Primary care is the foundation of your health, but life doesn’t always happen during office hours.
Understanding how Hoag Medical Group extends beyond your physician’s office—providing seamless care 24/7, 365 days a year—demonstrates why choosing the right primary care practice matters more than you might think.
Here, Dr. Martin Fee, president of Hoag Medical Group, explains how HMG supports you outside of business hours or if hospitalization is needed.
After-Hours Care: You’re Never Truly Alone
- 24/7 Nurse Advice Line: When health concerns arise at 2 AM or over the weekend, you have direct access to registered nurses available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Call 949-688-2773 for medical advice and guidance from professionals who understand Hoag’s care philosophy and can help you determine the best next steps.
- 18 Urgent Care Locations: Hoag operates 18 urgent care centers throughout Orange County, treating conditions that need immediate attention but aren’t life-threatening. These facilities accept your primary care office copay and offer:
- Online reservations to view wait times and hold your place in line
- Video urgent care visits for convenience when appropriate
- Seamless integration with your primary care records
- Emergency care coordination
When you face a true emergency, Hoag’s two nationally recognized hospitals in Newport Beach and Irvine provide world-class acute care. More importantly, your primary care physician receives detailed discharge summaries, ensuring smooth transitions back to outpatient care.
Hospital Care: The Hospitalist Advantage
Should you require hospitalization, Hoag’s hospitalist program ensures you receive dedicated, specialized attention. Unlike practices where your primary care physician tries to juggle office patients and hospital rounds, Hoag’s hospitalists are solely dedicated to hospital-based medicine.
What this means for you:
- 24/7 on-site physician presence for immediate response to changes in your condition
- Specialist coordination within Hoag’s comprehensive network
- Regular communication with your primary care physician
- Detailed discharge planning that prepares you for successful recovery
- Specialist Integration: Seamless Referrals Within the Network
When your health needs require specialist expertise, Hoag Medical Group’s integration with 400+ specialists across all medical disciplines means:
- No lost referrals: Your primary care physician communicates directly with specialists, ensuring complete information transfer and coordinated treatment plans.
- Faster access: Internal referrals within the Hoag network typically result in quicker appointment availability compared to external referrals.
- Unified records: All providers access the same comprehensive medical record system, eliminating repetitive testing and conflicting treatment approaches.
- Coordinated follow-up: Specialist recommendations integrate seamlessly back into your primary care plan.
The Care Management Advantage
For patients with complex medical conditions, Hoag provides clinical nurse navigators and licensed clinical social workers who serve as your personal healthcare coordinators. With a physician referral, these professionals can:
- Coordinate appointments across multiple specialties
- Ensure treatment plans from different providers work together
- Help navigate insurance requirements and authorizations
- Provide education and support for managing complex conditions
Why This Comprehensive Approach Matters
Many primary care practices operate in isolation, leaving you to coordinate your own care across different systems, facilities, and providers. This fragmented approach leads to:
- Communication gaps between providers
- Duplicate testing and procedures
- Conflicting treatment recommendations
- Delayed care due to coordination challenges
- Higher costs from inefficient care delivery
Hoag Medical Group’s integrated approach eliminates these problems by providing comprehensive care within a single, coordinated network.
Real-World Examples of Seamless Care
- Scenario 1: You develop chest pain on a Saturday evening. You call the nurse advice line, receive guidance to visit the emergency room, receive care at one of Hoag’s hospitals, and your primary care physician receives a complete discharge summary for Monday morning follow-up.
- Scenario 2: During your annual physical, your physician identifies a concerning symptom requiring specialist evaluation. Your referral goes directly to a Hoag specialist who already has access to your complete medical history and can coordinate directly with your primary care physician.
- Scenario 3: Managing diabetes requires coordination between your primary care physician, endocrinologist, nutritionist, and potentially ophthalmologist. Within Hoag’s network, all providers communicate seamlessly, ensuring unified care plans and preventing conflicting recommendations.
This level of integration and coordination isn’t just convenient; it’s safer, more effective, and ultimately more cost-effective than fragmented care across multiple unconnected systems.
