Dr. Elsie Osei practiced medicine at Mission Health during its transition to HCA Healthcare ownership. When she became pregnant with her second child, Dr. Osei said she then decided that after her delivery she was going to open an independent practice of her own in Asheville.

She had an interest in direct care, a model for providing healthcare services that is different from a traditional model.  Rather than having third-party involvement with insurance companies, direct care practices offer a monthly membership that covers all office visits without copays or deductibles, and also provides patients with discounted laboratory services and medications.

“This model can be beneficial for individuals or families with a high deductible plan or no insurance at all, Dr. Osei said. “Patients can even purchase medications for lower prices. I am also able to negotiate some pricing rather than going through a standard insurance plan and their associated costs.”

Once she decided that she would start her own practice, Dr. Osei said she felt challenged by setting up this non-traditional model, especially during the pandemic.

“I had to reach out to other providers around the country to compare how doctors were operating their practice, what they were charging, what services they were offering, and how they were running their business,” she said. “It was all new to me.”

Dr. Osei said that she also had personal concerns regarding starting her own practice.

“If I get out of my contracts with different insurances and my new business fails, it could take six months or more to get back in contract with them. That means I would be out of work for at least half a year,” she said. “Not only that, I became fully responsible for malpractice insurance, meeting OSHA and other standards, as well as all the aspects of running a business in general, like forms and billing.”   

In spite of her concerns, Dr. Osei started One Health Direct Primary Care in November of 2020.

“It was really small at first,” she said. “I had a 10-foot-by-10-foot room and was doing home visits. Eventually I was able to obtain more space and add more services.”

Setting up a new practice with a nontraditional model during the pandemic posed challenges. Dr. Osei turned to other direct care physicians for advice. Learning the administrative aspect and how to effectively run a solo business were some things that she discussed with other physicians in the direct care field, and bouncing ideas off each other was helpful as her business gained traction.

Dr. Osei said she enjoys this model of practicing better than the traditional model for many reasons. Not only does she say that there is less overall pressure, she said she gets more time with each patient. Instead of being rushed out of one patient’s room into the next, she said this practice model allows her ample time to address all of her patients’ concerns.

Through the direct care approach, Dr. Osei said that she is able to treat the person instead of just the disease. She said this healthcare model gives her time to provide whole-person medicine that includes discussing with patients lifestyle changes like diet and exercise, and offering services like home visits.

“The model of practice at One Health Direct Primary Care also gives more small businesses the opportunity to offer healthcare for their employees,” Dr. Osei said. Instead of business owners having to match premiums while employees have deductibles and copays, Dr. Osei’s practice offers a monthly subscription service that covers all visits, services, and labs performed at her office. Employers can choose to pay a portion or the entirety of the subscription, and the employee has flexibility as well.

“Patients can come as often as they need, and they are still only paying one low price per month,” she said. “They can add spouses or children to their membership, and they can feel confident knowing they can get an appointment quickly with no out-of-pocket costs. They don’t have to find a physician that’s in their network that may or may not be accepting patients. People can sign up today and come in within one to three days for an appointment.”

Dr. Osei said that understanding how to negotiate costs for labs has helped patients afford recommended testing. Instead of possibly ignoring their doctors’ suggestions because tests may have been cost prohibitive, she said that the affordability of her services allows her patients to discover more about their bodies, which in turn supports their overall health.

Through her work, Dr. Osei said she is building relationships, too. She said that the time she spends with each patient allows her to have a better understanding of patients and their concerns with the added benefit of making friends.

“I really love my patients,” she said. “We have intentional conversations which strengthen the physician-patient relationship, and that really warms my heart.”

For more information, visit OneHealthDPC.com.