Sara Pastoor, MD
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Latest articles
Health technology
Recently, I visited Dr. Josh Pepper at his direct primary care (DPC) practice in Marin, California, Marin Family Medicine. Josh's clinic opened in January 2026, and by summer he had four physicians on the team, all of whom he's known…
Recently, I visited Dr. Josh Pepper at his direct primary care (DPC) practice in Marin, California, Marin Family Medicine. Josh’s clinic opened in January 2026, and by summer he had four physicians on the team, all of whom he’s known for many years, one since childhood. They all became family doctors, and they all landed in the same community. Marin has a long history of primary care shortage, and …
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Physician builders no longer wait on EHR vendors
Health technology
Modern EHRs and “CEHRT" Electronic health records (EHRs) and their role in modern health care are inescapable today. But have you ever stopped to ask: Is my EHR certified? And more importantly, why does that matter? As any EHR user…
Modern EHRs and “CEHRT”
Electronic health records (EHRs) and their role in modern health care are inescapable today. But have you ever stopped to ask: Is my EHR certified? And more importantly, why does that matter?
As any EHR user knows, not all EHRs are created equal. A little-known differentiator is that some systems are Certified Electronic Health Record Technology (CEHRT), while a growing number of newer systems are not. If you’ve …
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Why your EHR’s certification matters more than you think
Physician voices
In the quaint New England town of Scituate, Rhode Island, with a population of 10,000, a health care revolution was brewing. Dr. Michael Fine, a passionate family physician, had moved to Scituate with his family in 1992 to serve a…
In the quaint New England town of Scituate, Rhode Island, with a population of 10,000, a health care revolution was brewing. Dr. Michael Fine, a passionate family physician, had moved to Scituate with his family in 1992 to serve a quiet, rural community with significant health care challenges. By 1999, though, Scituate’s residents had become very worried about the cost of health care. Two insurers packed up and left …
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Primary care for all Americans: What the U.S. health care system can learn from Scituate, Rhode Island
Health technology
We've known for the last decade that electronic health records (EHRs) have a significant impact on physicians' ability to deliver high-value care. It not only has a largely negative influence on their quality of life, which bleeds over into the…
We’ve known for the last decade that electronic health records (EHRs) have a significant impact on physicians’ ability to deliver high-value care. It not only has a largely negative influence on their quality of life, which bleeds over into the entire health care landscape, but also impacts their ability to successfully adapt practices to evolving payment models intended to improve patient health outcomes — especially important for primary care.
Yet despite …
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It’s time to evolve how we measure the success of EHRs to make us healthier
Physician voices
Primary care in the United States is on the brink of collapse. Primary care providers suffer existential burnout, are the lowest compensated among all medical specialties, and there is a crisis-level shortage of primary care physicians, especially in health professional…
Primary care in the United States is on the brink of collapse. Primary care providers suffer existential burnout, are the lowest compensated among all medical specialties, and there is a crisis-level shortage of primary care physicians, especially in health professional shortage areas. Despite strong evidence linking primary care (unlike any other medical specialty) to a better quality of life, longer life expectancy, better patient experience, and lower total …
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The solution to America’s primary care shortage is direct primary care
Health policy
In a report published by the Commonwealth Fund and released in August 2021, the performance of the U.S. health care system was compared to that of other high-income countries. The results were stunning: despite investing far more of its gross…
In a report published by the Commonwealth Fund and released in August 2021, the performance of the U.S. health care system was compared to that of other high-income countries. The results were stunning: despite investing far more of its gross domestic product in health care, the U.S. ranks dead last overall and last on access to care, administrative efficiency, health equity, and health …
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The solution to a crumbling primary care foundation is direct primary care
Physician voices
The market for health administrators in the U.S. is projected to grow 28 percent from 2021 to 2031, growing more rapidly than the average for all other occupations. Traditionally, those in health administration work in hospitals, large health systems, health…
The market for health administrators in the U.S. is projected to grow 28 percent from 2021 to 2031, growing more rapidly than the average for all other occupations.
Traditionally, those in health administration work in hospitals, large health systems, health plan organizations, and consulting firms. However, health administration has the potential to contribute value to every component of the U.S. health care …
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The powerful role of administrative leaders in high-value primary care
Physician voices
I've been as guilty as anyone of leaving my patient out on a limb. As a practicing primary care physician, I've had patients with diabetes who observe Ramadan, but I had no idea how to support them during their fast.…
I’ve been as guilty as anyone of leaving my patient out on a limb. As a practicing primary care physician, I’ve had patients with diabetes who observe Ramadan, but I had no idea how to support them during their fast. I’ve had transgender patients yet didn’t have the right language to talk about their health, and nothing in the electronic health record (EHR) seemed designed to support them. I’ve sent …
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The center of gravity in health care and the role of primary care
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