Dr. Berutti is a functional medicine practitioner. Functional medicine addresses the underlying cause of disease, using a systems oriented approach and engages both the patient and practitioner in a therapeutic partnership. At Dynamic Life Health Center, we focus on the whole person, not just their list of symptoms. Functional Medicine is the practice of finding the root cause of disease. It involves evaluating the interaction of lifestyle, genetics and environment to prevent chronic disease. Dr. Berutti and her staff are a team of professionals who are committed to helping you achieve your health care goals. At our office you will be treated with compassion and given the special attention you deserve.
Dr. Berutti is committed to naturally improving the aging process, giving her patients renewed energy and hope for a long and productive life. Dr. Berutti studied under some of the best Functional Medicine Doctors and Anti-Aging specialists in the world. Her training with the American Academy of Anti-Aging has kept her current on the latest preventative treatments for cognitive decline, menopause, andropause, osteoporosis, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. She has extensive knowledge on Bioidentical Hormone Replacement (BHRT).
Dr. Berutti has trained under the Cenegenics Institute, Age Management Medicine Group, Worldlink, and the American Academy of Anti-Aging. She is Board Certified in Internal Medicine as well as Anti-Aging and Regenerative Medicine. Board certification requires comprehensive training and a vigorous review of a doctor’s knowledge, experience and skill in a medical specialty to obtain the certification in their respective field of medical practice. Early in her career, she obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing from the University of Texas at Austin. She completed her Medical degree and Residency in Internal Medicine at the University of North Texas Health Science Center.
Special areas of interest to Dr. Berutti include women’s medicine, disease prevention, and wellness. She has been in practice for 23 years. In most cases, Dr. Berutti offers same-day sick appointments to help our patients that are in drastic need of assistance right away. We are dedicated to providing a friendly and caring environment when our patients need us the most. As an internal medicine specialist, Dr. Berutti is trained to manage all health issues.
Our Protocols
At the beginning of your treatment you will need at least two in-depth appointments with Dr. Berutti, which will be approximately 3 to 4 weeks apart. More complex diagnostics and treatment plans may require three or more appointments.
Before your first appointment you will be asked to fill out several Health Questionnaires. Completion of these in-depth forms is vital to the treatment process and will help get to the root cause of any issues you are experiencing.
Your first appointment will be 90 minutes long. Long appointments allow our patients to have quality time with Dr. Berutti to be able to address their symptoms and concerns without being rushed. We trust you will find that going through this process of extensive examination and testing will be well worth your investment in time.
Your labs will be drawn after your first appointment. For female patients, if you have a menstrual cycle, we generally try to schedule your lab work to be done between day 19 and day 22 of your cycle (day 1 being the first day you start your period.)
At your second appointment, Dr. Berutti will very thoroughly review of all lab results with you and give you an interpretation of those lab results. Based on your symptoms, history and personal lab results, she’ll discuss your specific diagnosis and treatment plan to address deficiencies, imbalances and other issues. Please be aware that our providers do not prescribe narcotic pain medication.
Costs:
Your first appointment will be an hour and a half long and costs $595. Your 2nd appointment is an hour and a quarter long and costs $350. Later follow up appointments will cost $295. Cost of hormone prescriptions are in addition to this.
We ask that, for your very first appointment only, you pay a $100 deposit ahead of time when booking the appointment, which goes toward the cost of your first appointment, with the remainder of the balance is due at the time of service. This deposit is refundable as long as you allow at least a couple of days notice.
You should find out from your insurance provider beforehand if they will cover the cost of your lab tests. If you do not have insurance coverage for these, we have a special discount program, which offers a significant reduction in cost.
As well, please know that getting your hormones well-balanced and other health markers stabilized with diminished symptoms takes quite some work. For the first year you will be asked to come in every 3 months to check your levels and adjust them until we get everything just right. After that, follow up appointments are needed to monitor and balance your levels, as well as for continuing prescriptions. Shifts in diet and exercise, stress levels and other factors can affect your hormone levels. Continuing maintenance appointments will be every 6 months.
Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) and FSAs can be used to cover the costs of your appointments and lab work.
Insurance Coverage
In terms of your office visit with the doctor, we are an out of network provider. The reason for this is that when a practice chooses to accept insurance, insurance companies tell the practice how much time they can spend with each patient, what illnesses and conditions they can treat, and how they can treat it.
In order to get to the root cause of various non-optimum conditions and provide optimal treatment, we find we need more time with our patients and more treatment options than insurance companies are willing to work with.
If you have a PPO plan, it is possible that your insurance company will reimburse you for much of your office-visit costs. This depends on your insurance company, what type of plan you have and your deductibles. You will pay for the appointments at the time of service and we will provide you with the necessary papers to file for reimbursement with your insurance provider.
If you are on an HMO plan, most likely your insurance will not cover any of the costs of your office visits and your lab work will need to go through your Primary Care Physician or you can utilize out discount program.
Your insurance will frequently be able to cover all or a majority of your lab work. Labs ordered by Dr. Berutti are typically covered the same as if they were written by your regular doctor which is 90 to 100%. You should however ask your insurance company how they cover the labs and which lab network is preferred. We will make sure that any labs ordered are done through this preferred provider.
If your insurance provider does not offer to cover a majority of the lab work or if it is being applied to your deductible we recommend that you use our discount program for labs.
To find out what your insurance will cover, we encourage you to call the customer service number on the back of your insurance card and ask a few basic questions.
1) First of all tell them that you’re going to see an out of network provider (someone that is not on the insurance’s list of doctors). Most PPO plans understand that people would prefer to see a doctor that they researched or that comes highly recommended from a friend. Ask your insurance company what the deductible is and what percent they will reimburse for the office visit with an out of network doctor or nurse practitioner.
2) When talking to your insurance customer service, tell them that your out of network provider is going to order very comprehensive lab work. Ask them specifically what percentage of the lab costs they will pay. If it is 90-100% you are better off to use your insurance. If they will cover less than 75% you will be better off to use our laboratory discount program.
