Due to your vast knowledge as a medical professional, you are routinely asked about the best way to approach healthy living and how to best address medical concerns. Additionally, as leaders within your communities, and as such, your opinions is taken to heart — including issues branching out further than their medical expertise. That is why Vitaelin Nutraceuticals and WIN | Wellness International has asked a select number of doctors to share why they chose our products.
Globally, there are more than 1 billion
overweight adults, at least 300 million of them are obese.
— World Health Organization
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Alternative Approach to Healthcare
“A lot of factors affect doctors nowadays that are outside their control, whether it is influence on Medicare reimbursement, HMOs or managed care. WIN was a way to really enliven my practice,” says Dr. Charles Cox, a board-certified general surgeon in Tennessee. Dr. Richard McGuire, Jr., a gastroenterologist in California was looking for an opportunity after coming to the realization his future in medicine wasn’t going in the direction he wanted. “I’ve been working for 17 years, it’s many hours and the financial potential of being in a position where I could stop working wasn’t in the near future,” he says. “I wanted to enjoy time with my wife and family and all we could see was the same thing going on with more hours and perhaps less income.” Many of their peers share this view, and have consequently discovered that by embracing an alternate approach to the healthcare industry, a wide array of opportunities have surfaced for their patients and themselves. Dr. Julio Cortes, an internist from Georgia, got involved in WIN because he knew the health and wellness industry was exploding. After experiencing positive results from the WIN products he began offering them to his patients. “As an internist I have to deal with illnesses that are 90 percent of the time related to being overweight,” he says. “You are always trying to teach the patient and encourage them to lose weight and live a healthier life. What has happened with this [Wellness] is the patient gets enthusiastic. I’ve had patients jumping and hugging me because they’re losing weight. I am impressed with what I have seen occur in my patients.” Dr. Cortes’ patients’ success soon spread around the health system sparking the interest of other doctors’ patients. Realizing the clinical and financial benefits, He presented the WIN opportunity to the board of directors and today the corporation offers the products system-wide. “Bringing WIN into the business can help you be a better physician,” Dr. Cortes shares, adding that with malpractice premiums continuing to increase doctors are working more hours and seeing more patients just to get by. “It’s not just the products, sure they help patients, but really in the big picture it makes you a better physician because you make money and can afford to spend more time with patients and provide a better quality of care.”
Dr. David Fein, an OB/GYN in Texas, also feels he is able to provide a higher quality of care to his patients because of the extra patient-time he’s been able to afford since joining WIN. “I’m making sure that their health and wellness is being taken care of and in the long run that patient is going to live a healthier and richer life because of it,” he says, adding that incorporating WIN into his practice was simple because of his own personal product success. With the addition of WIN products, Dr. Fein lost more than 50 pounds and his patients took notice. “When I walk in the door they hardly recognize me, they say, ‘Who are you? You used to be fat. How can I get those results?’ So I show them the products.” In his first month of retailing WIN products out of the office, Dr. Fein says he generated more income from Wellness than his OB/GYN practice. “It’s a really nice alternative to provide an elite line of products and at the same time generate revenue with a nice, smooth transition in the office.”
Dr. James Benjamin, a Maryland-based internist, was seeking a way to keep his practice profitable despite the limitations placed on the medical community by the health care and insurance industries. “Our malpractice premiums are just going up at an astronomical rate. When I got the notice for my 2005 rate it had increased about 62 percent,” he says. “My first thought was we weren’t even going to be able to stay in practice.” When he was introduced to WIN in November 2004 he knew he’d found a way to continue practicing medicine but on his own terms. “This to me is an opportunity to take some control back and not be so dependent on third-party insurers and malpractice insurance companies telling us what we have to pay in order to stay in business,” he says, adding that within six months as a WIN distributor, he recouped the cost of his 2005 malpractice insurance premiums. “My own terms” is a sentiment shared by many doctors involved in the WIN opportunity. With the supplemental income these doctors are earning, they have found the freedom to run their practices the way they see most beneficial. “Since being involved with WIN and creating another financial income stream I have more free time to do some of the things I enjoy doing, there’s no doubt about that,” shares Dr. Joseph Tamburrino, a podiatrist in New York. “I only work four days a week now, nine to five and having three days off on the weekends and nights off certainly gives me time to do other things.”
