“We’re not vampires, I swear,” says Dr. Hoang Phung, explaining to his audience of seniors why doctors always want to take blood samples from their patients.
Real talk from doctors is what senior patients come here for at the “Lunch with a Doctor” talks hosted monthly for members at Dedicated Seniors Medical Center in Maple Heights.
Patients at Dedicated Seniors are served a lunch of sliders, veggies and chips as they get to listen, learn and talk to the center’s doctors about health topics that commonly affect their age group.
“Lunch With A Doctor” talks flow more like a conversation than a lecture. Dedicated Seniors’ Dr. Phung opened with a discussion about hypertension, though the conversation flowed several directions and even went past time for the program to end.
“I think it gives them the opportunity to not be so fearful of talking with a doctor,” says Dedicated Seniors’ Member Growth Consultant Donna Solomon, “building a good relationship, and knowing that the doctor is not just a robot. He’ll laugh, he’ll joke, he’ll comment. It is like a safe place for them. After the [talk] we did in January, a lot of people were commenting that [they] learned a lot. Even just hearing other people’s questions and hearing [the doctor’s] answers.”
Banana and Miracle Whip sandwiches, pain in aging and why the French are healthier than us despite drinking wine daily were just a few other subjects that came up during the conversation.
Dr. Phung chose his words to suit his audience, referring to “water pills” and “man boobs” rather than by their medical names. He described a low-salt diet as avoiding anything “canned and cured.”
Phung also referred to “SAD” as an acronym for “Standard American Diet,” drawing laughs from his audience.
Listen in as Dr. Phung explains “white-coat hypertension”, how the act of going to the doctor itself can raise your blood pressure:
Solomon said the “Lunch With A Doctor” talks were started to further the relationships patients were already developing with their doctors: “Everybody that came in said, ‘Oh, my doctor is Dr. Phung and I love him. He’s the best. And then the next person, ‘Oh, Dr. Bennett, I love her. She’s the best.’ And I just would sit there and smile, because I’m like, everybody that comes in the door, their doctor is the best that they want [them] to be. So we just took all that information and started saying, ‘well, let’s do a little bit more.’
“So we knew doing something they could feel [was] an open forum to talk to the doctors would be good.”
‘We just try to think of all the little things’ for seniors
Solomon says the informal atmosphere at Dedicated Seniors Medical Center facilities makes seniors more comfortable meeting with a doctor, which helps them become more engaged in their own health maintenance.
Appointments with on-site doctors trained in geriatrics and related specialties are scheduled for one hour per patient. Each doctor has a business card and their own cell phone to keep in direct touch with patients. There’s a pharmacy on-site, preventing patients from having to make an extra trip for their meds.
“We just try to think of all the little things”, said Solomon.
Dedicated Seniors Medical Center has three facilities across the Cleveland area that each serve 250-300 senior patients. All patients must have the Medicare Advantage Plan including supplemental insurance. In-house brokers help patients navigate the insurance requirements. You can also call Dedicated Seniors at 1-844-892-2273 for more information.