Dr. Meredith Gale Jewell, MD

My Specialty and Why I Chose It

I am an occupational medicine physician. Occupational medicine physicians take care of people with Workers Compensation injuries as well as people who need physical exams for a job or commercial driver's license. We also do periodic physical exams for certain employees that need to meet regulatory requirements, such as firefighters and police. My background is in emergency medicine and I transitioned to occupational medicine because I find treating patients in the clinic to be more rewarding than the brief encounter I had with patients in the emergency room and I have a less erratic schedule.

My Practice Philosophy

I believe in practicing medicine in a compassionate and supportive way while working with patients to get them better. I work with both patients and their employers together to return employees back to work as quickly as possible. I also believe strongly in preventing workplace injuries and illness and spend the time necessary with my …patients to make sure that they understand ways that they can reduce injuries in the future, both on and off the job.

My Tenure with Kaiser Permanente

I have been a part of Kaiser Permanente since 2003. I enjoy practicing medicine here because of the ease in conferring, when needed, with specialists in a variety of fields. This ability to discuss things easily with other colleagues allows me to provide the best possible care for my patients.

Kaiser Permanente is a vast network of doctors, in an integrated system, that all worked together to provide optimal health to our patients. In occupational medicine, we take care of both non-Kaiser and Kaiser members. For Kaiser members, we are separate from their Kaiser Health Plan. Patients are sent to us under their employer’s Worker’s Compensation insurance so we do have to get prior authorization from insurance carriers to see patients, get certain diagnostic studies, and do certain treatments. What is amazing is once authorization is obtained, how easily we are able to provide what is needed for our patients since we have access to the entire Kaiser Permanente network of doctors and services and, therefore, have the ability to obtain specialist expertise easily.



On a Personal Note. . .

I started my career as an emergency medicine physician for several years before transitioning to occupational medicine so that I could slow my life down a little and start a family. I enjoy spending time with my family and I am becoming an avid photographer. My homepage tells you little about my background, credentials and practice philosophy. Here you will find links to various Frequently Asked Questions about Workers Compensation. Workers Compensation can be very confusing for patients who have been injured as a result of their job because there is much more involved than simply going to your doctor in being treated.