What to Expect
Our practice is patient-centered and patient-driven. By establishing a relationship of partnership, we walk toward your health goals at your pace. The most successful patients are ready to be the change they want to see in their health by addressing nutrition, stress, relationships, sleep, and exercise to the best of their ability.
Visits & Fees
Initial Consultation
Comprehensive pre-visit review of all medical records and 2.5 hour deep dive visit- Before we ever meet, I invest significant time reviewing and synthesizing your health history to begin putting the pieces of your current state of health, the puzzle, together. This includes a detailed review of your completed intake forms, prior medical records, laboratory data, imaging, and any additional information you provide for me to consider. By the time you arrive, I already know your story — not just your diagnoses, but the patterns, timeline, and contributing factors that matter.
- The visit itself is an extended, unrushed appointment (typically 2.5–3 hours) dedicated entirely to you. During this time, we will:
- • Review your medical history in context and clarify key drivers of your symptoms or diagnoses.
- • Discuss how genetics, lifestyle, nutrition, stress physiology, sleep, and environment interact in your case by reviewing your life from pre-conception to the current day uncovering the antecdents, triggers, and mediators that come into play.
- • Develop a personalized, step-by-step plan that will include nutrition, lifestyle strategies, recommended diagnostic testing, and education tailored to you, not a template nor a protocol.
- Following the visit, I create a detailed visit summary and plan, which is uploaded to your patient portal. This ensures you leave with clarity, structure, and a clearly stated suggestion of how your journey to whole health and wellness will unfold over time.
- This appointment reflects the time, preparation, clinical expertise, and individualized synthesis required to practice functional medicine at the depth I believe patients deserve. It is intentionally designed to establish a strong therapeutic partnership and to serve as the foundation for the journey we will undertake.
Follow Up Visits
At an interval to support your progress- These appointments focus on review of any lab results, your physical response to dietary, exercise, and/or lifestyle modifications, and to continue the development of your healing plan. This is our time to work as partners on your journey to whole health. Follow-up visits are normally scheduled at least every 6-8 weeks, but are sometimes more frequent early on in the process and less frequent as you heal.
- A comprehensive visit summary is uploaded to the Patient Portal for every patient after their visit that specifically describes recommendations for food/diet, exercise/movement, stress management/lifestyle, supplements/medications, testing/imaging/diagnostics. This creates a tailor-made course to follow that addresses your particular needs.
- *30 minute minimum
Membership Fee
Personal care and service- As an established patient-partner of Dr. O’Brien, you belong to a small, private practice and are cared for by a doctor that knows you, partners with you, and is emotionally invested in your health goals. There is no double booking of appointments. No crowded waiting room. Every plan of care is custom made for the recipient patient and every supplement recommendation is tailored to the individual, not the disease process.
- Reaching your wellness goals and solving your complex health puzzle are part of Dr. O’Brien’s work every day not only during your appointments. You are not billed for the time spent dedicated to your success outside of appointments. You are encouraged and expected to be an active participant in your care.
- Offering this level of customized care and service means the practice size must be kept small compared to traditional medical practices where 3,000+ patients are herded in and out annually.
- You are free to wait until after your Initial Consultation to decide if you’d like to continue as a member patient without any obligation.
Insurance
We decided in the beginning to focus on patient relationships rather than insurance requirements. Therefore, our office is out of network for all insurance carriers.
We will provide each patient with a receipt that is called a “superbill” by the insurance industry. You can submit this superbill to your particular insurance carrier and, in most cases, there is some benefit available to you for out-of-network care. (Important exceptions are Medicare and Medicaid for which we are NOT a contracted provider and you are NOT eligible for reimbursement.)
It is the patient’s responsibility to know how the details of their insurance plan and to submit the superbill. Payment is expected at the time of your visit.
Laboratory Services
As part of your healing plan, Dr O’Brien may order laboratory studies to further identify causes of your illness, discover genetic predispositions, or to evaluate your response to therapy you are already receiving.
Whenever possible, billing for these studies will be done by the particular lab and submitted to your insurance carrier. Be sure to check with your insurer before your visit so you are aware of what your particular plan covers and requires.
Unlike with most doctor’s visits, Dr O’Brien will follow up with you personally to interpret your results and collaborate with you to create a care plan that continues to put you in charge of your health. Every step of the way, to our office you are a partner and friend.
Ready to start your journey to whole health? We'd love to partner with you!