Naturopathic doctor and owner of InsideOut Health Solutions, Holly Fennell continues to ensure that her clinic provides outstanding patient care by maintaining solid relationships with other health care professionals.
By Irina Lytchak
IHP had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Fennell back when we featured InsideOut Health Solutions in our September 2012 Clinic Profile.
At the time, Dr. Fennell’s facility followed a model of sharing individually tailored treatment plans of action with both patients and their health care teams. It was the model that set InsideOut Health Solutions apart from other similar clinics and that continues to do so to this day.
“I think, very thankfully, that many of our clinic operations are the same. I maintain the same mandates I had in 2012 but I am always searching for ways to improve and provide the best possible patient care,” says Dr. Fennell. “We have always made it our job to know each member of our patients’ medical team. This makes receiving naturopathic care much easier for our patients. I think that’s what sets us apart.”
InsideOut team developments
When we first spoke with Dr. Fennell, her clinic had managed to expand from 500 to 1,600 square feet to occupy the entire fourth floor of the Toronto building InsideOut Health Solutions first opened its doors in.
“We already occupied the entire floor of the building so there hasn’t been the possibility to expand,” says Dr. Fennell. Nonetheless, the clinic still underwent some interior changes after the retirement of Douglas Aboud, RMT, and the departure of Heather Atkinson, RMT.
The extra space allowed for the clinic’s naturopathic department to expand as well as to welcome a new associate responsible for running the intravenous division.
“Hiring an associate has allowed the practice to grow and we can service more patients while providing a better standard of care,” says Dr. Fennell. “We’re able to better accommodate people’s schedules and it’s fantastic to collaborate on cases with another naturopathic doctor.”
The InsideOut Health Solutions team has largely remained the same except for Andrea Purdy, RMT, moving into a full-time role. The clinic has also gained a new office manager, Helen Nina, who had previously worked for 15 years as a registered nurse as well as operated her own business.
“We’ve been very fortunate in that my practice has continued growing,” says Dr. Fennell. “With this growth, I wanted an experienced office manager and her medical background was an additional bonus. She has really been the perfect match and just brought such a new level of organization, patient service and customer care to our clinic.”
A winning partnership
Over the past few years, Dr. Fennell says that the most exciting and noteworthy development in her practice has been her collaboration with Dr. Mansoor Mohammed, BSc (Hons Mol Gen), PhD, to introduce world class genetic testing to InsideOut Health Solutions.
“Dr. Mohammed is one of the most accomplished clinical genomicists in the industry,” she says. “He is credited with inventing and developing genomic technologies that revolutionized the diagnostic stratification of cancers.”
Working directly with Dr. Mohammed has allowed Dr. Fennell to understand how every patient’s innate genomic profile, not just their cancer genome profile, can be used to understand functionally relevant aspects of cellular functions. With that in mind, these two health professionals have been able to use this information to ensure patients’ optimal health and wellness.
“Having this relationship with Dr. Mohammed has been a huge advancement in the practice and in patient care,” says Dr. Fennell. “He’s a world-renowned geneticist and I feel very lucky that we can offer that to our patients. It’s just really allowed the oncology side of our practice to flourish and we’re able to be very specific with our patients’ programs.”
Embarking on a business venture
Back in 2012, Dr. Fennell also talked to us about her work with renowned plastic surgeon Dr. Trevor Born. Since then, the two have teamed up with Belinda Stronach to develop a pre- and post-operative surgical line of vitamins called Reborn Supplements. Dr. Born’s knowledge when it comes to the latest surgical and non-surgical breakthroughs in cosmetic and reconstructive plastic surgery have helped Dr. Fennell create a product that’s organic in nature and aims to help people before, during and after surgeries and dental procedures.
“I think a lot of people are hesitant to take nutraceuticals pre-operatively because they don’t know what’s safe to take,” explains Dr. Fennell. “We’ve formed a really great medical advisory panel that allowed me to formulate this line and all of the products have been granted NHP numbers.”
Finding harmony in clinic operations
To help maintain her flourishing clinic and strengthen relationships with other industry professionals, Dr. Fennell has also developed an information package that is sent out to all new patients’ oncologists, informing them of the proposed treatment plan for each patient.
“As mainstream as naturopathic medicine is becoming, it’s still not as widely accepted by the oncologists and that can create a lot of anxiety for our patients,” she explains. “In working with oncology patients, I wanted to ease this process. The information package was designed with the intent of answering questions and sharing proposed protocols with patients.”
Dr. Fennell continues to take pride in how her team goes out of its way to develop relationships with the oncologists working at various hospitals across the city.
“Rather than waiting for them to ask, we’re offering that information in advance,” she says. “Whether we get an answer or not, it doesn’t matter. We just want to take that extra step of informing them and take that stress away from the patient.”
And it’s that extra step that continues to set Dr. Fennell and her fantastic team at InsideOut Health Solutions apart from the rest.
InsideOut Health Solutions Team:
Holly Fennell, BA (Hon), ND: Naturopathic Doctor and Clinic Owner
Erin Truscott, B.Sc (Hon), ND: Naturopathic Doctor
Lori Dennis, MA: Psychotherapist
Nelson Parker, MSW, RSW: Social Worker
Andrea Purdy, RMT: Registered Massage Therapist
Helen Nina: Office Manager
