From GameStop to DPC Owner: Dr. Sarai Ambert-Pompey on Telehealth, EHR Vetting & Trust-Based Care

Dr. Sarai Ambert-Pompey opened Libélula Primary Care in Boise, Idaho. "Libélula" is Spanish for dragonfly, chosen for transformation. One year in, she joins Dr. Maryal Concepcion to talk about what changed when she left the VA for Direct Primary Care.Her path is unconventional: CompUSA and GameStop, Sony PlayStation reviewer training, oncology research at OHSU, then internal medicine residency in Boise. At the VA she joined a Primary Care Center of Excellence and helped launch the Boise Clinical Resource Hub, delivering clinic-to-clinic telehealth to rural sites across the Northwest, then trained physicians in telemedicine through the Ada County Medical Society during the pandemic.In this episode:Why time is the intervention - patients arrive never having been told their A1C goal, their blood pressure goal, or what their medications are for. Longer visits keep high ER utilizers out of the ER.Culturally responsive care in Idaho - Boise is predominantly white, but farming communities and employers like Micron bring diversity the traditional system was never built to serve. Healthcare trauma can take several visits to overcome before a patient consents to a blood draw.Telehealth done right - her top three: screen whether the visit is appropriate, build an emergency protocol and know your state's consent law, and actually perform a physical exam on video. Most clinicians skip that last one.How to vet an EHR - test customer service response time first, ask about interoperability, run a full patient walkthrough instead of the salesperson's highlight reel, get pricing broken out line by line, ask how an AI scribe stores data, and watch for 12-month contracts.Community as marketing - she launched a Walk with a Doc chapter before the clinic opened. Chamber involvement, immigration medical exams, and one paid social promo that returned its investment in a week.Leaving the system - 15 pounds lost, sleep restored, weekends back. "I tell anyone who will listen: I wish I had done it earlier."Mentioned: IN -PERSON DPC SUMMIT COMING IN OCT 2026! Illinois DPC Summit, first week of October, open to out-of-state physicians - register at caradirectcare.com/summit · Walk with a Doc · Latino Conservation Week · Idaho Hispanic Chamber of CommerceFree DPC startup checklist, the Physician Owner's Planner, and the DPC Toolkit Magazine: mydpcstory.com Leave a voice message for the show: mydpcstory.com/contact  Follow @mydpcstory · Leave a 5-star review on Apple PodcastsStand With Dr. Nyasha Spears and the Future of Patient-Centered Healthcare. Get your copy of the Physician Owner's Planner today at mydpcstory.com/librarySupport the showGET your FREE MONTHLY BUSINESS TOOL DOWNLOADBecome A My DPC Story PATREON MEMBER! SPONSOR THE POD My DPC Story VOICEMAIL! DPC SWAG! FACEBOOK * INSTAGRAM * LinkedIn * TWITTER * TIKTOK * YouTube