Exploring Life & Business with Aisha Harris of Harris Family Health

Today we’d like to introduce you to Aisha Harris.

Hi Aisha, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I am Dr. Aisha Harris, I am Flint native and family medicine doctor in Flint with my own clinic Harris Family Health that I recently opened in January 2023. As far as my story, after high school, I was into math and science so I pursed an engineering degree at UMich – Ann Arbor. While in undergrad I realized indirect health care like health technology and pharmaceuticals was not my style and decided to apply to medical school after a summer working in New Orleans for an engineering internship and volunteering at an HIV/AIDS transition home. I was accepted into Georgetown University School of Medicine and discovered a love for family medicine while I was in school. Family medicine was a balance of broad medical knowledge and community work that I enjoyed being involved in. I trained as a family doctor in Chicago at the University of Illinois for my family medicine residency and came home to Flint after residency graduation in 2020. Over the years, I enjoyed working at home in Flint and caring for my community but it was getting difficult in the traditional health system. So, I decided to start my own medical clinic and found that direct primary care and the monthly membership-based model of primary care services was a great option for me and my community. Harris Family Health started as a desire to improve health access and health outcomes and has grown to be a innovative alternative and good resource for the Flint and Genesee County community.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It hasn’t been easy but it has been a necessary challenge. The health system is a complex system, whether navigating it as a patient or working in it as a doctor. With opening Harris Family Health my biggest challenges have been educating the community on the direct primary care model and personally, learning more about the business side of medicine, which is not normally taught during our training.

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Harris Family Health is a Flint’s first direct primary care clinic that offers monthly membership-based primary care services without billing or accepting insurance. I am a Flint native and family medicine doctor that decided to open up an alternative health access and primary care option for Flint and Genesee County community. The membership-based services allow people to have more time and access to their doctor which results in a stronger doctor-patient relationship and better health outcomes. I am proud of the opportunity to give people a different perspective when it comes to health access and to empower my community to prioritize their health in a simpler way with less hassle and barriers. I want readers to know that Harris Family Health is a great resource for the Flint and Genesee County community and the clinic strives to be part of the changing landscape of healthcare that really focuses on genuine, compassionate, and accessible care. At its core Harris Family Health is my way of taking care of Flint and my community in a way that patients deserve. I went into medicine to be a resource as I listen to patients stories and Harris Family Health gives people a chance to really feel heard by someone from Flint who came back to live in Flint and thrive with Flint.

So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
Harris Family Health has primary care services for adults and children but can also be partnered with other small businesses that want to offer health benefits to employees. Small business interested in talking more about the employee health benefit options can contact me. As far as support, building awareness about Harris Family Health and direct primary care is beneficial so people can know more about innovative ways to prioritize their health. Additionally, I like health outreach and addressing health disparities and health literacy so I’d like to continue to be a resource for the community be speaking on primary care and public health topics if needed. Health is impacted beyond the clinic every single day.

Pricing:

• Age 4-17 $45/mo
• Age 18-64 $85/mo
• Employee Health Benefit Package Available

Contact Info:

• Website: www.harrisfamilyhealth.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/harrisfamilyhealth/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/harrisfamilyhealth 

Image Credits
Plain Air Photography