Doctor house calls are making a comeback

The practice of doctors making house calls to treat their patients, once the norm decades ago, has witnessed an uptrend in recent years, according to U.S. News. They highlight an aging mother that felt she suffered more during her experience traveling to a doctor for routine care than she benefited from the treatment itself due to her limited mobility.

Her and her family’s solution, a house call-only independent doctor, served as her primary care physician, coordinated her care with specialists, and even drove her to the hospital when necessary for five years before her death. Receiving attention in this way improved her quality of life and preserved the decency people deserve in their medical care by providing a more personal connection to her doctor than she would get waiting in line for hurried service at an office.

Doctors, for their part, also have reasons to enjoy doing things a little differently than the standard office practice. One such doctor explains that visiting a patient’s home allows them to see a bigger slice of their life and not just their physical ailments. A house in disarray, with signs of neglect, for instance, can signal more significant problems that might need the attention of someone other than a doctor. They also enjoy the feeling of community that comes with taking care of people in proximity to their home and establishing a relationship with them outside of their visits.

In addition to making patients and doctors feel better about their care, one study from the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society found that the entire medical industry might benefit from the shift in traveling doctors as the average senior using a house call provider paid $8,477 less, on average, than those who didn’t. These same patients were also less likely to be hospitalized, visit the emergency room, or see a specialist which saves everyone time and money in the long run.