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Our mission is to give you, the individual patient, the tools, resources, and information needed to make sure you and your loved ones are getting the highest quality health care possible. Managed care has changed the rules and the players in medicine.  We will help you understand what is different, what is good, and what to avoid. We will put in your hands the tools to ensure that you get the highest quality medical care.

J. D. Robinson, MD, Director                    American Health Advisory Center

With managed health care, we have gone from the traditional idea that most is best to the concept that least is best. Power has shifted massively from patients and doctors to business organizations in the new system of health care organization which has become increasingly prevalent in the 1990s. Previously, if something might benefit an individual patient, it would likely be done by the physician. Now, managed care organizations will not approve payment for an intervention unless it can be proven to benefit a large proportion of patients. In light of these changes, the patient now needs an advocate for personal and  individual medical care.

Who benefits from an independent medical evaluation and a Health Advisory?

• The patient can be certain that the independent Health Advisory is an objective assessment of personal health needs. This provides the patient with peace of mind, and with full knowledge of all the available medical choices.
• The employer has implied liability by having selected and paid for a health plan and can protect itself when there are questions about care or when there are employee complaints. The employer generally turns to the managed care plan for adjudication when an employee comes to its human resources department for help. However, the health plan has its own interests and is not a neutral body when there is disagreement.
• The physician, under pressure to practice efficient, cost-conscious health care, can turn to the insurance company with substantial backup and say, "Here is what this patient really must have and, by the way, the patient is fully aware of what is needed."  
• The health plan may be saved from adverse outcomes and legal liability which could have resulted from its pressure on the physicians.

Safety Valve: The American Health Advisory Center complements the existing care which a patient is receiving, not to conflict with that care or necessarily act in an adversarial role. The managed care model of medicine needs a safety valve, for the patient, for the physician, for the health plan, and for the employer.

Advisory: AHAC gives advice, in the form of the Health Advisory,  with regard to the appropriateness of  care for the individual patient. The Health Advisory is like an audit of the patient's existing preventive care, diagnostic evaluation, and treatment plan. The American Health Advisory Center does not directly give medical care. However, AHAC draws upon the full breadth of medical resources available through the expertise of its own staff, through the current medical literature, and through consultation with outside specialists when indicated.

In some instances, AHAC may be able to determine that the patient's care is perfectly appropriate. In other cases, the approach recommended by AHAC will enhance the care of the patient while protecting the patient, the physician, the health plan, and the employer from unexpected adverse outcomes and liability.

Main Points:  Key elements in modern health care.

FAQ: (Frequently Asked Questions) Things people are most likely to ask about their health care.

Stories: Actual patient experiences showing the need for the Health Advisory.

News Tidbits: Excerpts from news stories about health care. (Under construction)

Services: What AHAC can do for you.

Contact: How to get in touch with us or leave comments.

Employers: What you need to know if you provide a health plan for your employees.

Biography of Dr. J. D. Robinson

Contact DrRobinson@MD-1.com for further information.
Copyright, 1997, American Health Advisory Center

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