An old-fashioned service is making a big comeback in central Ohio.
With more patients who simply cannot make it to the doctor's office, more doctors are making house calls, 10TV's Andrea Cambern reported on Monday.
Elaine Reid said she considers Robin Newburn a friend, but she is more than that. She is also Reid's doctor.
SPECIAL SECTION: Female Focus
Newburn is one of eight Visiting Physicians, whose entire practice involves making house calls, Cambern reported.
"I had already done a traditional office-based patient practice for several years, and was kind of looking for a change," Newburn.
She calls on people with mobility problems who cannot easily get to the doctor's office and those who are chronically sick or disabled.
"To know that you have a doctor that's going to come and see you, I think it's a real blessing," Reid said.
The doctor essentially brings the office along, Cambern reported.
Outside is a van, complete with X-ray, ultrasound, and other equipment so Newburn can run tests without moving the patient.
Newburn said making house calls gives the doc another advantage.
"When a patient comes to the office, you only see what they present to you. But when you see them in their home setting, you see more of the whole person," Newburn said. "I can't tell you have many times we're invited to stay for dinner and you know, we kind of become part of their families. So it's, it's pretty special."
Her patients agree.
"I'm more at ease," Reid said. "I say things I probably wouldn't say in the doctor's office."
As the population ages and more people choose to stay in their own homes, Newburn and her colleagues believe there will be a greater need for doctors who perform house calls.
Watch 10TV News HD and refresh 10TV.com for additional information.
