AUSTIN (KXAN) — John van Dijk remembers the chest pain. He had not been feeling well and ended up in the emergency room. "I wasn't on my medication," he said of that August day. "It was pretty bad." John van Dijk at routine check-up at Harbor Health. (KXAN Photo/Arezow Doost) He would find out that he had dangerously high blood pressure. At the time, he didn't have a primary care doctor. He explained that he had been trying to find one but couldn't get an appointment right away.  "I lost my insurance and my job during the pandemic, and I just had a hard time establishing myself afterwards," explained van Dijk. He's not alone. Recently, Ines Cariel explained she couldn't schedule a colonoscopy in the Austin area until January 2025. She said after months of checking she was finally able to find an appointment sooner. "You wait for an appointment three, four or more months for — to see (a) doctor," Cariel said.  Kraven Rowry, who lives in Hutto, got an initial appointment to see her OB-GYN during the pandemic for an annual exam but couldn't get in after for a follow-up. "Every time I clicked on a date in the future, it was just not happening," Rowry said. "She was booked two to three years out." Waiting weeks and months  Other Central Texans echo the same frustrations telling KXAN investigators it's taking weeks to months to get an appointment with their primary care doctor and much longer to see some specialists. A recent nationwide study by Tebra, which is an all-in-one platform for independent healthcare providers, found 33% of U.S. patients have been unable to see a doctor in the past year because of availability and 19% had to wait one to three months for a primary care appointment. Harbor Health is a primary and specialty care clinic group with locations across Central Texas. (KXAN Photo/Arezow Doost) Dr. Clay Johnston has heard concerns. He's the co-founder and Chief Medical Officer of Harbor Health, a primary and specialty care clinic group with locations across Central Texas.  "We wrap all kinds of services around people that try to keep them as healthy as possible," the former dean of the University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School said. He's now trying to transform the health system so doctors and the team working with them really get to know the people in their care. "The docs are forced to see many, many patients in a day, and don't have the time and energy to spend with individuals to really focus on how to get them healthier," he explained. "We give our clinicians much more flexibility."  Johnston added every person who is seen at one of the clinics has a health team customized to their needs and could include a doctor, nurse, pharmacist, specialist and health coach who can address mental, emotional and nutritional concerns. He said ultimately the team approach means quicker access to doctors. "We support them more in terms of the time they can spend with folks. We support them more in some of the other activities that pull them away from the important parts of addressing people's needs, being with them in the room, not on computers or with insurance companies," he explained. State explores solutions  State lawmakers are also looking for ideas and solutions to provide faster and easier access to primary care.  Health experts urge patients to be their own advocate when looking for a primary care doctor. (KXAN Photo/Arezow Doost) In September, during a Senate Committee on Health and Human Services hearing, healthcare providers talked about physician shortages across the state and the impact.   "Patients waiting weeks or months to see a primary care physician is unacceptable, and the issue must be addressed. We have gleaned a great deal of data from a wide variety of sources, and the next step is to see what those solutions look like in the next legislative session," said committee chair Sen. Lois Kolkhorst after KXAN shared concerns from Texans. Johnston believes solutions should include focusing on the economics of healthcare. He said primary care for starters needs to be valued more.  "So, the people are going into the things that pay well and have a nice lifestyle, they're not going into the things that don't pay well. And so, we have a deficit of doctors going into those spaces. Now that's on top of just an overall deficit of doctors' period, across the board, we're not training enough, in particular, in a state that's growing as fast as Texas is," he explained.  Be your own advocate  According to the Texas Department of State Health Services physician supply and demand projections, by 2036, the demand for primary care will continue and specialties that are projected to be in critical shortage include general internal medicine, geriatrics and infectious disease.  The Texas Medical Association (TMA), which represents physician and medical student members, has advocated for more state support of programs to train physicians, telemedicine when appropriate and reducing administrative duties so doctors can spend more time with their patients.  Healthcare providers urge lawmakers to look for solutions as the state faces physician shortages. (KXAN Photo/Arezow Doost) "Generally, if it helps patients access physicians’ care when they need it, we’ve been pushing for it. Everyone deserves the ability to see their doctor and receive the best care they can, regardless of where they live," explained TMA spokesperson Brent Annear.  KXAN investigators talked to Central Texans who believe access to care needs to be a priority. Beyond the wait times, some like Rowry explained that the cost of care has also impacted getting immediate medical attention.  "I am gainfully employed, and I am college educated, and I have a professional career with healthcare benefits, and I was still not going because of costs," she said.  Johnston said be your own advocate. First, make sure you have a primary care doctor. If you can't get in within a few weeks he recommends calling around. Also, if you have a doctor — make the most of your visits. He said nurses and other staff can answer many questions which could mean more time with the doctor.  Not being able to get a doctor's appointment delayed van Dijk's care.  "Could have been a lot worse," he said.  He now has a team at Harbor Health checking on him weekly including his primary care doctor and other team members.