The Initial Work-Up Consists Of Three Segments
Initial Consultation Part I:
First, speak with me, Dr. Cantor-Adkins to make sure that Functional Medicine, and this practice, are the right fit for you. Set up a free 30 minute phone consultation, or use the contact form to send an email.
Read the Terms and Policies here or at the bottom of the page.
Cantor Adkins Functional Medicine is a consultation service. Dr. Stacey Cantor-Adkins does not replace your primary care practitioner. If you have any significant medical diagnoses, you are required to have a primary care practitioner or specialist who is following you and is available for emergencies.
After your 30 minute phone consultation, if you choose to work with Dr. Stacey Cantor Adkins, you will schedule an appointment with her via phone or email. You will then be sent a link to register for the Patient Portal on Cerbo by MD-HQ, a HIPAA-secure electronic medical records (EMR) site. You will be required to create a log-in name and password.
This first appointment is approximately 3-5 hours long and costs $1800 as of November 1, 2023.
I do not accept any insurance and payment is due at the time of the appointment, via credit card, check or cash. However, I will provide you with a "superbill" that you can submit to your insurance company for possible reimbursement. Please be aware that many insurance companies do not reimburse for this type of medical practice paradigm. You may also be able to be reimbursed from your Health Savings Account.
You will be required to place a 50% deposit to hold your appointment. This will be put towards the initial consultation fee. If cancellation occurs within 48 hours of the appointment, the deposit will not be refunded.
Once an appointment is scheduled, you will go to the Questionnaires page of the Patient Portal, where a variety of questionnaires and consent forms can be completed directly. There is also a button that will direct you to the Living Matrix site (HIPAA compliant and secure) to self- register and set up an account. There, you will complete a variety of in-depth medical questionnaires that are more directed towards functional medicine.
These questionnaires may take several hours to complete, so please leave yourself plenty of time, at least 3 days, to complete them. The dietary intake will require you to make note of 3 days of meals and snacks. Please do not try to suddenly improve your diet to impress me! An honest assessment of what you have been eating will help me help you the most. THESE FORMS NEED TO BE COMPLETED AT LEAST 7 DAYS BEFORE THE APPOINTMENT, so that I may review them thoroughly. Thus, begin filling out the forms about 10-14 days before your appointment. You may work on the forms a little each day, save your work, and come back to complete them later.
Please upload any recent laboratory test result documents directly into the MD-HQ Patient Portal, which is HIPAA-secure. Or you may bring these lab tests with you to your appointment, but Dr. Cantor-Adkins will not then have an opportunity to review them before-hand.
Be sure to drink plenty of water the day before and the day of the appointment.
During the appointment, I will spend a substantial amount of time finding out about your personal health challenges and history. I will also perform an in-depth physical exam, including body composition using the InBody 570 BIA (Bioimpedence Analysis) machine. Do not have excess caffeine-drinks (eg. coffee) before this first appointment.
You will be given some Functional Medicine laboratory kits to take home that will require you to submit urine, bloodspot and saliva samples. Some of these kits will require that you perform and mail the test outside of the State of New York. You will be given detailed instructions on how to do the tests and where to send them. Other tests will be mailed to you.
After the appointment, you will be emailed instructions about having blood drawn for conventional laboratory testing at Quest, and/or Labcorp depending on your medical issues. These tests are generally covered by your insurance. Additional tests depend on your specific condition, history and symptoms.
Cost of specialized Functional Medicine laboratory testing: I require, as a minimum, Functional Medicine laboratory testing that includes examining the blood, stool, urine and saliva. The purpose of these are to help me analyze your digestion and absorption, potential nutritional deficiencies, metabolism and generation of energy, possible intestinal dysbiosis, and hormonal status. The approximate cost of these tests are $2000-$3000. Some of these Functional Laboratories will try and bill your health insurance, but many companies do not cover this type of testing. Additional Functional Medicine laboratory testing, based on your symptoms and history, may also include more in-depth panels, and may cost up to an additional $2000. Many of these test kits can be handed to you at the time of your appointment to be taken home, and some may be mailed to you. You are to pay the laboratory companies directly for these tests at the time of completion.
