Given the current economic conditions, it is reasonable to ask why anyone would try to launch a new medical conference, let alone one focused on such a specific niche as humanistic, holistic medicine.

Meg and I have certainly asked ourselves this question many times over the last few months, as we work toward production of Heal Thy Practice: Transforming Primary Care, our new conference on practice development for holistically-minded physicians (June 5–7, Westin La Paloma, in Tucson).

The answer, though, remains quite clear. We’re launching Heal Thy Practice because we see the need.

In the nine years since we began Holistic Primary Care, we’ve attended many clinical conferences on holistic, integrative and naturopathic medicine. We’ve had the privilege of meeting thousands of dedicated, compassionate physicians. What we’ve learned from you about the state of American health care is both heartening and frightening.

We’ve met many who are deeply troubled by the status quo of medical practice, with its relentless pressures and paperwork hassles, its irrational incentives, its rewarding of procedures and prescriptions at the expense of the caring and counseling that could prevent many of the scourges of our time.

We’ve met good doctors who’ve learned the clinical aspects of nutrition, stress reduction, botanical medicine, biofeedback and other aspects of holistic and naturopathic care, but who run up against the hard walls of existing health financing systems when they try to put these into practice. We’ve met young or mid-career doctors so disillusioned with health care that they’re thinking of leaving the field altogether unless they can find a better way—and soon.

At the same time, we’ve met visionaries who boldly set out—often with little more than faith that it could be different, and an earnest wish to serve their patients—and developed new models for successful holistic practice. We’ve met doctors who stepped off the treadmill of insurance-dominated, Rx-centered “care” and into practice structures that enable them to work as healers, not just drug reps.

Along the way, we’ve also encountered nutraceuticals companies, functional medicine testing labs, business consultants and information tech companies that all share a commitment to a more humane, health-centric vision of medicine.

So we thought to ourselves, What if we brought all this together? What if we created a forum where those who’ve forged or discovered new, successful models of holistic/preventive care could share their knowledge and hard-won experience with those seeking these pathways? What if we created a forum that empowers more doctors to practice the sort of health care our nation so desperately needs?

This is the vision that prompted us to start Heal Thy Practice, and it’s what sustains our commitment to it.

No doubt, the Obama administration will eventually propose some sort of healthcare reform. But we believe the reform we really need is already happening at the grass roots level. It emerges as doctors and patients work together to restore the bond of trust, the therapeutic alliance that should never have been broken. It evolves as we re-establish the values of prevention and health promotion as the central tenet of medical practice, not as an afterthought if there’s any money left over.

The wisdom and know-how are out there, in the hearts and minds of doctors who’ve “done it.” So is the wish for change and the willingness to meet the healthcare challenges of our time in new ways. Heal Thy Practice will provide a gathering point, a venue for sharing and learning, a forum for exchange of fresh visions and best practices.

We’ve got a great roster of speakers, including:

Brian Forrest, MD: A family physician in Apex, NC, who “just said no” to insurance, Dr. Forrest has become one of the nation’s role models for fee-for-service primary care. His low-overhead, high-service model enables him to spend 50 minutes of every hour with patients, while breaking even after the first 4 visits of the day.

Elson Haas, MD: In his more than 30 years of holistic family practice, Dr. Haas has worked in just about every conceivable practice structure from the “barefoot doctor” model of the early 1970s to his current role quarterbacking the multidisciplinary Preventive Medicine Center of Marin. Dr. Haas will share his experiences with diverse business models for holistic/preventive health care. The real key, he says, is to articulate your core values and then let them guide your clinical as well as business decisions.

Rebecca Asmar, ND: A young naturopath who built her Bambu Clinic according to the Health of Business and the Business of Health (HBBH) principles pioneered by Dickson Thom, ND. These principles view a medical practice as a living “organism.” You’ll learn how to evaluate the flow of energy, attention, currency, and resources in your practice, to better identify excesses, deficiencies and imbalances, and develop a strategy to restore health and vitality.

Alan Dumoff, JD: The medicolegal aspects of holistic practice are in flux, governed by a patchwork of federal and local regulations that vary markedly from state to state. Few know more about it than Mr. Dumoff. A member of the American College for the Advancement of Medicine’s “Legal Quartet,” Mr. Dumoff offers a wealth of expertise on how to avoid legal problems, and how to handle them if they arise.

Lee Lipsenthal, MD: A pioneer in preventive medicine, Dr. Lipsenthal is immediate Past-President of the American Board of Integrative Holistic Medicine, and worked for many years with Dr. Dean Ornish. Dr. Lipsenthal’s current passion is focused on the health of his brothers and sisters in medicine. He will offer a special Saturday evening mini-workshop on “Finding Balance in a Medical Life.”

Victoria Maizes, MD: As Executive Director of the University of Arizona’s Center for Integrative Medicine, Dr. Maizes has been training physicians in integrative practice for more than 10 years. She’ll share the aggregate experience and wisdom of more than 500 fellows of the Program in Integrative Medicine as they’ve translated integrative practice from academia into the trenches of community health care.

Russell Jaffe, MD: After a distinguished immunology career at the National Institutes of Health, Dr. Jaffe grew interested in the broader question of how to shift health care from end-stage disease care toward proactive prevention. For more than 20 years, he has worked on federal and state-level policy to support preventive medicine. Dr. Jaffe will anchor our special “Sunday Brunch” session on public policy and healthcare reform. The Brunch session will also feature Dr. Eve Shapiro, of Physicians for a National Health Program, who will share her thoughts and projections about broader healthcare reform.

Grace Keenan, MD: Our conference chairwoman is director of NOVA Medical Group, a 4-site integrative care group in Northern Virginia. A testament to physician-driven innovation, NOVA has quietly emerged as a national model for holistic, collaborative care offering everything from urgent care to spa services, and employing a broad spectrum of healers. Dr. Keenan will share “nuts & bolts” business wisdom, as well as an in-depth look at how to create the sort of “five-star” care that patients truly value.

If you’re yearning to practice a more holistic, humanistic form of medicine, come to Heal Thy Practice and learn from peers who are a few steps ahead of you, and who are doing well as they work to do good for their patients. Meet like-minded colleagues who are also working to transform their practices, and enjoy the restorative atmosphere of one of the Southwest’s most beautiful resorts.

Whether you’re just starting out in medicine and want to learn how to build a thriving holistic practice, or you’re a seasoned veteran interested in comparing notes with others who share your vision Heal Thy Practice will offer you equal measures of inspiration, empowerment and practical business skill-building.