About Us
Healthcare decisions rarely move in straight lines. You listen, you ask, you try to understand — but sometimes the words don’t connect, and uncertainty takes hold.
Alongside Health helps you make sense of your experience — the language, the process, and the emotions that come with navigating care.
We don’t offer medical opinions or diagnoses. Instead, we help you prepare for meaningful conversations with your healthcare team so you can ask questions with confidence and feel more at ease with what comes next.
Each session is a space to pause, reflect, and regain clarity about how you want to participate in your care.
This isn’t about replacing your provider, but about strengthening your voice in the relationship you share with them.
We are here when you need to:
Understand complex care plans in plain language
Ask the questions that matter most
Find steadiness in moments that feel overwhelming
We are not:
A crisis line, telehealth or emergency medical service
Offering medical opinions or treatment
Legal or insurance advocates
What You’ll Walk Away With
A short, prioritized question list for the next visit
A 20–30 second opener to start the visit clearly
A closing question that confirms next steps
A portal message template you can copy/paste after the visit
Book Now
Discovery Call
Meet Dr. Duffey over video call and inform him of your situation. If it’s a fit, we’ll help you walk into the next visit steadier and clearer.
10 min | FREE
Discussion Session
Use this time with Dr. Duffey over video call to prepare for doctor visits, clarify questions, process care decisions, etc.
50 min | $150
Meet Our Founder
With more than 30 years of experience as a pediatrician, physician leader, and mentor to colleagues in transition, Dr. David Duffey, DO has guided teams and supported families through the full range of healthcare’s challenges — from difficult diagnoses to moments of profound loss. His work has ranged from leading large, multispecialty physician groups to overseeing performance and quality across hospital system service lines. Those experiences — whether making life-altering diagnoses or sitting quietly with grieving parents after the death of a child — have shaped his conviction that no one should have to walk the healthcare path alone.
Throughout his career, Dr. Duffey has served as a Vice President of Women’s and Children’s Services, a clinical instructor, and a trusted coach for physicians navigating behavioral or performance challenges. He has been recognized with multiple teaching awards for his ability to connect, communicate, and help others grow — qualities that define both his leadership and his approach to coaching. He brings both clinical insight and the wisdom of experience — helping professionals strengthen communication, restore confidence, and reconnect with the purpose that drew them to medicine in the first place.
For patients and families, Dr. Duffey offers calm perspective and practical understanding — helping them make sense of care plans, clarify what’s being communicated, and feel empowered to ask the questions that matter most. His goal is to create a safe space where curiosity, compassion, and clarity meet — a space for honest conversation and shared understanding.
Alongside Health grew out of that vision: a place where patients and families can explore challenges, rebuild trust, and find a clearer path forward — together.
Check out our free, downloadable tools for patients & families!
We have guides to help patients and families feel prepared for visits, ready for hard conversations, and confident in their healthcare plan.
Visit our blog
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Trust: Finding Steady Ground in Care
Trust can be hard to name, but we know when it’s there and when it’s not. It shows up in small ways: the feeling that someone is really listening, the comfort of being known, the space to ask a question without worry.
When trust is strong, care feels lighter…
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Feeling Dismissed? How to Speak Up About Your Care
We’ve all had it happen. We explained our symptoms, shared our concerns. But somehow, we walked out of a medical appointment feeling unheard…
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What Your Doctor Might Not Say (But You Deserve to Know)
We’ve all been there: sitting in an exam room while a diagnosis or treatment plan is explained, nodding along. But deep down, something doesn’t feel right…
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Caring for Yourself When You Feel Worn Out
There’s a moment when exhaustion stops feeling temporary. It’s the kind of worn out feeling that seeps into your thoughts, your patience, and even your hope.
If you’ve been caring for someone else…
