OneLife Provides a Different Model for Primary Care
January 21, 2020
The OneLife partnership includes Lance Kemper, P.A.-C;
Christie Brooks, Functional Medicine R.D.; and Joe Dugger, M.D.
Dr. Joe Dugger and partners have assembled a multidisciplinary team in a newly-renovated facility — and along with traditional and urgent care, provide an innovative practice model for
wholistic
treatment.
Everyone agrees there is room for improvement in American healthcare. Statistics indicate that emphasizing wellness, access to preventative care, and consistent management of chronic conditions improve patient outcomes and reduce the overall cost of care.
OneLife
Wellness and Primary Care, a new clinic, provides a model of primary care that takes all these factors into consideration.
After 20 years as a traditional primary care physician, Dr. Joe Dugger and his partners, physician assistant
Lance Kemper
and Functional Medicine Registered Dietitian
Christie Brooks
, have opened OneLife Wellness Center at 901 E. Beebe-Capps Expressway, the former Ann’s Bridal location. Community Relations Director Todd Miller discussed the concept and introduced the team.
“The clinic will offer the traditional primary and urgent care to which patients are accustomed,” Miller explained, but what distinguishes OneLife from other practices is that they also offer an alternative known as
concierge medical care
or direct primary care (DPC) — in which the physician contracts with a patient for a flat monthly fee. In exchange, patients receive a guarantee of a provider who knows their medical history, is available to communicate, and offers preferential appointments to members.
Todd Miller, Community Relations Director
“The vision for a better kind of clinic really stems from Joe’s faith. He’s a motivated achiever — but he’s a soul/body/spirit thinker. Those different parts of our being are connected, and he was very interested in reaching patients wholistically. The vision was to have a place where patients would receive primary and urgent care with excellent providers, but where we also emphasize treating the whole person.”
Dugger is not only an experienced primary care physician with a loyal following — he’s also an entrepreneur, having been part owner of Doc’s Grill and Searcy CrossFit. Partner and physician assistant Lance Kemper contributes deep experience in orthopedics; partner Christie Brooks is a registered dietitian with expertise in functional medicine and weight loss. Dr. Wade Fox, who specializes in men’s health and sports medicine, recently moved from Bentonville to join the OneLife practice. Physician Assistant Amanda Diles has a particular interest and experience with diabetes management. Physician Assistant Mary Madill is the director of the medically-supervised weight loss program. Mary Darden, Advanced Practice Registered Nurse, specializes in women’s health and family medicine and has years of college health experience.
OneLife offers monthly memberships for $89 per individual, $149 per couple, and $189 per family. Family memberships for families of three or more include a couple and all children under the age of 25. There is a six month minimum requirement for monthly memberships; some exceptions apply. Student memberships are $299 per semester. Student memberships are $75 a month.
OneLife is located at 901 E. Beebe-Capps Expressway, the former Ann’s Bridal location.
Memberships include:
Guaranteed same-day appointments
After-hours phone and email access to a primary care provider
Nearly unlimited access (up to 99 visits per month)
Office care and minor procedures (such as stitches, rapid strep test, flu vaccine, urinalysis, pregnancy test, EKG, and in-office labs)
The multidisciplinary facility also houses the following specialties:
Byram & Finley Physical Therapy
OneLife Hand Specialty, Cyndi Seevers, O.T.
Life Within Mental Health Counseling, Thomas Ritchie, Jr.
Restore Cryotherapy
Searcy Crossfit
Miller says providing a positive experience and minimizing stress for patients is central to the philosophy of OneLife, so staff members emphasize friendly faces in reception and are mindful of patient wait times.
A final offering by OneLife will take another step to improve access to care: in March, OneLife will roll out a no-deductible health insurance plan to include a membership to OneLife along with major medical coverage. They expect that small business owners, churches, and anyone who is without employer-provided health insurance may be interested in examining this product, which will be underwritten by a third party.
The Waldron Center is interested whenever people apply new methods to
f
amiliar processes, whether it's professional services or manufacturing. Know someone we need to write about? We'd love to hear from you. Email psummers@harding.edu.
