Direct Primary Care
Direct Primary Care is a more personalized approach to the healthcare model that makes long wait times and insurance hassles a thing of the past. Patients receive comprehensive and tailored primary care services in exchange for a flat fee.
Direct Primary Care Vs. Traditional Primary Care
It is important to really understand if working with us is right for you to understand how direct primary care differs from that traditional healthcare. Traditional health is a business model that has physicians and practices working with insurance companies.
In traditional health care, the services and treatments provided by your primary care physician are mostly paid for via the patient’s insurance company.
With his type of healthcare, there may be treatments that are not covered by insurance. These treatments are typically looked at as elective or alternative therapies. That means things like acupuncture or massage may not be covered even if they would be beneficial to healing your body.
On the flip side, direct primary care is a model that removes that middleman and leaves the physical and patient as the only people involved in setting up the treatment plans. Direct primary care gives the patients the ability to choose either an ala cart style plan or to use a membership-like plan to sign up for more complete and comprehensive coverage.
This type of healthcare allows for alternative and complementary treatments and therapies to be included alongside traditional diagnostics and treatment. This inevitably will lead to a more whole-body approach to your wellness and health journey.
What are the Benefits of Direct Primary Care?
The most immediate benefit of direct care is the better, and more personal relationship a patient can have with their physician. Since a direct care practice sees fewer patients, each person can spend more time with their doctor.
Physicians can develop a better understanding of their patient’s needs and their medical history. This allows doctors to better evaluate patient health and detect any potential medical problems.
Direct healthcare also provides patients with faster access to their doctors. When their health care needs are not delayed due to waiting times, patients receive higher quality care. This allows patients to maintain a good state of health and the opportunity to enhance their vitality. With fewer patients, the direct care model can maximize their availability to the patients they have.
And ultimately with their membership payment for healthcare services, all of their healthcare needs can be covered by their initial fee. Each appointment will not need to be individually paid for. If you have a chronic condition, the direct primary care model becomes more cost-effective for patients.
Many practitioners who follow this healthcare model feel they deliver better care than traditional models. Without the pressures of seeing an endless number of patients, patients receive luxury care and more satisfaction from their healthcare experiences. Patients receive unlimited access to their physicians and are better able to maintain optimum health.
How Treatment Works At Shakthi Health and Wellness
Dr. Jyothi Rao provides patients with superior care that focuses on patient needs. Her goal is for each of her patients to elevate and enhance their whole-body wellness.
Dr. Rao offers patients nutrition recommendations and advice when training for physical activity. She can evaluate your eating habits and determine ideal ways to incorporate plant-based food to improve gut health. Shakthi Health and Wellness Center also offers diagnostic testing to evaluate inflammation levels, hormone balances, and recommendations to reduce stress.
Direct Primary Care liberates patients from the restrictions placed on their medical care by insurance companies. Our practice offers patient treatments with an integrative medicine approach to better provide whole-body wellness for each individual.
Dr. Jyothi Rao makes quality health care accessible to her patients without the restrictions of time limits and jumping through insurance hoops. Her patients are provided with the option of paying annually or paying for services A la carte.
What does Shakthi Mean?
Shakthi (Shuk-thee) means Strength, Empowerment, and Agent of Change.
Frequently Asked Questions
We value the importance of the relationship between the doctor and the patient. That is why Dr. Jyothi Rao has taken the time to answer some of the most commonly asked questions at Shakthi Health & Wellness. View our FAQ page here.
Our Services
Our doctors and staff take time to get invested in your health and well-being. We've taken a step back from mainstream medicine and are challenging the norm. Everyone's healthcare needs are different. You are different. We believe patients shouldn't settle. Our practice is not a revolving door. We listen, and most importantly, we hear you.
Conditions We Treat
Our doctors may recommend various approaches to manage and mitigate your symptoms. Sometimes a combination of approaches will allow the individual to regain their functionality. Some of these approaches include:
- Nutritional Diet
- Supplements/Vitamins
- Meditation
- Massage
- Yoga
- Counseling
- Light exercise
- Medications
Getting to the root cause of your pain is what we do best. We evaluate, address and treat the physical causes, not just the symptoms of chronic pain and inflammation. Putting a focus on food sensitivities, diet and other potential triggers for pain, we are able to help patients get well and get to the next level in their wellness journey.
Depending on the type of diabetes you may be suffering from will dictate the best course of treatment for you. Some may require medication, while others may be treated with lifestyle changes. There is no cure for diabetes, but different treatment methods can allow individuals to live healthy, and functioning lives.
Individuals suffering from hair loss may choose to be treated in a variety of ways. When hair loss is diagnosed early, in many cases you will be able to prevent further damage and encourage regrowth.
