As president and CEO of the Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada, Chuck Alvey doesn't have much time to spare for things like doctor visits and lab tests.
What busy executive does? Yet Alvey never misses his annual physical and round of health-screening tests.
In fact, he even looks forward to them.
Alvey is among a loyal and growing client base of the Executive Health & Wellness Program offered by Saint Mary's Health Network.
Launched 10 years ago, the program offers a comprehensive physical and health screening program tailored to meet the needs of business people on tight schedules, or anyone, for that matter, who's willing to pay for extra convenience and service.
The program provides a sort of onestop shop for health screening and a kind of close, personal attention rarely seen since doctors stopped making house calls.
"You feel like you're a customer or friend and not a lab experiment," Alvey says.
Before the exam, for instance, a nurse visits a patient's office to help fill out paperwork and draw blood, so the client doesn't have to spend time away from work to visit a lab.
The morning of the exam, the patient is greeted at the door, led to a private suite, served a continental breakfast and personally ushered through the whole process.
"There's privacy and one-on-one attention," says program manager Shari Elena Quinn, a registered nurse.
"We don't just have them follow a yellow line down the hall to radiology."
When Saint Mary's started the program, the medical team studied similar services offered elsewhere, such as the Mayo Clinic, then brainstormed how to make this program as personal and convenient as possible.
"We wanted it so the patients would feel like they were special," Elena Quinn says.
The program contracts with five physicians and employs two full-time and four part-time nurses.
Patients also can request their own physicians be present during the examinations.
The basic package includes a complete physical by a doctor, an explanation of blood-work results, evaluation of height and weight and tests for vision, hearing, body fat, blood pressure, pulse rate, lung function, and electrocardiogram.
Patients can select from a slew of other tests, such as chest x-rays, vascular screens and coronary artery calcification studies.
"Everything is done that morning, and we get the results back that same day," Elena Quinn says.
Before patients leave at noon, they sit down with the doctor and nurses to discuss the test results and get recommendations for wellness and follow-up.
If a test raises a red flag, the medical team can often arrange appointments with specialists that very afternoon.
Most insurance plans don't cover the program's cost because the tests are screening, rather than diagnostic, exams.
Cost ranges from $650 for the basic package to as much as $3,000 for all 27 tests offered.
The optional Echo- Stress test, for instance, costs $575 alone.
A variety of major employers pay for their employees to go through the program each year, especially their top executives in pressure-cooker jobs.
"They don't want them to have massive heart attacks at their desks," Elena Quinn says.
With positive word of mouth, a growing number of individuals have also joined the program, bearing the cost themselves for the peace of mind or the red alert in case something is wrong.
Last year the program served 438 people, and this year will probably serve about 450.
Alvey, who has a family history of heart disease, says the program's comprehensive screening helps him stay on top of his health, and the personal attention makes the experience pleasant.
"I look forward to seeing the people there.
Not only can you ask about the results of the tests done, but they're very helpful with general health questions."
Elena Quinn says many clients request to see the same nurse each year.
"We kind of bond with them," she says.
