Francis Holistic Medical Center

Dr. LaCava is Board Certified in Environmental Medicine.  This is a specialty which seeks to find and treat the causes of disease.  It is based on the theory that the majority of diseases come about by the environmental exposure to adverse agents in susceptible persons.  These agents can often be toxic metals, drugs, solvents, pesticides, construction or cleaning materials, fumes and vapors, or natural agents such as molds, bacteria, parasites, foods, inhalants, and contactants (agents which contact the skin).  Excessive exposure to any of these agents may result in hypersensitivities or disrupted function of the immune, endocrine, or neurological regulatory systems.  Specific organs or tissues may also result with disrupted function or definable damage.  The Environmental Physician searches to identify which of these agents may be setting off the disease and uses various blood, salivary, urine, and stool analyses to help with the search.  Confirmation of any theory developed as the cause of the disease is often dependent upon results of a therapeutic trial.  The physician often sees the case where no other doctor can come to a firm conclusion as to the cause or is willing to theorize as to a possibly effective treatment.

• Electrical Sensitivities and the Electrical Environment

James O'Shea, MD having dinner with Dr. LaCava.

Our office has a traditional (as opposed to conventional) approach to Environmental Illness.  We believe that multiple adverse factors (or agents) acting synergistically in the same patient operate to produce chronic unwellness or disease states.  To discover these factors, we use a variety of tests, some of them concurrently, since no test can be 100% accurate.  We often use measures of exposure such as: allergy intra-dermal (epicutaneous) skin testing; blood RAST (Alletess Medical Laboratory); antibody levels (IGeniX, Inc); ELISA (Elisa Act); exposure challenges, levels of toxins or irritant, such as heavy metals or organic toxin levels in blood or urine; urinary mycotoxins (Realtime Laboratory); metabolic effects of toxins or of physiologic destabilizers, such as 24 hour urinary porphyrins (Metametrix Clinical Laboratory); oxidative stress test (Genova Diagnostics); microbial organic acid test (Great Plains Laboratory); C-Reactive protein, sedimentation rate, serum ferritin, or other measures of inflammation (LabCorp).

Whenever possible, we try to use commercial laboratories contracted with insurance companies to minimize the out-of-pocket costs to patients.  However, conventional commercial laboratories often have low sensitivity or an unrealistically wide reference range so that they will not correctly indicate abnormalities.  Some conventional laboratories actually perform their tests incorrectly or label their tests in a misleading way.  In order to be more helpful to our patients, we try (admittedly not always successfully) to select laboratories and tests which have high sensitivity and a reasonable degree of selectivity in defining a particular status.  Consequently, it may be necessary to use non-contracted laboratories and tests resulting in an out-of-pocket expense for patients.  We expect it to be the responsibility of the patient to determine if an expected test will be covered by their insurance contract or to pay the performing laboratory in advance when the specimen is submitted.  Patients who have flexibility in their health care and a willingness (and ability) to pay for some uncovered services make the fastest and more complete recovery.  However, we will try to work with families having limitations in their out-of-pocket expenses.

These appointments are scheduled for an hour in duration, but please plan to be here for approximately up to two hours.  The initial visit requires questionnaires, checklists, and summaries that need to be completed by the patient (or parental guardian, if the patient is a minor).  These forms can be sent to you by mail, or you can download them here on our website below.

The forms need to be completed in full and returned to our office for receipt BEFORE your appointment.  We highly recommend that you have these documents returned to the office AT LEAST ONE WEEK prior to your visit.  Please note, your inability to comply with this request will results in your loss of valuable time spent with the physician.  For more information, or if you have questions, please contact our office and we will be happy to assist you.

 

To download the forms required for your initial visit, please click on the links below.  These documents are Adobe (.pdf) files, and thus require Adobe Reader to view.  If you are experiencing problems viewing these forms, please contact our office at (508) 854-1380.

Print each item, complete and return them to our office as soon as possible.  A $40.00 retainer to hold your appointment time should also be sent along with your paperwork.  Please note, this retainer fee is meant to HOLD your appointment time only.  IT WILL BE RETURNED TO YOU UPON ARRIVAL.  Should you need to reschedule or cancel your appointment for any reason, you must do so AT LEAST THREE BUSINESS DAYS prior to your appointment.  If you do not show up at your scheduled time, and you fail to notify our office, your $40.00 retainer will then be forfeited to the Francis Holistic Medical Center, P.C.

For initial ADULT (persons over 15 years old) patients seeing Dr. LaCava, the required forms to download include:

 

 

 

For initial PEDIATRIC (children 15 years old and younger) patients seeing Dr. LaCava, the required forms to download include: