Common questions

Direct primary care (DPC) is a model of health care that fosters the physician–patient relationship, emphasizing quality, personalized care without the constraints of health insurance. One of the important benefits of the pediatric direct primary care model is that it allows us to provide comprehensive pediatric care with a full range of personalized services through a low monthly membership.

Dr. Shoaf will see patients in her office conveniently located on the eastside of Greenville, SC, near the intersection of East North Street and Mitchell Road (4200 East North St), but your membership also includes personalized direct consultations wherever you are by way of a simple text or phone call, as well as home visits for newborns.

Membership allows us to provide our members with personalized care and direct access to their physician. In addition, our simple, fixed price allows our members to budget their health care finances without worrying about unexpected medical costs.

Health insurance is not health care. We believe that health insurance often stands in the way of quality, personalized care. We created BridgeWay Pediatrics with the goal to transform the traditional doctor’s visit to a more personalized, convenient health care experience for your family. We want to spend time with our patients and get to know them, so we can provide excellent care throughout their growth and development. Pediatric care, the way it should be!

Membership fees are charged to your bank account, credit or debit card on the day of the month you choose.

A one-time enrollment fee of $125 per family is due at your first visit or upon registration.

Yes! Our understanding is that as long as a shareable condition is diagnosed while you are a member of BrideWay Pediatrics and cumulative expenses related to the diagnosis are more than the shareable minimum for your plan, then monthly Direct Primary Care (DPC) membership fees up to $100/month may be shared along with the other expenses for any month(s) the patient consults with the DPC physician as part of diagnosis or follow-up for that condition. 

See Samaritan Ministries’ “Guidelines for Sharing in Classic/Basic”. Excerpts are provided below for your convenience.

Section VIII.B.10.  “Direct Primary Care—Both “Direct Primary Care” and “Concierge Medicine” are methods by which consumers pay a regular fee, usually monthly, to secure more favorable access to a primary care physician. That monthly fee for a member’s household is shareable, within the limit for tests and checkups (Section VIII.B.36), as part of a shareable need, up to $100 for any month in which, in regards to that need, the physician is consulted, makes a referral, or charges for services.” 

Section VIII.B.36.  “Tests and Checkups—Tests are shareable only when prescribed by a licensed provider because of symptoms that are evident for a condition that was not evident prior to becoming a member. Follow-up tests or checkups are not shareable more than one year after an illness or injury is: (1) stabilized after treatment, (2) in maintenance, or (3) in remission or is cured.”

While an extensive variety of services are covered under your membership fee, some services are not covered. These include:

• Seeing a medical provider outside of BridgeWay Pediatrics—such as an ER visit or hospital stay. In these circumstances, your insurance can be billed if you choose.
• Any procedures, labs and prescriptions obtained outside of BridgeWay Pediatrics can also be billed to your insurance via the outside facility. We work with labs and imaging services available in our community who often provide services for a fraction of the cost incurred elsewhere.
• Vaccination costs – We currently work with a company, Vaxcare, that is able to bill most private insurances for vaccines administered at our office. I will talk with individually about how vaccines could work for your child.

We do not participate in any insurance plan or Medicaid. The membership model gives liberty to the physician and provides you with superior quality personalized pediatric care without limitations often associated insurance and Medicaid. In other words. BridgeWay Pediatrics exclusively works with and for you! — not an insurance company or restrictive health plan.

Yes. While we provide extensive pediatric services, there can be occasions that a child will need healthcare outside of our facility. We highly recommend our patients have health insurance to cover these unexpected costs such as hospitalizations or referrals to sub-specialists. For example, some patients decide to carry a high-deductible Health Savings Account (HSA).

Yes, though many times a doctor-to-doctor consultation with a specialist provides the direction needed to take care of an issue without the time and expense of an unnecessary referral or test.

Yet when needed, your direct primary care pediatrician is the bridge between your child and pediatric subspecialists, advocating for your child, facilitating communication between specialists, and connecting the dots to keep the big picture in mind while the specialists each focus on their areas of expertise. As mention in a previous question, we work with local labs and imaging service providers to keep out-of-pocket costs low in comparison to insurance-based providers.

Absolutely! Yes! I make home visits for newborns unless you prefer to meet at the office. Home visits would have been great when my children were born. It just doesn’t make sense to me to require an office visit for a mom and newborn.

Additionally, there may be select occasions when home visits are offered for same-day sick visits. Again, I understand the challenge and look forward to serving you.

We will do everything we can to meet your family’s needs, but we need limit home visits to within 15 miles of our office. If you live outside this limit and still need home visits, please contact us to see if we can make an alternative arrangement.

First, congratulations on the upcoming addition to your family! I would love to meet you. Please complete the Contact Us form, email, or call and we’ll schedule a time to meet and discuss the ways we can serve your newest family member. After delivery, we’ll schedule your first newborn home visit.

Children admitted to the pediatric floor at our local hospitals are under the care of the pediatric hospitalist service. If you let me know when your child is admitted, I will keep in contact with you and your child’s hospital physician as your child is admitted, during his/her stay and upon discharge. After discharge, I will continue the course of care for your child.

We provide high quality care in the most convenient way possible. Many times, we can answer your question in an email, text, or over the phone, which means you don’t have to make a trip to our office. All of this is included in your exclusive membership benefits. We’ve also been known to do city park and parking lot visits!

No problem! One of the benefits of being a member of BridgeWay Pediatrics is that you contact your doctor directly! Once we determine the best course of care, we may call in a prescription, locate the nearest urgent care or ER, and even discuss your child’s medical history with a local provider if necessary.

If you have family or friends visiting from out of town, we’ll be glad to treat their child. We will see patients that are not members as our schedule allows. However, all well-child visits and the full benefits of BridgeWay Pediatrics’ personalized services are limited to those who are members.

We share office space with Dr. Zachariah Overby of Crossbridge DPC. He is a great choice for your adult medical care. Make sure to tell him we sent you!

Bumps, scratches, bruises and rashes happen often, and childhood illnesses and injuries are unpredictable. Depending on the time of day and circumstance, you may be referred to an urgent care or ER for care that can easily be provided by your pediatrician. A single visit to an ER or urgent care can carry a cost equal to months of personalized care at BridgeWay Pediatrics. For example, an urgent care may charge $600 for simple sutures for a 6 year old, equivalent to 12 months of membership fees.

We’ve designed our practice to help you when the unexpected happens. When your child needs stitches, has a late night fever, gets sick while out of town, or needs that last minute sports physical, we are available to provide peace of mind and compassionate care for your child.

Even the few times you visit the doctor for an annual physical or well child check will be a whole new experience! Same day or next day appointments, no waiting, hour-long appointments, and a relaxed, casual atmosphere–this is the type of pediatric care you have always wanted, but never received.

As a BridgeWay Pediatrics direct primary care member, you will receive a higher level of personalized care that you won’t find in today’s large, busy pediatric practices. Experience why BridgeWay Pediatrics is your bridge to a better way of pediatric care. Cancel anytime.