Euphora Health is a unique clinic in Central Texas, not only because of our participation in the Direct Primary Care model but also because of our origins. Our founder and lead physician, Dr. Chris Larson, D.O., began his journey toward medicine in an unusual way while searching for a meaningful way to help people. Euphora Health began as Dr. Larson’s endeavor to improve other peoples’ lives, and today, that impact is clear.
About Our Founder
Dr. Chris Larson came to medicine after an already established career in finance. As a business graduate with a degree from the University of Texas at Austin, he began as an investment banker in Houston. It wasn’t long before the effects of a career in finance were obvious to Dr. Larson: he watched demanding work weeks take their toll on unhappy coworkers and began his search for something more fulfilling. After a stint in trading natural gas options, Dr. Larson still found himself searching for more—for a meaningful career that allowed him to truly help people.
It was during this time that Dr. Larson thought back to his college days when he had tutored at-risk kids with the charity Neighborhood Longhorns. He had found volunteering rewarding, and he began to see that he had a deep desire to find a career that married helping others with lifelong learning. Dr. Larson considered education, coaching, and medicine, and settled on a life-altering career shift into the medical field.
After finishing his pre-med program at the University of Houston, Dr. Larson completed medical school at the University of North Texas Health Science Center, Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine. Finally, he completed a family medicine residency at Christus Santa Rosa in San Antonio in 2010.
Why Direct Primary Care
When Dr. Larson was considering that massive career change to a field that allowed him to make a difference for others, pivotal life events influenced his decision. At the time, some of his relatives and loved ones were experiencing significant health issues and receiving inadequate healthcare. Dr. Larson watched as they waited months for appointments, struggled to find answers, and experienced the many disappointments common in modern healthcare. Expensive appointments piled up while Dr. Larson’s relatives felt out of control and unheard by their doctors.
These experiences galvanized Dr. Larson’s choice to enter the pre-med program at the University of Houston, not only to join the medical field and begin making a difference in the world but also to find a better way to serve patients than the current healthcare system. He began with a goal to find purpose in improving the lives of others and a sense that he could do better.
While completing his family practice residency, Dr. Larson began researching alternative methods of care and found the field was wide open for innovation. At the time, most direct healthcare options were of the “concierge” or “boutique” variety, a service that is generally far outside the budget of a typical individual or family. But as the Direct Primary Care model began to evolve and receive more attention in the popular press, Dr. Larson was intrigued by the possibilities. Through extensive research, Dr. Larson put the pieces of the DPC puzzle together and reverse-engineered his own Direct Primary Care clinic, opening the doors of Euphora Health in Central Texas in 2014. Euphora Health began as an affordable DPC option for individuals and employers.
Initially, patients and employers were skeptical. Experiences with the traditional healthcare system made people wonder how this model would be different, and whether it was all too good to be true. But as Euphora Health continued to spread awareness for the many powerful ways Direct Primary Care is different, the practice began to grow.
Euphora Health Today
Today, Euphora Health continues to grow and is expanding its reach in Central Texas. Dr. Larson has found the fulfilling career he was searching for while continuing his goal of lifelong learning, and Euphora Health patients benefit from his attention to detail and willingness to disrupt healthcare norms for their good.
Euphora Health serves both individuals and employers. Dr. Larson’s background in business has given him unique insight into the challenges employers face when providing healthcare for their employees, positioning him to offer affordable options for a growing number of local employers. Employers pay a large percentage of healthcare costs in America, and it’s Dr. Larson’s goal to show employers how they can change the way they pay for healthcare, and in doing so, provide more effective, more affordable care to their employees.
Euphora Health serves an always-increasing number of individuals and local employers, including large service industry chains, auto dealerships, schools, and restaurants. Through a combination of virtual, on-site, and in-office visits, Dr. Larson has successfully provided a revolutionary level of care to hundreds of individuals—and he’s just getting started.
“It’s really a joy to me,” Dr. Larson says. He hopes that one day, Primary Care Physicians around the country will find their way to Direct Primary Care, where they can leave behind the burn out associated with traditional insurance-based primary care and truly begin to practice in the way that they hoped to when they were in medical school. In our experience, Direct Primary Care physicians experience a high degree of career satisfaction, as they improve their patients’ lives while enjoying a work-life balance of their own.
Ready to see the Direct Primary Care difference? Contact us to learn more.
