| Dispensary |
|---|
| Education |
| Your First Visit |
| Costs and other facts |
| Licensing |
| Special Focus |
| Cancer Support |
| Contact Info |
| Policies |
| Learning More |
Dr. Deanna Berman, ND, CM
Washington State Licensed Naturopathic Doctor
New York State Certified Midwife
Thank you for visiting my website. I want to introduce you to a model of health care that will help you change your future. If you are aware of naturopathic medicine, then you know it is a century-old practice which represents a marriage between conventional and alternative approaches to health care. Naturopathic medicine concentrates on prevention, dietary counseling, and natural therapies to promote health, and eliminate the causes of disease.
On Site Dispensary
Dr Berman’s dispensary contains a large variety of high quality herbal extracts, both tinctures and glycerites, bulk herbs, nutritional supplements and homeopathics which have been selected as a means of providing convenient, quality supplement choices for you and your family. The nutritional and herbal supplement industry is basically unregulated, and there is significant variation in both the potency and purity of available products.
Most of the products available in our naturopathic dispensary are 'Practitioner Only' products. As such we are not able to supply them to the general public without a naturopathic consultation or a written prescription from another suitably qualified health professional.
Online Virtual Dispensary
Click here to buy products
Through an online partnership with Emerson Ecologics, you may order online various products that have been prescribed for you. All supplements should be taken as advised by your prescribing physician. By clicking on buy products above you will access many of the products we carry in our dispensary. If you do not find the product you are looking for, you may use the “Search by” box to search for your product. You must first choose an option to search further. The options are: Product Name; Product Code; Company; Ingredient; Category. The category option will allow you to enter things like “women’s formulas”, “digestive support formulas” or “energy formulas” just to name a few. If you do not see the product you are looking for, please call us at 607-227-0833.
Through my education at Bastyr University, a four-year, post-graduate, medical school just outside of Seattle, Washington, I received two years of basic medical science education very much like medical doctors receive. I then received in-depth training in clinical nutrition, botanical medicine, and a wide range of alternative therapies including naturopathic manipulation, massage, cranio-sacral therapy, Chinese medicine, homeopathy, and more. Additionally, I received an extra year of coursework at Bastyr University to become a midwife. As part of my overall training, I also spent 1500 hours in clinical rotations, and I assisted and managed over 100 births. To obtain my licenses, I have taken and passed 20 state level board examinations.
With my knowledge of herbal medicine and nutritional supplements in addition to my pharmacology training, I am uniquely qualified to understand drug-herb, and drug-nutrient interactions. I am also trained in lab analysis and can therefore look at all of your related medical records in order to help build a picture of your overall health.
Moreover, as a certified midwife, who focuses on natural health solutions, my understanding of women's hormonal and endocrine issues is both extensive and unique. I believe the wide range of skills I possess added to my attention to details and my passion for staying current with research makes me an exceptional practitioner. Because I believe in life-long learning, I am a member of the following organizations:
American Association of Naturopathic Physicians
New York Association of Naturopathic Physicians
Oncology Association of Naturopathic Physicians American Academy of Naturopathic Obstetricians
American Botanical Council
American College of Nurse-Midwives
An initial visit lasts for one-and-a-half hours during which time I take an extensive personal and family medical history, and learn everything I can about your health concerns and diet. I will also review your current medical records and lab work that relate to your state of health. By the end of the first visit, we will have an initial plan to start improving your overall health. When creating such an individualized plan for a woman, I will consider the following:
- Diet, Exercise, Stress management
- Nutritional supplements
- Botanical medicines
- Bio-identical hormone replacement
- Conventional hormone replacement (HRT)
- Additional pharmaceuticals
My intention is to be your partner in your healing process. My hope and my mission is to help you achieve a greater sense of empowerment with respect to your health by utilizing natural and non-invasive therapies that will support your body's natural ability to heal.
As of June 1, 2007 the cost of an initial visit is $210 for adults and $180 for children. For Cancer patients and others patients with extensive records and very complex health concerns, I may require a 2 hour initial visit. In such cases, the reviewing of extensive records requires a large time investment and therefore the fee in these cases is $270 for the initial visit.
Return visits are based on a fee of $180 dollars per hour and a typical return visit lasts from 30 to 45 minutes. I am not yet set up to bill insurance and because naturopathic medicine is not yet licensed in New York State, reimbursement for children and men is not possible. However, because I am a Certified Midwife in New York State, some well-woman care may be reimbursable by insurers. Please contact your insurance company and inquire as to the percentage they will reimburse for a non-preferred provider. If you want to submit your bills to your insurer for reimbursement, I can facilitate this with diagnositic and treatment codes..
Please also recognize that my practice represents a different model of care. Most medical doctors see patients for a very short period of time and therefore must treat most cases in a relatively generic fashion. I give a great deal of time and thought to each patient and therefore cannot see more than a limited number of patients each week. This means that new patients must often wait at least a few weeks to get in for a first appointment. In terms of severely acute situations, especially those concerning children, pregnant women and cancer patients, I will try to fit them in sooner. For more information about making appointments, please see the "Contact Information" section below.
I would also like you to know that naturopathic medicine is recognized primary care in 13 states and the District of Columbia. There is no such license in New York at this time but the New York Association of Naturopathic Physicians (NYANP) is working with the state legislature to create just such a license. If you are interested in finding ways you can help with this process, please visit the NYANP. As I mentioned above, I am currently a certified midwife in New York and can therefore work with girls and women from the onset of menses though life, as a general health care provider. I also see men and children as more of a health consultant.
For more information read M.D. & N.D. What Integrative Medicine will Bring to New York State (PDF reader needed. Click here if you don't have one.)
