Are Naturopathic Medical Doctors real doctors?

Our doctors are Naturopathic physicians and are licensed as primary care providers. They are trained to look at health conditions and diseases through a “non-conventional” lens. It is their intention as Naturopathic physicians to treat each person as a whole, rather than focusing on symptom management, and to use more natural treatment methods than pharmaceutical drugs (including dietary changes, lifestyle/habit changes, regenerative and oxygenation medicine, supplements, acupuncture, homeopathy, herbal medicine, hydrotherapy and more) whenever possible. However, they can and do write prescriptions for medications in situations that require that level of intervention.

Do you accept/bill insurance?

At this time, insurance companies do not contract with Naturopathic physicians. This will likely change in the near future, but currently we must collect payment at time of service directly from our patients. Payments can be made by cash, check or debit/credit cards (all major cards accepted). We will gladly provide you with an invoice that can be self-submitted to your insurance company, if you would like to attempt to have them reimburse you directly or apply that amount towards your deductible. Many of our patients have been successful in receiving partial reimbursement.

Can you order blood work?

Our doctors are experienced with ordering and evaluating regular blood work, as well as specialized and advanced laboratory examinations, and will do so for you when needed. All patients that are taking any prescription medication (hormone replacement therapy, thyroid replacement, hypertension, blood sugar regulation, etc), being treated for nutritional deficiency/imbalances, and those receiving intravenous chelation are REQUIRED to repeat labs as requested by the physician every 3-6 months. Failure to complete labs as requested will result in interruption of your care and timely refills of current prescriptions. Your timely compliance is necessary and appreciated. Some lab work can be completed in our office- urinalysis, pregnancy testing, and rapid strep swabs. These tests are generally performed by the medical assistants and based upon presenting symptoms during your appointment. Other lab work is sent out to a local labs (Vibrant, Sonora Quest, LabCorp, etc.) or specialty labs accordingly. Usually, all blood drawn in our office is completed by our phlebotomist or the physician.

Do you write prescriptions?

We are experienced with prescribing medications as needed, however, we choose not prescribe medical marijuana or narcotic medications. Additionally, we do not prescribe anti-depressants, anxiolytics, or hypnotics/sleep aids for chronic or long-term use. If you are requiring the use of these medications for longer than an acute period of time (3 months or less), you will be referred back to your Primary Care Provider or out to a specialist who will then manage and monitor your use and/or tapering schedule of these medications. There are many legislative changes being made in the state of Arizona and several more to come regarding the prescribing, monitoring, and ongoing evaluation of these types of prescription medications. Due to the increased labor/time demands and issues related ongoing concern of abuse and/or dependency of such drugs, our physician will no longer prescribe them effective January 1, 2017. If you require chronic use of narcotics, our physician will refer you to a pain management specialist.

Do you treat minors?

Yes, we love working with children and teenagers! Patients under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a responsible adult or have written permission, for treatment, from a parent or guardian before the time of the appointment.

Do you make referrals to specialists?

All referrals are handled by our physician. Sometimes this can be done on the same day as your appointment and sometimes it can take 5-7 days, depending on your case history, insurance and/or the urgency of your situation. Someone will contact you as soon as the referral has been sent. As a patient, it is your responsibility to ensure that your specialist is on your plan. Please understand that it can sometimes take weeks to months to get an appointment with a specialist. This is not something we have control over.

See our Patient Policies for more information about practice standards