Today we’d like to introduce you to Laura McCall.
Hi Laura, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Hi, I’m Laura McCall. I’m a board certified family nurse practitioner and the founder of Compass Rose Health and Wellness, a Direct Primary Care practice. I started my career in hospital nursing and later worked in home health, as well as in geriatric, palliative, and hospice care. Those experiences really shaped how I see medicine. Over time, I grew frustrated with corporate healthcare—the patient volumes, the limited time, and the restrictions from insurance. It started to feel like there wasn’t enough space to truly connect with patients or provide the kind of care I believed in.
In 2022, I decided to take a leap and open my own practice. I started small—with a tiny office, a computer, and some furniture from my house—but I had a very clear vision of what I wanted to build. I wanted to create a space where patients feel comfortable, never rushed, and truly heard. I also wanted to focus on a more proactive, whole-person approach to care. Through a Direct Primary Care model, we offer a simple monthly membership that includes unlimited visits, longer appointments, and direct access to their provider, which really allows us to build stronger relationships and focus on long-term wellness.
As the practice started to grow, I realized there was an opportunity to expand that vision even further. I focus a lot on helping patients make meaningful lifestyle changes—whether that’s around weight, hormones, nutrition, or stress—because true health isn’t just about treating symptoms, it’s about addressing the whole person, both physically and mentally.
In the summer of 2024, I brought on a close friend and former colleague, Lorie Lagan. We had worked together before and share a very similar approach to patient care, so it felt like a natural fit. Around that same time, my lease was ending, and I found a new space that, at first glance, didn’t look like much—brown carpet, pale yellow walls—but I could immediately see the potential. I wanted to create something that didn’t feel like a traditional medical office, but more like a true wellness center.
Now, we’ve built a space where patients can access everything in one place—primary care, weight management, hormone therapy, as well as services like IV therapy, red light therapy, sauna, and float therapy. We also offer supplements, herbal teas, and tinctures to support healing, either alongside or in place of conventional treatments.
Our team has grown along with the practice. We’ve added two front desk team members, Escarleth Perez and Magaly Morales, along with two registered nurses, Brisha Young and Leah Laing. Julia Martell, NP joined us in November, and most recently Erin Kirkpatrick, NP joined us last month.
It’s been incredible to see how something that started so small has grown, but at the core, the mission has always stayed the same—creating a space where patients feel supported, heard, and empowered to truly take control of their health.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Ha—definitely not. It’s been anything but easy.
It really started as a leap of faith. I was working in a corporate role when I got an email saying my patient load was increasing and visits would be cut down to 10 minutes. I remember thinking, this is not why I went into medicine. So I made a pretty quick decision to walk away, telling myself I would just “figure it out”—even though I didn’t fully know what that would look like yet.
Along the way, I had people tell me I was crazy for thinking this model would work, especially as a nurse practitioner. And honestly, in the beginning, it was slow. The first six months, I might have only seen a few patients a week. There were definitely moments where I questioned if I had made the right decision. At the same time, I was preparing to send my oldest off to college, so financially, it felt like a huge weight and a constant worry.
But I believed in what I was building. I poured everything I had into it—renovating a new space and even hiring a full-time provider before I probably felt “ready.” I just had to trust that it was going to work.
There were a lot of long nights, early mornings, and weekends spent not just caring for patients, but figuring out all the behind-the-scenes parts of running a business. There were definitely days I questioned if it was all worth it.
But then something would happen—a patient would recommend us in a Facebook group, we’d get a thoughtful Google review, or I’d receive a message from someone thanking me for the care they received—and those moments kept me going.
I think the biggest lesson has been trusting your vision, even when it doesn’t make sense to other people yet.
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?
We’re a Direct Primary Care practice, which means we’ve stepped away from the traditional insurance model and instead offer a simple monthly membership. That includes longer appointment times—typically 30 to 60 minutes—same-day sick visits, telehealth, and direct access to your provider. We also offer labs at wholesale pricing and work with compounding pharmacies and imaging centers to keep costs as affordable as possible. On top of that, our members receive discounts on all of our wellness services.
In addition to primary care, we really focus on hormone balancing and metabolic health. We see a lot of patients dealing with autoimmune conditions, PCOS, and thyroid issues, and we offer things like hormone replacement therapy and medical weight loss. Our goal is to get to the root cause, not just manage symptoms.
I think what truly sets us apart is how we approach our patients. We take the time to listen and look at the full picture. Because our appointments are longer, patients never feel rushed—we’re able to talk through every concern, review medications, and really focus on ways to improve overall health. We also intentionally cap our membership, which allows us to keep care more personal and build real relationships.
Our space is also very different from a traditional medical office. It’s warm, welcoming, and designed to feel more like a wellness center. We offer a variety of services all under one roof, including red light therapy, sauna and cold plunge, float therapy, IV therapy, and vitamin injections.
We also incorporate more advanced therapies like EmSculpt for both aesthetic and functional wellness, the Emsella chair for pelvic floor health, and ExoMind, which is a non-invasive, drug-free option for treating depression and anxiety.
At the end of the day, it all comes back to giving patients more time, more access, and more comprehensive support than they’d typically find in a traditional healthcare setting.
We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
I’ve always believed that everything happens for a reason.
Looking back, there were definitely moments that felt uncertain or even overwhelming at the time—but they often ended up leading me exactly where I needed to be. Leaving my corporate job, the slow start of the practice, even the challenges along the way… all of it played a role in shaping what this has become.
I don’t know that I would call it luck as much as I would say it’s a combination of timing, trust, and being willing to take a risk. There were a lot of moments where I had to lean into uncertainty and just believe things would work out, even when there wasn’t a clear path.
At the same time, I think you also have to be willing to put in the work and stay consistent, especially when things feel slow or difficult. The “lucky” moments—like the right patients finding us, or the practice growing through word of mouth—came after a lot of persistence behind the scenes.
So for me, it’s less about luck and more about trusting the process, staying aligned with your purpose, and being open to where the journey takes you.
Pricing:
- Our Direct Primary Care membership is $85 a month, designed to make healthcare simple and affordable. In addition to longer appointments, same-day sick visits, telehealth, and direct access to their provider, the membership includes a free monthly B12 injection, 10% off all supplements and IV therapies, 50% off additional vitamin injections, and discounts on all of our advanced wellness therapies. It’s really about giving patients the time, care, and tools they need to focus on their overall health and wellness.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.compassrosehealthandwellness.com
- Instagram: compass.rose.health
- Facebook: Compass Rose Health & Wellness
