CONCIERGE MEDICAL CARE FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS

A growing part of our practice centers on caring for students who have come from out of state to attend Colorado colleges such as the University of Denver, which is a short distance from our office.

Many of these students had access to high-quality primary care back home; their parents see the wisdom in prevention and want to keep the momentum going during these vital transformative years. Yet campus health services are designed for a transient population and thus aren’t well suited to establishing a lasting relationship or managing chronic conditions. It’s not uncommon for students to disengage from primary care almost entirely during their college years, which of course increases the chances of an urgent matter cropping up. Preventive care is the best way to head off the late-night call from the local hospital that all college parents dread.

Many of the features that our practice has honed over a quarter-century catering to successful professionals turn out to be ideal for college students as well:

• We’re adept at keeping in touch with patients with multiple homes and lots of travel, including overseeing transfers and information-sharing between doctors and hospitals across the country and around the world. For students this means continuity of care while home for the holidays, vacationing, or studying abroad.
• We’re accustomed to rescheduling appointments around fast-changing schedules.
• We’re reachable 24/7, never letting our patients get lost in a phone tree or one of those online platforms that seem to have all the information you could imagine except whatever it is you need at that moment.
• Our building is easy to find and has ample free parking.
• We maintain our own secure medical records rather than outsource them to a big tech company, as so many practices have done.
• We use only medical doctors and registered nurses, so patients don’t have to go through the often wasteful step of explaining everything to an assistant-level practitioner.
• We maintain our own go-to specialist network. We provide thorough case notes so when a specialist gets a referral from us, they know it’s for a valid reason and they can get right to work.

Perhaps most important, our strictly limited patient/doctor ratio gives us the time required to build a relationship. Late adolescents are full of questions about sexuality, substance use, and nutrition, which they may never have discussed with their pediatrician. Having access to their own “grownup” doctor for four years can be informative and comforting.

Our approach begins with a thorough health assessment, including in-house lab work and copious time to address any concerns, so the stage is set for top-quality care for years to come. If you’ve got a young one coming to town for college, a) congratulations! and b), we’d love to hear from you about being their doctors while they’re here.

The information posted on this blog and website are for general information only and should never be relied on as specific medical advice for an individual reader.  No financial relationship exists between us and any recommended products or persons mentioned. All material contained here is the property of the Sheldon Sowell Center for Health, PC, and cannot be copied, reprinted, or linked to without our express permission.