A little clarity goes a long way.

The doctors of Virtue Primary Care practice internal medicine, which refers to treatment of adults 18 years and older. They are primary care doctors, can treat a wide variety of medical illnesses, order labs for you (including cholesterol, blood sugar, etc.), and refer you to specialists.

Virtue Primary Care is contracted with Grace Hospitalist Group. Contact our office with questions about hospital follow-up and sharing records with your primary care team.

You can and should use any hospital in an emergency. The office itself has no restrictions on which hospital you can utilize, but your insurance and/or medical group may have in-network preferences. Please contact your health insurance company and your medical group, if applicable, to understand what your in-network hospitals are.

Most new and existing patients can be scheduled fairly quickly when they're flexible between our providers and locations. For specific providers at specific locations, the wait time may be longer. We encourage new patients and urgent visits to be flexible with providers and locations — at least for first or urgent visits — then pick a preferred provider and location for routine visits.

Referral speed is highly variable depending on your insurance type and medical group. Some referrals can be done the same day; some may take several weeks. Our office does not authorize referrals — we submit requests, and your health insurance company or medical group makes the final determination. The specific provider and location may not be controllable and is often at the discretion of your insurance or medical group.

Coverage depends on your specific plan, product, and network. Contact our office and your insurer to confirm eligibility before a visit. HMO plans may require you to select our office as your primary care practice. If your coverage is not compatible or has lapsed, contact us to discuss self-pay options.

You may be able to join, depending on your health plan and available medical groups. Ask your insurer whether you can select Virtue Primary Care, whether your medical group would change, and when the change would take effect. A group change may also affect your specialist network. Our office can help with questions about the practice.

Our practice serves adult patients. Our physicians are trained in internal medicine, and our team also includes a board-certified Family Nurse Practitioner. We strive to avoid polypharmacy — the overprescribing of medications, which is especially harmful to seniors.

Bring your medical records, medications, and any recent labs so we have the most complete picture of your health right away. While we always request records from your previous doctors and specialists, we sometimes don't hear back from those offices — so it's ideal to have these in hand when possible.

We're in favor of natural remedies and holistic treatment when they're research-backed with strong evidence of safety and efficacy. Many natural compounds meet these criteria and we wholeheartedly recommend them. Some compounds haven't had rigorous testing, and in those situations we may not be able to make a definitive recommendation.