Laboratory Testing:
For the second part, you will complete the indicated blood, urine, saliva, breath and stool testing. There are several options:
For the Quest or Labcorp labs, you can have these drawn at a Patient Service Center in New York or New Jersey or your home town; some special labs may have to be drawn in Connecticut because NY/NJ does not allow certain testing to be done.
For the Genova ION test of blood and urine, you can have a mobile phlebotomist come to your home in NY, NJ or CT or there are sites in New Jersey that will draw this. You will be given that information.
For other specialty functional medicine kits, some you may be able to do at home and some will have to be drawn at an outside site. If you live in NY State, you may be required to do some of the testing outside of NY.
Functional Medicine Laboratory Testing can be expensive and may cost $2000-$3000. If extensive testing for tick-borne infection is done, it can easily be double that amount.
There is an extra $300 fee for analysis of genetic SNPs on Diagnostic Solutions Lab Genomic Insight test due to the length of time required.
It usually takes approximately 2+ months to complete all this testing and to receive the results.
You can sign up for free “Lab School” sessions with my Patient Coordinator to review how to accomplish the lab testing. This is highly encouraged.
See above for laboratory test costs.
During this time period, I am available by HIPAA secure messaging to answer questions and address any difficulties about the laboratory testing.
Initial Consultation Part II:
Patients return for the Initial Consultation Part II after all the laboratory results are received and reviewed by Dr. Cantor-Adkins. Sometimes, when important lab results are received before others, this consultation is split into more than one session, in order to be able to review the results and begin treatment in a timely fashion.
During this 2 hour consultation, Dr. Cantor-Adkins will review all the laboratory results with you and explain the story of your health timeline and how you got to where you are today. A "systems approach" is used to map your imbalances to the Functional Medicine Matrix. There is a lot of education during this phase.
You and Dr. Cantor-Adkins develop a plan jointly that takes into account your particular genetics, biochemistry, physiology, personality, lifestyle and preferences. Thus, a roadmap for diet, lifestyle and nutraceutical supplementation is unfolded.
The cost is $1800 as of November 1, 2023, due to the extra time required for all the laboratory interpretation and therapeutic plan design.
There is an extra $300 fee for analysis of genetic SNPs on Diagnostic Solutions Lab Genomic Insight test due to the length of time required.
Some recommended supplements may be available for purchase in the office. Most may be obtained from e-stores that you will be given links to access. I highly recommend you purchase the supplements from the reputable companies that I recommend, which test all their products for impurities and toxins as well as active ingredients, but you are under no obligation to do so. Buying supplements on Amazon and from many health food or vitamin stores is not always reliable. You will receive a 10% discount on FullScript.
It is important for you to be compliant with the initial supplementation for at least 6 months in order to see results. Nutritional supplementation usually costs anywhere from $400-$1000/month in the beginning.
If prescription medications are needed, they will be provided at this time. The main medications that I prescribe include antimicrobials for gastrointestinal infections (dysbiosis, SIBO, fungus, parasites) and bio-identical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT)(ie. estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, thyroid hormone). I also prescribe antibiotics and antimicrobials for Lyme disease and co-infections.
Referral to a nutritionist to help you implement your dietary protocol is recommended (menu planning, recipes, nutrient density). These consultations are done over the phone and cost approximately $250/hour.
Health coaching is also highly recommended. My Patient Coordinator is also a certified health coach and can provide help executing the Treatment Plan protocols for an additional hourly fee.
CANTOR ADKINS FUNCTIONAL MEDICINE PATIENT FLOW CHART
SUMMARY OF COSTS:
Initial Consultation, Part I plus Part II: $3600 as of November 1, 2023.
Required minimum initial baseline Functional Medicine and genetic testing: Approx. $2000-$3000.
Potential additional Functional Medicine testing: $2000-$3000.
Conventional laboratory testing: usually paid by medical insurance. We can check ahead of time knowing your insurance plan.
Supplements: $400-$1000/month
Follow-up Consultations: as of November 1, 2023:
1 hour: $750
45 min: $562.50
30 min: $375
15 min: $187.50; check-in via phone or videoconferencing.