Maintaining your health with or without insurance
If you don't have health insurance, the mere prospect of an illness can make you sick. Many questions drive the fear: Do I qualify for Medicaid? What if I don't? Where can I go for care? Am I going to be treated differently because I don't have insurance?
The truth is, there are many resources you can turn to right in your own neighborhood. At Virtua, it starts with a visit to one of our family health centers in Camden, Lumberton or Voorhees, where you choose the physician you want to see.
"To us, it's a matter of your health, not your health insurance," says
Vincent Green, MD, family physician and medical administrator for Virtua's
Family Medicine Center at Lumberton. "We offer comprehensive care for your whole family including preventative care, screenings and immunizations, as well as treatment for a wide range of medical conditions. We also coordinate care with specialists as needed," explains Dr. Green. What's best: the family health centers offer convenient hours including evenings and weekends.
If you don't have health insurance, that doesn't mean you can't get excellent medical care. "Our social workers work with patients to make them aware of all of the payment options that are available," says Dr. Green. These options include Medicaid or other public health insurance programs; reduced fee programs, where you pay a percentage of the cost of care; and charity care. The family health centers also accept most major insurances.
What's different about Virtua's family health centers are the residents who work alongside the faculty physicians. Essentially, residents are doctors who are training in a specific field of medicine. If your doctor is training a resident, it distinguishes the doctor's level of expertise.
At Virtua's family health centers, the faculty educates residents in the specialty of family practice using the most modern techniques and facilities available. "It's part of our mission — and passion — to train future family physicians," states Dr. Green. "Residents build lasting relationships with the families they treat; many of them even stay in the area when they complete their training."
To make an appointment at one of Virtua's family health centers, call 1-888-Virtua-3. For more information, go to
www.familymedicine.virtua.org.