With a diagnosis from a medical professional, individuals suffering from hair loss can incorporate the following treatments:
- Vitamins
- Acupuncture
- Medical Treatment
- Steroid Injections
Depending on the specific imbalance you are suffering from, treatment may vary.
The most common medical approaches for treating hormonal imbalances are:
- Weight loss
- Thyroid medication
- Hormonal birth control (women)
- Hormone replacement therapy
There are several approaches one can take to treat inflammation:
- Anti-Inflammatory Diet
- Medications
- Home remedies
There are several ways to begin treating your Leaky Gut. Some of these treatment approaches are:
- Diet Change
- Medication Usage
- Removing all the components that damage your intestinal wall
Common treatments include combinations of pharmacological approaches and home remedies. These include:
- Medications (NSAIDs, steroids, DMARDs)
- Physical therapy
- Surgery
- Healthy weight management
- Light exercise
- Acupuncture
- Massage therapy
- Cognitive therapy (to help you emotionally cope with your symptoms)
Typically, some type of anti fungal medication will be incorporated when treating Yeast Overgrowth. WE may prescribe a cream, capsule, powder, or even injection depending on the location of infection. Some home remedies you can incorporate to support treating Yeast Overgrowth are:
- Garlic: the use/consumption of garlic is helpful because it has anti fungal properties
- Coconut Oil: high in lauric acid which can fight candida
- Aloe vera: Can inhibit the growth of candida
- Probiotics: reduce yeast growth and protect against infections
Acupuncture, Biomat, Infrared Sauna, and IV Therapies are great ways to reduce symptoms of headaches and migraines.
Often times acid reflux is caused by your diet. At Shakthi, we work closely with you to help restore good nutrition and diet in your life. We won't just give you a list of things to do and send you on your way. Through careful testing and study, we'll identify the best nutrition plan for your individualized needs and desired outcome.
If you are experiencing stress, fatigue, weight gain, loss of sleep, lack of energy and focus, you may being putting unnecessary stress on your heart.
We offer personalized, comprehensive consultations focusing on preventative cardiology care and nutrient deficiencies to develop a plan to correct a body out of balance.
Treatments We Offer
IV Therapy allows patients an alternative way to treat symptoms of various health conditions like chronic pain, adrenal fatigue, asthma, immune disorders, and fibromyalgia. The IV Therapy treatment can also be used as an alternative approach to boosting your immunity and your cellular health.
We offer patients scientifically backed health assessments to better understand the root causes of their health conditions. We evaluate any disruptions to your health and body to develop effective wellness plans to optimize your vitality. The diagnostic testing we offer fosters improved wellness and vitality for our patients.
These injections can be used as a supplemental way to encourage total body wellness. Vitamin B12 can be used as an integrative therapeutic tool to help a wide variety of conditions.
The injection encourages the body to make red blood cells, improving oxygen circulation throughout the body. Vitamin B12 encourages your body to use carbohydrates and fat for the creation of energy and additional protein the body needs.
The treatment consists of fine needles being inserted into the skin, at varying depths. The placement of the needles, or acupoints, stimulate specific regions to produce specific physical responses. The thought is that physical stimulation will promote self-healing and bodily wellness.
Once placed into the skin, the patient may feel a dull ache at the base of the needle. But acupuncture should never be painful. The dull ache will gently subside, leaving the individual in a relaxed state. In some practices, the steel needle may even be heated or stimulated as part of the treatment approach.
An infrared sauna uses far-infrared light to create heat. Far-infrared light is the wavelength that most closely resembles the infrared heat given off by the human body. Because of the similarity, far-infrared light can enhance and strengthen our energy.
Amethyst biomats utilize their mineral component and heat to enhance the body’s vitality through far infrared rays and negative ions. Amethyst biomats can be used as treatments for chronic pain, injury, and overall wellness.
Lymphatic enhancement therapy (LET) utilizes electronic instruments to improve circulation and restore lymphatic flow and function. The therapeutic tools use the vibration of light and sound to promote healthy lymphatic tissue and immunity.
Some foods can negatively affect the body. The elimination diet helps to identify these foods on an individual basis.
We teach our patients what good nutrition is and how it can affect their lives for the better. We have a nutritionist on staff to help teach our patients how to prepare food with maximum health benefits. We offer a variety of health, wellness and nutrition classes on-site
We teach our patients what good nutrition is and how it can affect their lives for the better. A Fast Mimicking Diet helps to achieve weight and nutrition goals.
We Specialize In
By combining the very best therapies for healing, proven practices and modern medicine, we are better able to help relieve chronic pain, reduce stress, restore well-being and transform the resilience of our patients.
We work with our patients to heal the gut and restore good health. Good gut health is key to reducing hormone imbalance, inflammation, stress and food sensitivities. Inactivity, poor diet, hormone imbalance, poor gut health, stress, exposure to environmental toxins and nutritional imbalance can all contribute to obesity.
