didn't feel like she could have personal relationships with her patients, and she said she found herself questioning what she was even doing as a physician.

So, she decided to go her own way with Empowered Health.

Her business name came from the idea that empowered people make sustained changes.

A patient's first appointment is a 90-minute physical -- including an hour spent talking about lifestyle, family history and health goals. She is aiming for a maximum of 400 patients.

"I can say I know when my patients are having grandkids, or what trip they've been on recently or what big stressors they are dealing with," she said.

Her approach to healthcare is proactive and preventative, instead of reactive.

"We like to look at lifestyle factors that would indicate risk for something like diabetes or hypertension in the future and work with them to stop that happening, instead of just treating it when it does happen," Schneider said.

The doctor said she has already seen changes in her patients, like some who were able to reverse pre-diabetic symptoms.

"They say they actually feel heard for the first time in years," she said.

Empowered Health opened its doors to patients in the spring and is still accepting new patients.

Patient membership model

She said her practice is the only one in the Tri-Cities based on a membership model.

There is a $155 monthly fee that covers appointments, emergency care and phone calls with the doctor. Other things like routine screening tests and labs are billed to insurance plans as usual.

She said a good fit for her practice is someone who wants to be actively involved in their healthcare.

And while she doesn't think her model is for everyone, she thinks the Tri-Cities benefits from having more options.

"I feel strongly that we have a special environment in the Tri-Cities, and we deserve to have progressive medical care," she said.

Maya Leshikar is a Kennewick student studying journalism at the University of Washington.

___

(c)2019 Tri-City Herald (Kennewick, Wash.)

Visit Tri-City Herald (Kennewick, Wash.) at www.tri-cityherald.com

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.