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Personalized Medicine

I founded the Arizona Institute of Integrative Medicine to focus on personalized medicine for each of my patients. However, many patients are uncertain what personalized medicine means and why it could benefit them. In fact, personalized medicine can have many different definitions. In the video below, I discuss what personalized medicine means within my practice.

What is personalized medicine?

I define personalized medicine as a unique treatment approach catered to the individual patient, rather than the medical norms. For example, when a patient visits a primary care practice, they will explain their symptoms to the doctor and be prescribed a treatment—often in the form of a pharmaceutical medication. Though pharmaceuticals are intensely researched in a clinical setting and can be effective at relieving various symptoms, they do not have much room for customization with each patient. Furthermore, medications cannot treat the lifestyle factors that are often underlying causes for chronic disease.

How do I integrate personalized medicine into my practice?

When I see a patient in my office, I will spend time walking through their diet, sleep habits, and other components of their lifestyle. Therefore, I am able to provide more concise, customized solutions that fit their unique needs. Coming from a background in primary care, I find that results are often much better with this approach. That’s why I limit my patient panel to 100 patients, so I can continue to provide this level of care. Alternatively, in the traditional primary care setting, I would see 50-60 patients per day, often for no more than 10 minutes at a time.