Swan Integrative Health and Wellness FAQs

A nurse practitioner/APRN is a highly trained nursing professional who is trained to assess patient concerns/symptoms, order and interpret laboratory tests, prescribe medications, diagnose illness and disease, and formulate complex treatment plans in order to optimize health. In Connecticut and many other states, nurse practitioners practice independently, without the need for oversight or collaboration with physicians. Nurse practitioners and physicians are partners in health care, and we all serve an important role in the care of our communities. The nurse practitioners at Swan Integrative Health and Wellness were trained at the Yale School of Nursing and have over 30 years of combined health care experience behind them.

Functional medicine is an approach to health which seeks the root causes of illness and disease. Integrative medicine is defined as “healing-oriented medicine that takes account of the whole person, including all aspects of lifestyle. It emphasizes the therapeutic relationship between practitioner and patient, is informed by evidence, and makes use of all appropriate therapies” (source: https://integrativemedicine.arizona.edu/about/definition.html). Because functional medicine encompasses the definition of integrative medicine, the two are often used in conjunction with one another, and most functional medicine practitioners consider their practices to be integrative.

We participate with all major medical insurance companies, including Medicare, Medicaid and TriCare. Each insurance company administers different plans, and different plans have different requirements for credentialing. To find out if we are in-network with your particular plan, please contact your insurance company.

We realize that you count on your health insurance to cover basic medical care, and we are committed to keeping your care affordable and accessible. However, much of what we do at Swan Integrative Health and Wellness – and likely the very reasons you choose us! – includes unique services and benefits that are not covered by health insurance. To maintain our commitment to the holistic approach that our patients have come to know and trust, we charge a one time administration fee of $100. This fee is due prior to your first visit. Patients with Husky/Medicaid as their primary insurance plan are exempt from this fee.

You may receive bills in the mail from Swan Integrative Health and Wellness if you have a high deductible health plan and have not yet met your deductible, or if you have a plan that requires that you pay a certain percentage of your healthcare costs. We ask that you pay your bill promptly. You can pay via credit card, cash, check, and likely your HSA card (please check with your HSA administrator first). You are welcome to pay via our patient portal if you choose to use a credit card. We are also happy to keep your credit card information on file in our secure electronic health record and can bill your card directly for your balance.

Labs ordered through Quest Diagnostics can be billed to your medical insurance plan. Depending on your plan coverage, you may be responsible for the cost of some of your labs. There is usually a cost involved in any of the functional medicine labs that are done by specialty lab companies like Genova, Diagnostic Solutions Laboratory, or ZRT. Cost varies, but we will always tell you what your estimated cost will be. We never mark-up the cost of labs.

We can likely provide all of the services that your primary care provider does, and in some cases, it may be appropriate for us to serve as your primary care provider. This varies based on your insurance plan, our availability, and your individual needs. Please discuss this with your provider.

Yes. We offer routine gynecological exams in our Glastonbury office. Annual physical exams are offered in all locations.

In the case of a true emergency, we recommend that you call 911 or go to the local emergency room. If you have an urgent need that is not an emergency, we encourage you to call the office to see if we can accommodate you. If we are unable, we will refer you to a local urgent care center or emergency room.

Email is preferred: [email protected].

Phone calls are also welcomed: 860-325-2679.

We offer optional, complimentary 10 minute exploratory calls with our providers if you would like to learn more about our practice before scheduling your first visit. Please email [email protected] if you would like to set up an exploratory call.

Nutritional supplements are often included in integrative/functional medicine treatment plans, but each patient is different and your provider will tell you whether she thinks that supplements might help you to reach your health goals.

Dietary changes are often a part of a functional medicine treatment plan. Our providers understand how challenging it can be to change dietary habits, and we will work with you to make changes in a way that feels comfortable and doable for you and your family.

No. Chronic Lyme is not an area of expertise for our practitioners. We frequently diagnose Lyme and may be comfortable treating straightforward cases of Lyme and other tick borne illnesses, but we generally refer to Lyme literate colleagues for chronic and difficult-to-treat Lyme cases.

Yes. Michelle Kennedy and Deirdre Brannin are family nurse practitioners and are licensed to see babies, children, adolescents and adults. Amanda Swan is licensed to see adolescents and adults.

Yes.