Nutritionist works with the Shakthi team to recommend personalized testing for our patients.
We use specialty laboratory and diagnostic testing to assess body composition. We develop a tailor made program that will achieve the results of the individual. Our weight loss therapy targets resetting the weight control center of the brain. Utilizing all natural (non-hormonal) herbal appetite suppressants, nutritional supplements, nutrition counseling, calorie reduction and education, we work closely with you to develop a weight management plan that is nutritionally sound.
At Shakthi we offer personalized, comprehensive consultations focusing on preventative cardiology care and nutrient deficiencies to develop a plan to correct a body out of balance.
If you are experiencing stress, fatigue, weight gain, loss of sleep, lack of energy and focus, you may being putting unnecessary stress on your heart.
At Shakthi we work with you to identify the imbalances you are experiencing. Using an integrative approach to healing, we use diagnostic testing to identify the underlying causes. Our thorough testing approach allow us to work with you to develop an integrative treatment plan to reduce your stress and bring your body back into balance.
We focus great medical attention on good health and healing for the inside of your body. We also offer skin and body rejuvenating products and procedures that are aimed at improving the way you feel on the outside.
Good nutrition is the foundation for a healthy body and mind. Nutrition is how the body uses food for growth and maintenance. Chronic illness, type 2 diabetes, inflammation, heart disease and some cancers are directly influenced by nutritional habits. It all starts with food. The positive impact of eating a whole food diet high in nutrients can directly influence your quality of life. When you begin to look at making changes in your nutritional intake, whole foods are favored over processed, refined foods.
Acupuncture, Biomat, and our Infrared treatments are great ways to reduce anxiety and stress.
We conduct food intolerance testing to see if specific foods are causing inflammation or an allergic reaction.
We use a combination of blood tests and examinations to diagnose you appropriately. The first tests performed is the antinuclear antibody test (ANA) when your symptoms indicate an autoimmune disorder. A positive result indicates the presence of the disease but not which one specifically. Other tests may be needed to examine for specific antibodies that are released by certain autoimmune diseases. Learn more about our Autoimmune services here.
Conditions We Treat
Our doctors may recommend various approaches to manage and mitigate your chronic fatigue symptoms. Sometimes a combination of approaches will allow the individual to regain their functionality. Some of these approaches include:
- Nutritional Diet
- Supplements/Vitamins
- Meditation
- Massage
- Yoga
- Counseling
- Light exercise
- Medications
Getting to the root cause of your chronic pain is what we do best. We evaluate, address and treat the physical causes, not just the symptoms of chronic pain and inflammation. Putting a focus on food sensitivities, diet and other potential triggers for pain, we are able to help patients get well and get to the next level in their wellness journey.
Depending on the type of diabetes you may be suffering from will dictate the best course of treatment for you. Some may require medication, while others may be treated with lifestyle changes. There is no cure for diabetes, but different treatment methods can allow individuals to live healthy, and functioning lives.
Individuals suffering from hair loss may choose to be treated in a variety of ways. When hair loss is diagnosed early, in many cases you will be able to prevent further damage and encourage regrowth.
With a diagnosis from a medical professional, individuals suffering from hair loss can incorporate the following treatments:
- Vitamins
- Acupuncture
- Medical Treatment
- Steroid Injections
Depending on the specific hormone imbalance you are suffering from, treatment may vary.
The most common medical approaches for treating hormonal imbalances are:
- Weight loss
- Thyroid medication
- Hormonal birth control (women)
- Hormone replacement therapy
There are several approaches one can take to treat your inflammation symptoms:
- Anti-Inflammatory Diet
- Medications
- Home remedies
There are several ways to begin treating your Leaky Gut. Some of these treatment approaches are:
- Diet Change
- Medication Usage
- Removing all the components that damage your intestinal wall
Common arthritis treatments include combinations of pharmacological approaches and home remedies. These include:
- Medications (NSAIDs, steroids, DMARDs)
- Physical therapy
- Surgery
- Healthy weight management
- Light exercise
- Acupuncture
- Massage therapy
- Cognitive therapy (to help you emotionally cope with your symptoms)
Typically, some type of anti fungal medication will be incorporated when treating Yeast Overgrowth. WE may prescribe a cream, capsule, powder, or even injection depending on the location of infection. Some home remedies you can incorporate to support treating Yeast Overgrowth are:
- Garlic: the use/consumption of garlic is helpful because it has anti fungal properties
- Coconut Oil: high in lauric acid which can fight candida
- Aloe vera: Can inhibit the growth of candida
- Probiotics: reduce yeast growth and protect against infections
Acupuncture, Biomat, Infrared Sauna, and IV Therapies are great ways to reduce symptoms of chronic headaches and migraines.
