Catherine D. Agricola, M.D.

I have been practicing primary care in the Hudson Valley since 2016. I believe that primary care is the backbone of healthcare and it should be personalized for the people, families, and communities it serves.

I had the privilege of caring for hundreds of adults and children in a traditional primary care setting for several years. In that setting, I so enjoyed getting to know my patients, always with a goal of launching a lasting doctor-patient relationship. But truth be told, the real world medical practice establishments were not fostering the personalized, community-oriented, and comprehensive approach that I valued in my practice.

The current medical system is not built with a backbone of primary care. It relies on methods and principles that serve administrative and financial interests, which are often contradictory to interests of patients and the doctors caring for them.

The Direct Primary Care model offers an new way to imagine primary care — a way that is creative, personalized, simple, accessible AND affordable.

Although blazing a new path of primary care in our community is sometimes a bumpy road, it’s a journey well worth it for primary care that works for us.

Education and Training
Residency: University of Rochester, NY - Combined Internal Medicine and Pediatrics Program
Medical Degree: Yale School of Medicine, CT
Bachelor's Degree: Columbia University, NY

Certifications 
American Board of Internal Medicine
American Board of Pediatrics

Dr. Agricola’s Journey to Altucare …

I grew in a small town in Connecticut. I journeyed to Manhattan for my undergraduate education where I studied pre-medical science and music at Columbia University. I was blessed to attend one of the most unique and forward thinking medical schools in the country at Yale School of Medicine. I remember an inspiring alumna visiting us one time telling us about her clinic in Africa that operated on a barter system. Imagine exchanging livestock for healthcare? My eyes became widened to the idea that providing medical care could be creative, innovative, and cater to the resources of its community.

After medical school, I chose to pursue training in a combined Internal Medicine and Pediatrics program (also known as “Med-Peds”) at the University of Rochester, the birthplace of the biopsychosocial model of care. The medical training fulfilled that of both Internal Medicine and Pediatrics specialties and included time addressing “transitional care,” which is the care of children with chronic conditions as they progress into adulthood. While in Rochester, I pursued my interest in the community working alongside passionate advocates particularly for pediatric health, co-founding a non-profit organization KidsThrive585.

I then landed in the Hudson Valley to settle with my husband, Mike, and daughter, Maria. While getting established in the Hudson Valley medical community, I met a fellow primary care colleague, Dr. Jennifer Vazquez-Bryan. Dr. Vazquez-Bryan explained to me about her newly founded practice Altucare Primary Medical Care. That is when I was introduced to the concept of Direct Primary Care (DPC). She and her family had worked hard in 2016 to establish one of the first Direct Primary Care practices in region. This innovative model of practicing primary care seemed a perfect fit for my values as a primary care doctor.

When Dr. Vazquez-Bryan and her family decided to relocate to Olympia, WA in 2019, the future of Altucare was called into question. But we found a win-win for all! I could transition to a practice model that better fit my ideals and Altucare could continue on after Dr. Vazquez-Bryan moved.

Now, I have fully embraced Altucare as my own and am energized to expand on the vision of Direct Primary Care. It is a medical model I truly believe in. Let us all work together to strengthen the doctor-patient relationship and inspire health in our community.