The Wellness opportunity is helping Dr. Roxanna Doucet, an OB/GYN in Texas, fulfill her real passion of being a mom. “I’m going to be there for the first day of school now,” she declares. “And I’m still going to do medicine. But I’m going to give my time away. I’m not going to do it because I have to make a buck. Just because I want to help women bring healthy children into the world. But on my terms, and on my time, and not have to worry about what the insurance companies and the government are going to pay me.” “What I saw in WIN was balance,” adds her husband, Dr. Daniel Doucet, a retired physician in Emergency Medicine. Many other medical professionals report similar changes in their practices. They share that they are now able to spend more time with individual patients because they no longer have to see a certain number of people each day to make enough money to keep their practices going. “I have reduced my practice to three days a week and I can be very flexible during those days, working just four or five hours a day,” shares Dr. Jaya Kasturi, a family practitioner in Illinois. “I don’t have to worry about seeing too many patients just to make that extra money because of the income stream I have from incorporating my WIN business into my medical practice.” By cutting back on the number of daily appointments, these physicians are giving their patients better care by getting to know them and learning what they really need. Others have been able to change their daily course of healthcare and simply leave their medical practices behind. “My industry has changed, just like a lot of different industries changed. Because of those changes, all of a sudden there were managed care and discounted medical plans, and it was coming out of my pocket,” says Dr. Dennis Sandler, a retired OB/GYN in California. “I was doing the same work but earning less money. And because I didn’t have anything else at that time, a supplemental income stream, I basically just had to work harder to make up that difference. I was working sometimes 100 hours, 120 hours a week, had a wife and three kids that never saw me, and when they did I was cranky or tired. I just knew in my heart that I needed an opportunity.” While Dr. Sandler says he never thought he would stop practicing medicine, since joining WIN, he has been able to leave his practice, spend more time with his family and still keep his hands in healthcare. “I’m retired from my practice of medicine, but the wonderful thing about this business is I still have the choice to be a doctor, I just do it for free today — volunteering at a women’s homeless shelter. That’s one of the huge benefits of this business. You can make it whatever you want to make it.”
Balancing Businesses
As physicians, these WIN distributors are required to meet even higher standards of ethics while building their businesses. With the responsibility of their patients’ welfare and an understanding of the influence they carry in their communities, they are very conscious of how they present the WIN products and opportunity. “I let my patients know this is something I am doing, privately on my own. I have a lot of confidence in the products because I’ve tried them myself and given them to my family and coworkers. I tell them that the company and I stand behind the products. If they aren’t satisfied, they don’t think it makes them feel good, bring it back and I will give them their money back and we can try something else,” says Dr. Cortes. Weighing each case individually enables these doctors to make the best decisions for their patients. Having just given birth to her third child, Dr. Doucet recalls, “I lost my pregnancy weight after about a month or two and I thought, ‘This is perfect for my business. My patients are always asking about weight-loss, sleeping aids, the Lovpil™. There are real issues, and I have a solution.’” She feels confident in recommending these natural supplements to her patients, not only because of her personal success, but because all of WIN’s nutritional products are featured in the Physicians’ Desk Reference® for Nonprescription Drugs, Dietary Supplements and Herbs (PDR®), along with complete ingredient information. Further, WIN’s BIOLEAN® System is exclusively listed in the weight management section of the PDR. Along with social status and respect comes additional responsibility for doctors. They must be sure of their recommendations to patients, remaining well aware of the importance of trust in the patientphysician relationship. This is what WIN’s products, and the support of the PDR, have given them. Dr. Fein says he always has a PDR close by when talking with patients and other physicians about WIN. “You can’t help but be proud when you’re sharing the products because despite the fact they are going to have the same results I did, I let them know the company is successful and has been in existence for 14 years. You can’t have that kind of track record without results. Plus they stand behind their products with a money-back guarantee; it just seals the deal every time” he says.
Dr. Michael Rollins, an OB/GYN in West Virginia, initially sought a way to help his patients lose weight safely and effectively. “People are more and more into health and wellness and somebody is going to sell these products to people,” he says. “Why not sell them the best products available?” With his introduction to the WIN products, he knows he is able to provide an opportunity for many of his patients to find success in their weight loss attempts as well as better overall health with quality products. His confidence in the products is made even clearer with the knowledge that he and his family have benefited from their use. His biggest success story is with his daughter, Megan, who has lost more than 100 pounds and maintained it. “Every time I show people pictures of my daughter, they say, ‘Wow!’ I have a whole program that not only uses the products, but teaches people how to eat well and exercise properly.” Through this complete program, Dr. Rollins has helped a number of women lose 70-90 pounds. “It’s incredible what these women have accomplished…I wish everyone had the desire to change their lives, but for the patients that get it, it’s truly amazing.”
