Laurie R. Mallis, M.D., is a board-certified physician, acupuncturist and energy healer who provides highly personalized care at Searchlight Medical,, in Hopewell Junction. A Western-trained specialist in internal medicine and geriatrics, Mallis has been in the medical profession for more than 35 years, including as medical director of large long-term and subacute-care facilities. She founded Searchlight Medical, to provide healing treatments that minimize the use of pharmaceuticals, which she’d often seen overprescribed to the detriment of patients’ health and quality of life.

The most interesting thing that I’ve realized over the past 12 years at Searchlight Medical, is that 98 percent of physical illnesses are rooted to an emotional issue. No matter what it is—stress, anxiety, anger, frustration, depression—all emotions affect your physical functioning all the way down to your cells and your DNA. When your body cannot function normally, it causes imbalances that eventually lead to illness. That’s why it is important to deal with an emotional disturbance before it manifests into a physical ailment. 

I am a solo practitioner whose only focus is on the health of every patient that comes through my door. I see one patient at a time, and the entire appointment is unrushed and devoted to that patient. I evaluate their medical history in depth and develop a treatment plan specific to them. I combine my medical knowledge with Eastern energy healing techniques to get the best of both, with the aim of treating their acute or chronic health issues and then maintaining their health and well-being.

All kinds of acute and chronic health issues, physical and emotional. I haven’t had any health issue that I couldn’t help. Since all illness is based on energetic imbalance, my goal is to put a patient’s body into energetic balance to achieve healing on all levels. A balanced body can heal on its own, without medications or supplements. The main obstacle is to have patients understand that their body must heal at its own pace. A problem that just developed over the past few weeks will be much easier to resolve than one that’s been happening for years. So there’s no magic number of treatments that will automatically heal any health or emotional issue. Patients must be prepared to commit to a consistent plan of care and then to a maintenance schedule of treatment to maintain long-term health and well-being.

My biggest challenge is educating people not to utilize energy treatments as a “last resort.” People will say, “I’ve tried everything and nothing worked, so I decided to come to you!” After receiving a number of treatments and seeing how much better they feel, they’ll ask, “Why did I wait so long to do this?” Most people still don’t recognize that if they maintained their body like they do their car, they would be much healthier emotionally and physically.

I don’t accept insurance, but since I’m a medical physician, most insurance companies will reimburse my charges between 40 and 80 percent. When a person contacts me requesting information, I send out an introductory e-mail listing all of my services and fees and the CPT codes I use. Then they can contact their insurance provider and find out how much they’ll be reimbursed, even before they decide to come to me for treatment.