Dr. Joshua Liberman quit big healthcare nearly two years ago to prove that quality, patient-centered, independent medical care is possible. Here’s what he said he can now report: It worked.
Liberman said he quit corporate healthcare to avoid burnout and in an effort to deliver better care and patient satisfaction. This has allowed the preventative cardiologist to “find joy again in medicine,” he said.
Physician burnout is an epidemic in the U.S. healthcare system, according to the American Medical Association, which places the blame on too many administrative tasks.
For some of America’s doctors, the work can have too little to do with patient satisfaction or getting patients healthier, Liberman said. Doctors are sometimes told they are not busy enough or that their numbers are slipping, he said. It may be part of why, Liberman said, he has found that people value independent practitioners.
“I have so many patients that are coming to me, almost flocking to me, because friends have said, ‘He’ll sit down with you; he’ll talk to you’,” he said. “I have two assistants and when a patient calls, they get one of us on the phone, and we remember them. We know what they’re going through. We know that they have surgery coming up.”
Liberman said he is free to spend considerable time with patients at the private Mequon clinic he opened nearly two years ago. Time with patients can make a meaningful difference, as he saw when treating a client for a supposed seizure disorder. “I sat down with her and heard something interesting in her story that didn’t quite make sense for a seizure disorder,” he recalled.
Testing revealed that the patient had an abnormal heart rhythm and required a pacemaker, and that seizure medication was not the right solution. Liberman stopped the medication.
“She had been in the corporate system for years. Nobody diagnosed her,” he said.
Some of his clients express deep gratitude and refer loved ones to his practice. “It makes you realize why you’re in this, right? You’re in this to serve people and to get them healthier,” Liberman said.
Despite doctor dissatisfaction nationwide, as reported repeatedly in the media, practitioners stay in corporate healthcare, in part, because the government rewards public health care systems with better reimbursement than private practices, Liberman said.
Even with a growing number of independent providers in the U.S., the challenges that come from obtaining insurance reimbursement from the government can be discouraging for doctors looking to leave corporate healthcare, Liberman said.
“Many patients want to have the attention of an independent doctor,” Liberman said. “And yet, the system, certainly, the government, is trying to shoehorn people into corporate medical systems.”
Wisconsin Cardiology Associates, Liberman’s clinic, accepts almost all insurance plans. He does not operate the clinic as a membership or “concierge” practice.
Liberman’s private office features a print featuring Maimonides’ Prayer for the Physician on the wall. Getting people healthy is a mitzvah, he said.
He said: “I’m so happy and fulfilled now.”
Loading ...