Pediatric Home Care with Heal
This post is sponsored by Heal. All opinions are my own.
I am normally pretty good about staying on top of the kids’ healthcare needs BUT this year going to the doctor has been the last thing on our list. It’s one of those things that we have avoided at all costs unless we were facing an emergency. Has it been the same for you and your family this year? What if I told you that there was an on-call service where a pediatrician could see your children within the comforts of your own home? That’s right, no taking off work, no waiting rooms, and no strange germs thanks to Heal. Mind-blowing right? I felt the same way when I first learned about it…now, to share our pediatric home care experience with you.
Scheduling Your Appointment
To start, Heal is covered by many major insurance plans, including: Aetna, Anthem Blue Cross, Blue Shield of California, Humana, Health Net, UnitedHealthcare AND they also accept Medicare/Medicare Advantage PPO plans. They also accept Medicare and Medicare Advantage PPO plans, and if you prefer to pay out of pocket, a flat fee cash price is also available.
They offer both telemedicine and house calls, either way you’ll always know what your Heal telemedicine call costs before you book it. With insurance, your out-of-pocket amount is set by your insurance plan and shown to you before you book your visit. Without insurance, you pay a flat fee of $79 for telemedicine. You’ll get 100% price transparency up front, and never get a bill from Heal after your call. If needed, a house call has a $159 flat fee, or covered by most insurances.
Heal Doctors are available 8AM to 8PM, 365 days/year, for the same day or scheduled in advance. You can make an appointment on the website or by using their mobile app which is super easy. I was able to log in through our healthcare provider portal, so it saved me a lot of data entry when it came to the insurance info. Outside of adding our personal info like address and contact info, the only thing needed was the kids shot records.
Naturally they want to check to see if the kids are up to date on their vaccinations and make a plan to get them caught up if they missed any. In addition to getting needed vaccinations, you can also schedule the flu shot for your entire family with an Annual Physical during your pediatric home care visit.
Our Pediatric Home Care Visit
The morning of your appointment the app will give you a reminder of your two hour appointment window. I also got a reminder phone call because the boys needed vaccinations and they just wanted to make sure that I was aware. Once the time for my appointment window came, I received a text with a smaller 30 minute window for the doctors estimated arrival time.
Our doctor/nurse team was super punctual, which was the beginning of a great appointment. I really hate the whole waiting room experience, so that was a HUGE plus for me. Once they arrived, they came in and introduced themselves. Asked if we had a preference for shoes on/off, wore PPE, and immediately washed their hands.
Next, our doctor explained how the appointment would run, since she was seeing all three kids & had me sign HIPPA paperwork. Once that was done she took a bit of time to allow the kids to warm up to her. Asked ice breaker questions, even allowed my 2 year old Luke to show her his favorite dinosaurs. From there they took vitals/stats like blood pressure, temp, height and weight. It was like watching the pediatrician version of Marry Poppins, they really had the entire doctor’s office in a suitcase!
While vitals were being done we talked through the kids medical history and diet. When it cam to Zoe, I got tripped up on the name of one of her asthma medications. It was nice to be able to run downstairs to grab the bottle from my room for the doctor to review. She also got to check Luke for 2 year milestones during our pediatric home care visit without having to draw too much attention; a lot of kids get shy in those moments.
Just being here while he was laughing, talking, running, jumping allowed her to note everything that she needed to see. The kids really loved our doctor nurse team. Especially our nurse, she was kind enough to sit & play dinosaurs with Luke while the doctor was looking over my oldest two. He was actually sad to see her go at the end of our appointment.
During traditional doctors appointments the entire experience is rushed because they have other patients to see. I loved that the appointment and conversation moved at my pace. They checked with me a number of times before leaving to make sure I didn’t have any questions.
Vaccinations at Home
My kids don’t like to get shots at all but being at home made it a completely different experience. The comfort of being at home allowed them to be calmer than our previous experiences. Even though James is older, he still gets pretty freaked out about needles. During our pediatric home care visit he kept watching tv through his vaccination and almost didn’t notice.
Luke did cry but the tears were short lived and he was back to running and playing dinosaurs. The good news is that we can see the same doctor again during our next visit. It will be a familiar face for the kids and she will know all of their medical history!
Overall the process was so stress free that I’m okay with having pediatric home health visits for the rest of their childhoods. Ready to give Heal a try for yourself?
Click here to visit the Heal website, download the Heal app, or just call (844) 644-HEAL. Medical services are provided by Heal Doctors. To check availability in your zip code, click here.
Please Note: This is a paid advertisement. However, nothing in this post should be taken as a recommendation to Heal Doctors. This is not a recommendation for medical services or treatment and is not a substitute for a consultation with your medical provider. Please consult your medical provider for any healthcare related needs.