Dr. Linda Foster, a family practitioner in Tennessee, has focused on nutritional supplementation in her practice for 10 years. In 2005 she was drawn to WIN after learning about the weight-loss success other doctors have had with their patients by using WIN’s products along with a healthy lifestyle. “I had never really found anything that was very helpful for weight loss and that is one of the biggest problems we see in the nation today, contributing to a lot of chronic medical diseases,” she shares, adding she is excited about the results she has personally experienced and the results of her patients. “I do a lot of lab work and follow up with SpectraCell testing to make sure what we are doing is working. I have a lot of good results and good comments from my patients.”
Opening Minds
Medical professionals are now more than ever expected to understand the needs and wants of their patients when it comes to natural supplements. “I realized when reviewing my patients’ charts, they were taking natural, herbal products they’d gotten at local stores,” says Dr. Cox. “Those products are not in the PDR. I am able to offer them natural products that are in the PDR so I know what they are taking and can discuss any concerns they have with the products.” Trying to get through to their many skeptical colleagues that standard medicine is not the only way to go has been a struggle for many openminded physicians. Dr. Cox notes that he is trying something outside the realm of medical school training and has made it his quest to introduce other doctors to the benefits he’s experienced with natural, herbal supplements. “I’m convinced that as soon as they see how important preventive medicine is, they’ll join the wellness aspect of WIN.” After years of studying nutrition, Dr. Foster has become passionate about sharing the WIN opportunity with other doctors as well. “I would like to see more physicians become involved because we need to do something about our healthcare system. I would love to see insurance companies and the federal government start utilizing some of these techniques,” shares Dr. Foster. “I think we would find people are very satisfied and it would hold down the cost of healthcare if we start looking at a wellness model as opposed to an illness model of healthcare.”
Dr. Robert Remler, a Georgia-based, boardcertified internist, initially joined WIN because he was tired of practicing disease management. “I was looking for ways to help my patients lose weight and improve their health. Obesity is becoming such a problem that many health problems are self-inflicted and we as physicians are just managing those diseases,” he says. After seeing the
results his partner, Dr. Cortes, was having with his patients he knew WIN was the answer. “It has been rather astounding watching people finally start to lose weight, get some results, and they just go into a better lifestyle pattern. I’m watching people I know improve their lab work and they’re feeling better.” Dr. Remler is not only helping his patients with their health, he is his own success story
improving and maintaining healthy cholesterol levels. As enthusiastic as he is about the results he is seeing personally and in his patients, Dr. Remler is becoming more and more excited about his new source of income. “Frankly, medicine and primary care has been good for me, but it has become tougher and tougher over the years. I was working as hard as I could and I didn’t see how I could work any harder. I was in a multi-group, multi-physician, multi-specialty practice and we were very successful, but I had to keep cramming more and more patients in just to keep normal working hours. I was squeezing them in and I had less and less time with each patient.” he recalls. “Now with the Wellness business involved, I’ve been able to open that up. I can spend more time with them because of the extra income. My product sales have leveraged the time I spend with my patients.” Not only does Dr. Remler feel he’s able to practice better medicine, he’s also cut back his office hours and is pleased to say he had the time and energy to coach both of his sons’ baseball teams.
Making a Difference
Not only adding to quality patient care in medical practices, WIN has also afforded many of these professionals the resources to make an even larger impact on their communities. Dr. Rollins, in addition to having a complete health and wellness program available through his offices, has played an integral role in the opening of a home and crisis pregnancy center for unwed mothers in his community. He is also a founding member of a nondenominational Christian school system which currently accommodates 350 students kindergarten through 12th grade. Dr. Tamburrino has always focused on the importance of giving back to his community. WIN has not only increased his financial ability to give but has allowed him more time to be a part of local charities he’s passionate about, the Coma Recovery Association and a suicide hotline.
Seeing Is Believing
Seeing the impact WIN products have had on so many people’s lives has led more and more medical professionals to open their minds to natural, herbal supplements. With both a top-quality product line and a winning business opportunity, combating the grasp of managed healthcare is becoming more affordable and easier to accomplish for many who are simply ready to take a new approach to patient care. Best phrased by Dr. Cox, “WIN allowed me to get back to really what I consider basic health care and not sick care,” the doctors of WIN are finding their way back to patient care in a fashion both suitable to their personal standards and their patients’ needs.