Five years back, while Paul Cernuto was mountain biking on the Friday afternoon, he suddenly developed a severe headache.
“It was excruciating – I could not even pedal towards the car,'' says Cernuto, who lives in Martinsville, NJ, and owns a landscaping company.
Cernuto, then 44, dialed his internist, Bruce Aronwald. Even though it was the start of a weekend, the doc picked up right away.
“I was able to acquire him on his personal cellphone. After i explained my symptoms, he instructed me to visit straight to the emergency room, and there would be a team of individuals awaiting me,” says Cernuto. “They rushed over to the vehicle and rolled me right into a healthcare facility.''
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“When I refer [a patient] to a different doctor, I've had a conversation [with the doctor] before the patient arrives, like in that old days,” he says. “There is a little magic that happens when docs speak with other docs about patients.''
Establishing close doctor-patient relationships is one of the model's biggest draws.
“They let doctors practice in ways they've always wanted to – understanding and spend more time with their sufferers,” says John Connolly, president of Castle Connolly Medical, which publishes the “America's Top Doctors” guide.
Castle Connolly launched the concierge group Castle Connolly Private Health Partners after 2021. The annual charge to patients ranges from $2,000 to $3,500, depending on the physician, and most under the company's umbrella accept insurance. As well as the concierge extras, patients get a coach who enables them to develop a healthy lifestyle.
“The average wait for doctor visit in New York has become 3 weeks,'' says Connolly. “If you do not feel well, you won't want to wait three weeks. And also the average visit is seven minutes. With concierge medicine you receive appointments immediately, and visits lasts Forty-five minutes or perhaps an hour.''
‘Some people spend their cash on taxis or vacations, but [Dr. Bruno] is helping us to live a longer life.’
– Susan Thomas, concierge medicine patient
Some patients will find preferred treatment not only using their own doctors, but top-notch service from their physicians' colleagues, too.
“Dr. Aronwald makes appointments that fit [my family's] schedule, and the doctors respect his referrals,'' says Cernuto. “I needed to obtain a fusion within my back, and I couldn't get an appointment with anyone for 3 weeks, but they got me one within 2 days. This is the kind of pull he's.''
Upper East Side internist Peter Bruno says he's gone from seeing 25 patients each day to 10 after going the concierge route. He recently went on the patient's CAT scan having a radiologist who caught a small cancer nodule during their call. “They hadn't picked it up initially,'' he states. “Previously, I wouldn't have experienced time to call the radiologist to go over this.''
Retired attorney Susan Thomas, 62, who lives on the Upper West Side, is delighted that Bruno converted his practice. She and her husband each pay an annual fee of $5,000.
“He is giving me a chance to be understood and have better health generally, in addition to [address] any specific needs,'' says Thomas. “If something happens on a holiday, he will be there.
“Some people spend their money on taxis or vacations, but he's helping us to reside a longer life.''