I would like to point out that all naturopathic doctors are not the same. The four accredited medical schools have somewhat different programs and naturopathic doctors tend to specialize. Bastyr University, the school I attended, works closely with the University of Washington Medical School and is very "science based" in its approach. Likewise, I base much of my approach to healing on as much current research and sound anecdotal evidence as I can find. I comb journals such as New England Journal of Medicine, Integrative Cancer Therapies, Alternative Medicine Review, British Medical Journal, Cancer, Journal of Clinical Nutrition and many others to find the information I need. If I can't find something in writing, I call other naturopathic doctors and medical doctors to find the answers. Because of this emphasis, I have extensive knowledge in many areas of womens health including:
~ Breast Cancer Prevention, Support, and Recuperative Care.
~ General Cancer Support and Recuperative Care
~ Cervical Dysplasia and HPV
~ Hormonal Imbalances
~ Menopause Support (Bio-Identical Hormone Replacement)
~ Endometriosis, PMS, PMDD, Fibroids, Breast Cysts
~ Pre-Conception Counseling and Infertility
~ Auto-immune Disease
~ Digestive Disorders (IBS, Constipation, Diarrhea, etc.)
~ Environmental and Food Allergies
~ Asthma.
~ Insomnia
~ Eczema and Acne
~ Parkinson's Disease
~ High Blood Pressure and High Cholesterol
For more information on the healthy breast program go to http://www.healthybreastprogram.on.ca/session_guidelines.htm
For more information on fertility go to www.//cnyhealingarts.com
All naturopathic doctors take a course in oncology. Because I found the study of natural support and prevention for cancer to be a very compelling subject, I have been networking and researching this matter extensively. I try to stay up-to-date with much of the research concerning natural therapies for support and prevention, and I use my connections through the Oncology Association of Naturopathic Physicians and Cancer Treatment Centers of America to confirm my understanding of specific cases. I can help whether your concern is prevention, support, or recuperation.
Prevention: I am a trained teacher of the "Healthy Breast Program," a breast cancer prevention program taught to high school girls in Toronto. My general practice of looking at immune health, life style and environmental influences, detoxification, and other factors that influence disease prevention, immediately lend themselves to cancer prevention.
Support: During chemotherapy, radiation, and other conventional oncology treatments, the use of nutritional supplementation and herbal therapies is an important and complicated matter. There are ways to use these supportive measures that will enhance the effectiveness of the conventional therapies as well as decrease the side effects. I do not recommend people attempt this supportive care on their own because research is actually starting to show that the choices one makes concerning diet and supplements can have serious negative effects. The therapies I suggest are evidence based.
Recuperation: While recovering from cancer treatment, I can help you find a program that will speed recuperation as well aid in the prevention of a recurrence. For each patient, this includes a dietary program along with the use of nutritional supplements and herbal therapies.
For more information on Cancer support go to www.dianeparadise.com
I only see people by appointment. Because I spend substantial time with each patient and then chart and research extensively, I can only see a limited number of new and return patients each week. If you are a new patient, please be prepared to wait a few weeks to come in. If you or your child has an acute condition rather than a chronic one and have a concern that cannot wait, I will try to fit you in sooner.
For new inquiries, please call our office and speak to our secretary or leave a message and we will return your call as soon as we can. You can also call our mobile number and speak to my husband Bill Strauss. He has worked by my side for years and typically is the person who responds to new inquiries. Lastly, though my office hours are limited, I will strive to make special arrangements for patients who cannot make appointments during these hours.
Office Hours: Monday, Wednesday, Thursday 10:00am to 5:30pm
Address: 210 West State Street, Ithaca, New York, 14850
Office: 607-266-8880 Mobile: 607-227-0833 Fax: 607-272-7390
Payment for my services are due at the time of your visit. Please bring cash, checks. or a Visa or Mastercard with you. In some cases, I will reduce costs or create a payment plan, but I approach each situation on an individual basis. Please be frank about your financial situation so that I can help serve you as best I can.
For current patients with questions regarding their health, simple, short questions about supplements and diet or other facts about a recent visit are free of charge. More complex questions, especially those concerning changes in health status not related to a previous visit, will require a phone consult or office visit and must be formally scheduled and will be billed at my normal rate of $180/hr. If you are a current patient and have questions, please call our office during business hours or call our mobile number.
People around the country are discovering that they have real choices in terms of complimentary and alternative medicine. Naturopathic medicine, just such a choice, represents a marriage between conventional medical technologies and alternative therapies. Naturopathic doctors are trained to be the hub of a fully integrated approach to health care. As I mentioned above, there are currently 13 states and the District of Columbia that license naturopathic doctors as primary care doctors. Moreover, licensing efforts are occurring all around the country including here in New York State.
If you believe that medical professionals are needed who have a deep understanding of nutrition and nutritional supplements, and who focus on non-invasive, non-drug therapies, and who spend time getting to know their patients and helping them work through life challenges both physical and emotional, then you owe it to yourself to become educated. Please take the time to visit the some of the web sites below to learn more and to see how you can help. Tell your friends as well, and please let your legislators know that they need to support the efforts to get naturopathic doctors licensed.
In addition to the sites listed below, you can always call me at
607-266-8880 or 607-227-0833.
Naturopathy.pdf
(If you don't have a pdf reader, you can get one by clicking here)
New York Association of Naturopathic Physicians
American Association of Naturopathic Physicians
Association of Accredited Naturopathic Medical Colleges
"IN THE NEWS"
For more information about a new free clinic opening in Ithaca, click here
For information about a Naturopathic approach to family health click here
To read Dr. Berman talk about a whole body approach to health click here
To read about licensing of Naturopathic doctors click here.
Naturopathic Doctors want licensing. Click here.
To read "When Trust in Doctors Erodes", click here.