Often times acid reflux is caused by your diet. At Shakthi, we work closely with you to help restore good nutrition and diet in your life. We won't just give you a list of things to do and send you on your way. Through careful testing and study, we'll identify the best nutrition plan for your individualized needs and desired outcome.
If you are experiencing stress, fatigue, weight gain, loss of sleep, lack of energy and focus, you may being putting unnecessary stress on your heart.
We offer personalized, comprehensive consultations focusing on preventative cardiology care and nutrient deficiencies to develop a plan to correct a body out of balance.
Treatments We Offer
IV Therapy allows patients an alternative way to treat symptoms of various health conditions like chronic pain, adrenal fatigue, asthma, immune disorders, and fibromyalgia. The IV Therapy treatment can also be used as an alternative approach to boosting your immunity and your cellular health.
We offer patients scientifically backed health assessments to better understand the root causes of their health conditions. We evaluate any disruptions to your health and body to develop effective wellness plans to optimize your vitality. The diagnostic testing we offer fosters improved wellness and vitality for our patients.
These injections can be used as a supplemental way to encourage total body wellness. Vitamin B12 can be used as an integrative therapeutic tool to help a wide variety of conditions.
The injection encourages the body to make red blood cells, improving oxygen circulation throughout the body. Vitamin B12 encourages your body to use carbohydrates and fat for the creation of energy and additional protein the body needs.
The treatment consists of fine needles being inserted into the skin, at varying depths. The placement of the needles, or acupoints, stimulate specific regions to produce specific physical responses. The thought is that physical stimulation will promote self-healing and bodily wellness.
Once placed into the skin, the patient may feel a dull ache at the base of the needle. But acupuncture should never be painful. The dull ache will gently subside, leaving the individual in a relaxed state. In some practices, the steel needle may even be heated or stimulated as part of the treatment approach.
An infrared sauna uses far-infrared light to create heat. Far-infrared light is the wavelength that most closely resembles the infrared heat given off by the human body. Because of the similarity, far-infrared light can enhance and strengthen our energy.
Amethyst biomats utilize their mineral component and heat to enhance the body’s vitality through far infrared rays and negative ions. Amethyst biomats can be used as treatments for chronic pain, injury, and overall wellness.
Lymphatic enhancement therapy (LET) utilizes electronic instruments to improve circulation and restore lymphatic flow and function. The therapeutic tools use the vibration of light and sound to promote healthy lymphatic tissue and immunity.
Some foods can negatively affect the body. The elimination diet helps to identify these foods on an individual basis.
We teach our patients what good nutrition is and how it can affect their lives for the better. We help teach our patients how to prepare food with maximum health benefits. We offer a variety of health and diet detox programs to help get you back on track.
We teach our patients what good nutrition is and how it can affect their lives for the better. A Fast Mimicking Diet helps to achieve weight and nutrition goals.
Find A Location
Shakthi Health and Wellness Center is proud to offer patients access to Direct Primary Care services in Mount Airy and Elkridge, Maryland. Patients can comfortably enjoy a spacious and soothing lobby before being taken back for their appointments. Our exam rooms provides patients with a tranquil environment to promote emotional and physical healing.
In our office you will also find our Shakthi Kitchen, our state-of-the-art sport performance facility, our Infrared Sauna, and our Biomat and Acupuncture room.
As a Shakthi patient you will have access to these facilities through our premium plan or you can choose to access them individually via our A La Carte offerings.
Shakthi Digital Guide
At Shakthi Health and Wellness we offer a la carte and yearly plans that are more comprehensive and often cheaper than traditional insurance plans.
What To Expect
How Treatment Works
Our direct care model provides patients with a personal doctor who can conduct appointments on an as-needed basis. Physicians who follow this healthcare model can limit the number of patients they are responsible for. This means patients can expect appointments to be more thorough and focused on their needs. Patients can receive dedicated care without the concern of being “rushed out” of their appointments.
Direct Primary Care doctors have the same medical training, licensing, and certifications any other primary care physician would have working in other healthcare models. Just as any other doctor would, direct primary care doctors will also provide diagnostic screenings, physicals, prescriptions, and urgent care.
Appointments
Appointments are conducted on an as-needed basis. Patients can expect appointments to be more thorough and focused on their needs. As direct primary care doctors, we see a limited number of patients which means each of our patients receives dedicated care without the concern of being “rushed” our of an appointment.
Diagnostic Testing
We offer patients scientifically backed health assessments to better understand the root causes of their health conditions. We evaluate any disruptions to your health and body to develop effective wellness plans to optimize your vitality. To learn more about the specific tests we offer visit this page here.
Costs Involved
Patients receive personalized and tailored care in exchange for a flat fee. Overall cost will be discussed during your initial consultation. Each subsequent appointment will not need to be individually paid for. All patients receive unlimited access to their physicians which leads to better overall health and wellness.
