Frequently Asked Questions

Answered by Dr. Stewart

After 25 years of doing Family Practice, why is Dr. Stewart just doing diabetes and lipid care?

What insurances will you take?

Will there be any extra fees to be a patient here?

What are Virtual Visits?

I am used to sending Dr. Stewart emails with questions and requests. Will I be able to continue doing this?

If Dr. Stewart will have no employees, how will I schedule an appointment?

Why doesn't Dr. Stewart hire some help?

What will I do if Dr. Stewart goes on vacation?

What hours will the clinic be open?

How far ahead can I schedule an appointment?

Q: After 25 years of doing Family Practice, why is Dr. Stewart just doing diabetes and lipid care?

A: I very much enjoy the breadth and diversity of Family Practice, but I have found that I particularly enjoy the challenge of taking care of patients with diabetes and lipid problems. The problem is, these patients usually have a host of other problems, and they require much more attention than the average healthy adult. To provide the quality of care I would like to provide, including the availability to see patients as often as they should be seen for both their chronic disease management as well as acute illness needs, I can not realistically maintain a panel of more than about 800 patients. In fact, I will probably not sign up more than 600 patients until I am sure I can handle the volume. As of June, 2007, somewhere between 2,000 and 3,000 patients considered me their "primary care physician." The reality is that the majority of these patients may not have seen me more than once every few years, and when they were ill, they usually ended up seeing one of my associates at Swedish Physicians Pine Lake. Because my schedule was often booked out for weeks to months at a time, they are not able to easily schedule routine health screening visits, and often would have some of their needs neglected because of the limited time available during the visits they were able to schedule. At this point in my life, I choose to provide superb care to a limited number of patients rather than inadequate care to a large number.

Q: What insurances will you take?

A: Plans that I currently am contracted with include: Regence Blue Shield, Premera Blue Cross, First Choice Provider Network, Medicare, Washington State Uniform Medical Plan, Aetna, and Cigna.

I am no longer contracted with any of the plans owned by United Health Care, including Secure Horizons, AARP, and PacifiCare.

Other plans I will not be contracted with include: Group Health Cooperative (except through their association with First Choice Health Network), Medicaid, and Washington State Labor and Industries. I will keep the list updated as I get information from the various health plans.

Q: Will there be any extra fees to be a patient here?

A: Although Sammamish Diabetes and Lipid Clinic is organized like a "Concierge" practice, where patients typically pay hundreds to thousands of dollars each year in order to remain patients, we charge no additional membership fees, with the exception of a small yearly fee to maintain secure internet access for each patient's records and secure online communication with Dr. Stewart through our patient portal. For established patients, the 2012 fee is $100.00 for the first patient in a family per year, and $50.00 for each additional family member in the same household per year. The fee for any new patients that may be allowed to join the practice is $250.00 a year. Although some patients may not want to make use of our technology, it is available for everyone, and we do not waive the fees for non-use.

Q: What are Virtual Visits?

A: An example of a virtual visit would be a follow-up visit for hypertension, where the patient has had a change in medication and needs to report current blood pressure readings and side effects of medication, but does not need to be physically present with the doctor. Another example of a virtual visit might be a follow-up of a patient with depression who is stable, but needs to check in for a medication refill. Or, a patient with diabetes who needs to review blood sugar results and side effects between his regularly scheduled diabetes visits. Currently, virtual visits are not covered benefits by many insurance companies, but they might prove to be a much more efficient way of dealing with some medical problems than to have a patient take time off of work for an encounter that does not require a physical examination by the doctor.

Q: I am used to sending Dr. Stewart emails with questions and requests. Will I be able to continue doing this?

A: Because email is not secure, Federal privacy laws discourage its use for medical problems. Patients can ask any questions they wish via email without penalty, but HIPPA encourages physicians to respond to patients in a secure way, so as to minimize the risk of private medical information becoming public. Consequently, responses to emailed medical questions from patients will be available through the secure internet gateway, rather than with unencrypted email. However, simple responses such as verification of prescription refill will still be available by email, if requested by the patient.

Q: If Dr. Stewart will have no employees, how will I schedule an appointment?

A: The easiest way to schedule an appointment will be on-line from this web Site. Go to the Patients Only page, then click on Click Here for Appointment. Phone calls to schedule appointments will also be possible, but will usually go to the answering machine. They will be returned by Dr. Stewart when he is between patients.

Q: Why doesn't Dr. Stewart hire some help?
A: As a micropractice, Dr. Stewart practices "solo-solo," with no employees. This means that Dr. Stewart will handle prescription refills himself, and will room patients himself. His wife, Eva, who is a retired Nurse Practitioner and Certified Physicians Assistant usually is there to greet patients when they arrive, update their insurance information, and answer the phone. Although hiring a receptionist and medical assistant would make patient flow more efficient, it would also require that Dr. Stewart see more patients every day to pay their salaries and benefits. With finite numbers of hours in a day, this would mean shorter visits with patients, and less time with the doctor.

Q: What will I do if Dr. Stewart goes on vacation?

A:    Medical emergencies should generate a 911 phone call. Dr. Stewart's cell phone will be listed on the answering machine when he will be out of town but within reach of cell phones. In the event that he will be travelling to a location where no cell phone access is possible, there will be clear instructions for contacting a covering physician on the answering machine or web site. Patients will always have secure 24/7 access to their medical charts over the internet.

Q:    What hours will the clinic be open?

A:    We will initially attempt to be open for patient visits about 20 hours a week. In order to accommodate patients who do not want to take time off work for a visit, we will have evening hours available on a regular basis. The actual schedule may vary from week to week, but will be easily viewed on the on-line scheduler. Since the office is in Dr. Stewart's house, we will have quite a bit of flexibility with respect to urgent and after-hours visits.

Q:    How far ahead can I schedule an appointment?
A:   Using AppointmentQuest, we have set up appointment scheduling up to 6 months in advance. Because there will be a limited number of patients in the practice, appointment scheduling should be much easier than it has been in the past. If you wish to schedule an appointment further out than 6 months, please email Dr. Stewart, and he will set up a time further out for you.