#209: Eric Ehle: Treating the Whole Patient with Integrative Medicine

<p><strong>OVERVIEW:</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Jason A. Duprat, Entrepreneur, Healthcare Practitioner, and Host of the</span> <em><span style= "font-weight: 400;">Healthcare Entrepreneur Academy</span></em> <span style="font-weight: 400;">podcast talks with Dr. Eric Ehle, DO and medical director of Well Life Family Medicine. Eric shares his experiences on becoming a practitioner, including what he’s learned as a practice owner. He talks about the importance of integrative medicine and offers advice to other healthcare professionals thinking about opening a clinic.  </span></p> <p> </p> <p><strong>EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS:</strong></p> <ul> <li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Eric is board-certified in family medicine, medical acupuncture, and integrative medicine. He’s an assistant professor at Texas Tech University and a faculty member with the IVT Academy. </span></li> <li><span style="font-weight: 400;">He went to film school but seeing his dad—who was a chiropractor—inspired him to become a certified EMT, earn a bachelor’s degree in nutrition sciences, and eventually, open his own practice.</span></li> <li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Initially, he started by seeing patients at his dad’s clinic and then launched his own practice once his patient base grew. </span></li> <li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Jason and Eric discuss the pros and cons of learning on the job versus formal business training and the advantage of having a mentor.</span></li> <li><span style="font-weight: 400;">When you own a practice, you can implement whatever you’re interested in or whatever helps your patients. You can prioritize quality over quantity.  </span></li> <li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Integrative medicine and functional medicine overlap in places, but they differ in terms of approach and style. Think of integrative medicine as the umbrella and functional medicine as the subset. </span></li> <li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Integrative medicine utilizes both conventional and alternative approache