We’re all looking for ways to be healthier, but healthcare can be complicated. Whether managing a chronic condition, battling an illness or trying to adopt a healthier lifestyle, a strong, personal relationship with a doctor is key to success. With its new Signature Primary Care service on Johns Island, Roper St. Francis Healthcare launched its first concierge-style primary care office for Lowcountry residents.
A concierge-style model is a membership-based primary care facility that is an alternative to traditional physicians’ offices. Patients pay an annual membership fee and enjoy services that are structured a bit differently than in a traditional model. Think of it as boutique-style healthcare, where patients get 24-7 dedicated health and wellness guidance and care from a single physician who really gets to know them and their health profile and needs.
Roper St. Francis Physician Partners Signature Primary Care accepts only 450 patients at a time, and they must be at least 18 years old. Patients’ membership allows them to schedule a no-cost comprehensive annual wellness exam, which takes place over two visits with the facility’s board-certified physician and director, Dr. Vanessa McPherson. She is supported by both office manager Alicia Cowans and registered nurse Lauren Smith in a small-office setting that is somewhat of a throwback to small-town practices of yesteryear, where the doctor knows everyone by their first name.
“We have developed a model to provide high-quality, personalized and patient-centered care to our patients,” says McPherson, who specializes in family and functional medicine. “I’m interested in helping the whole patient achieve optimal health—mind, body and spirit—while considering their family, environment, occupation, faith and community. I coordinate care with their team of specialists for better integration between all parties involved, ensuring patients receive the most thorough attention possible.”
Before accepting the position as director of the Johns Island office, McPherson practiced in Charlotte, North Carolina, for 26 years at Atrium Health in primary care and medical leadership. She says the Lowcountry is her “happy place.” She vacationed here over the last 30 years and was delighted to permanently move to the area when the opportunity became available to spearhead the opening of Roper St. Francis Healthcare’s first concierge-style primary care practice.
McPherson says she most appreciates the extra time she can spend with patients due to a lower number of daily appointments. “As a primary care physician, I practiced for 30 years in a high-volume model and often felt I didn’t have the time I needed to spend with each patient. It’s a wonderful experience to be able to delve in deep with my patients. I can do extra things like speak with elderly patients’ families to bring them up to date and visit patients when they are admitted into the hospital for a stay. I can call them to review their results and directly answer their questions rather than relaying information through other staff members. There’s no rushing or apologizing for keeping them waiting. It’s a satisfying and rewarding way to practice,” she says, adding, “I have a strong focus on preventative care. With fewer patients, I can spend more time with each patient and give them same-day and next-day access to our services all the time. My patients have my cellphone number, so I can always be there for their medical questions and issues after-hours, too. My relationship with my patients is the most important thing to me. My goal is to empower them with the information they need to take the best care of themselves.”
While acute care, aka sick visits, are part of the facility’s services, so is treatment of chronic issues such as high blood pressure and diabetes. McPherson also provides some specialized in-office care such as minor dermatologic procedures and joint injections. She conducts both in-person and virtual visits for her patients to best meet them where they are. The facility’s services are not reserved for Johns Island residents but are open to people who live on any of the nearby sea islands, Mount Pleasant and Downtown Charleston.
A concierge-style model of care also is beneficial to people who are traveling and away from home. They can call or text the doctor, and she can order necessary prescription medicines from a pharmacy nearby their temporary location, saving costly trips to an urgent care facility.
While the Johns Island location is the first Signature Primary Care practice for Roper St. Francis Healthcare, the health system plans to open more like it; the second location is expected to open next year in Mount Pleasant. The Johns Island office will be relocating to Freshfields Village on Kiawah Island at the end of this year.
For her part, McPherson is happy to be working in a way that is best for her patients. She says: “What I love the most about being a physician is my relationship with my patients. That’s what gets me up in the morning. It’s a very spiritual thing for me. I feel a great sense of purpose in my life to be able to go to work and do what I do.”
Dana W. Todd is a professional writer specializing in interior design, real estate, luxury homebuilding, landscape design, architecture and art.
