Fellow moms, I’m sure you can picture this recent scenario of mine. It’s Friday afternoon around 3pm, I have both of my kids home with me and I’m suddenly experiencing a strange pain all around my ear. I know I should go to urgent care before the after-work crowds arrive so I don’t have to wait for hours with the kids in tow. I head over there only to find out that they’re closed for the day!
Turns out the urgent care doctor had to call in sick himself, so now I’m stuck in a parking lot trying to made a decision. Do I tough it out for the weekend in pain (and possibly end up in the ER late at night) or do I drive around town with 2 young kids looking for another urgent care that doesn’t have a long wait? I suddenly remembered an app called Heal that I had downloaded after seeing an ad in a magazine. I recalled that Heal can send a doctor to your home in under 2 hours, so I decided to open up the app and see how much it would cost.
Much to my surprise, I was able to plug my Blue Shield insurance info into the Heal app and just pay my usual copay, but even if I paid out-of-pocket, my visit would only cost $99. At this point I’m already in awe, I was about to fork over a much higher urgent care copay, now I’m just paying my regular doctor visit copay AND the doctor is coming to my house? This seems to good to be true! I head home to wait for the doctor, who ends up arriving just over an hour after I made my request in the Heal app.
Our First Heal Experience
Dr. Torres greeted myself and my kids and we welcomed him into our home. He spent some time talking with my kids and jokingly trying to trade his doctor bag for my daughter’s Doc McStuffins doctor bag that she eagerly brought over to show him. I was instantly at ease, he was so friendly! We casually discussed my symptoms and he checked my ears, nose, throat, everything that’s normally checked when you’re sick.
Dr. Torres was able to give me a diagnosis of lymphadenitis and wrote a prescription for an antibiotic in case my symptoms did not subside within a day or two as he suspected they would (and they did!) He also gave me the name of a local ENT that he knows well since we had discussed my numerous sinus issues. He left me with contact info in case I had any questions or had any new symptoms and reminded me that I could also schedule another in-person visit through Heal if needed. Then he asked my permission to give the kids a treat and retrieved 2 packages of healthy cookies from his car!
The Benefits of Using Heal
Now, I can’t guarantee that every doctor will bring cookies for your kids, but what I can guarantee is that you will love the convenience of using Heal! They come right to your home, eliminating the need to wait around a bunch of other sick people for hours. They accept Anthem and Blue Shield PPO plans, and even without insurance a visit is only $99. Heal is available here in San Diego where I live as well as in other parts of California including Los Angeles, Orange County, San Francisco and Silicon Valley.
We have since had another great experience with a pediatrician from Heal who came to treat my daughter for a nagging cough. Heal doctors can also perform physicals and well-baby exams, give flu shots and much more, 7 days a week from 8am-8pm. The Heal app is very easy to use and is available on both Android and iOS, or you can utilize the Heal website to request a doctor. Have any of you already tried Heal for yourself?
This post is sponsored by Heal, but my story is authentic and occurred prior to our partnership.
All opinions are my own.
