PATIENT HEALTHCARE NAVIGATOR
TERRY STRYKER MERRIFIELD MD

Personal patient navigators, also called advocates, help individuals and families move through the often confusing healthcare system.

As a board certified Family Practice physician in Wichita, Kansas, for over 40 years,  I delivered a range of primary care services to patients of all ages.  I coordinated with referral specialists of all types, and interacted with large and small insurance companies.  Additionally, I provided many advocacy and navigation services. I closed my practice in 2014 and continued with part-time urgent care work until 2019. In 2020 I moved to Florida to be near family.

It is difficult for people obtain the best healthcare in the most efficient way if they are not familiar with how the system works . . . or does not work so well. Though I am not a practicing physician any longer, I feel strongly dedicated to using my skills and experience to help people obtain the best healthcare in the most efficient way, as a navigator through troubled waters.

"A time of illness is a stressful time for patients as well as for their families.  The best-laid plans can go awry, judgment is impaired, and, put simply, you are not at your best when you are sick.  Patients need someone who can look out for their best interests and help navigate the confusing healthcare system -- in other words, an advocate ."

From Role of the Patient Advocate, National Patient Safety Foundation, 2016 / npsf.org

                                                     Member, Alliance of Professional Health Advocates

                                                        Member, National Patient Safety Foundation