Dr. Drake Donaldson, a physician joining Jupiter Concierge Family Practice in 2026, shares why he chose concierge and functional medicine after witnessing the deep, trust-based patient relationships this model makes possible. His path was shaped by meeting Dr. Rosenberg during medical school rotations and by patient experiences, including one that convinced him relationship-driven care leads to better health outcomes.

I still can’t quite describe what it feels like to be here.

After an 11-year odyssey through medical school, residency, and training, I’m finally home in Jupiter, Florida, and joining Jupiter Concierge Family Practice. It’s a bit surreal, honestly. But mostly I’m filled with excitement and gratitude to be part of a community this beautiful and to build a life here alongside patients, staff, and my family.

As I look forward to meeting our patients, I thought I’d take some time to tell you a little about myself, my background, my approach to medicine, and how I came to join Dr. Rosenberg in this wonderful practice.

Why I Chose Jupiter, Florida

For my family, moving to Jupiter, Florida, was about more than just my job prospects. It was a homecoming.

My wife’s family has been rooted in Jupiter for over 30 years, and she was born and raised here. Her dad started a local furniture store in town, and at one point or another, all of us worked in it alongside him. That shared history is part of what makes this place feel like ours.

Three of her five siblings live here now, and we’re all raising young kids together. We have three children of our own, with another on the way, and celebrating birthdays and everyday milestones as one big extended family has been such a joy after years away.

Reconnecting with family and getting involved in our local church have been two of our top experiences since moving back. Jupiter isn’t just where I’ll practice medicine. It’s where I’ll get to do life.

Why Choose Concierge and Functional Medicine?

So, why did I choose to start my medical career in a local concierge practice with a functional medicine focus? Why not begin at a big hospital or a sprawling conventional practice?

First, I’ve believed there’s more to medicine and health than the conventional system typically offers since long before medical school.

Even in high school, I found myself reading about the pioneers of functional medicine and researching how the body actually works as a system. The deeper I looked, the clearer it became that no single approach fits every patient. Our bodies are complex, and every person’s genome is different. You simply can’t practice medicine as if one size fits all.

To me, functional medicine means having a real relationship with your patient, built through time and genuine listening, so you can get to the root cause of dysfunction rather than just managing symptoms. The goal isn’t to patch things up. It’s to help the body move toward optimized function.

When I met Dr. Rosenberg and saw how he leveraged a concierge model to practice in this way, something clicked. I finally saw a path where I could live out what I’d always believed good medicine should look like.

How I Met Dr. Rosenberg

This brings me to my second reason for joining Jupiter Concierge Family Practice: Dr. Rosenberg, along with all he’s built here.

I first crossed paths with Dr. Rosenberg during my last year of medical school, before residency even started.

That final year is when you rotate through different specialties to confirm you’re choosing the right path forward. After a month of shadowing Dr. Rosenberg, I fell in love with how he treated patients and with how genuinely they enjoyed being here.

It was clear to me that Dr. Rosenberg’s patients felt truly known. The doctor-patient relationship was healthy and comfortable in a way I hadn’t seen elsewhere, and it was obvious the experience was more enjoyable for the patient than anything I’d witnessed in conventional settings.

That comfort created something powerful. Patients were open and honest, without fear of judgment, which meant Dr. Rosenberg could get a clearer, truer picture of their health. He was also a master communicator, and because of that, he and his patients consistently landed on the same page.

This brought home to me that relationship drives good medicine, not the other way around. And if that relationship fractures, communication fails, trust is lost, and patients stop following even the best advice.

Another surprise was how genuinely comfortable Dr. Rosenberg himself seemed in his work. He wasn’t harried and stretched thin like so many primary care physicians I’d seen before, who hop from patient to patient every 15 minutes. Instead, he was healthy, calm, caring, and able to spend time with each patient and consider their individual cases as much as necessary.

I realized how much a healthy doctor matters for excellent patient care. If you’re burned out or running on empty, it’s nearly impossible to be the confidante, advocate, and example your patients need. You have to practice from a full cup if you’re to provide patients with the care they deserve.

Experiences That Led Me Down This Path

I can’t point to one single moment that shaped the doctor I wanted to become. It was more like a string of repeated encounters and mentors reinforcing the same lessons over time.

For example, I watched a busy family physician who, despite his own burnout, still found deep meaning in knowing his patients and helping them find purpose. But I also witnessed the other side of that coin. In practices built around massive patient panels, I saw physicians and patients both leave appointments feeling unheard, discouraged, and disillusioned.

One patient in particular has stayed with me.

He was on the brink of death and far too young to be there. His A1C was 13, his blood pressure was uncontrolled, and he was a chain smoker who had already survived multiple heart attacks and a stroke. A broken system had left him without anyone taking the time to truly know him.

As I got acquainted with him, I learned he was a veteran carrying a lonely history of broken relationships. Slowly, he began to trust me, and that trust opened doors. Together, we found tangible goals and a renewed sense of purpose for his life.

He started the right medications. He changed his lifestyle and quit smoking. Just months later, his A1C dropped to 6.5, his blood pressure came under control, and he was re-engaging with his community again.

Watching that transformation and the purpose it restored in his life is exactly why I chose this path. I want every patient to feel known and heard, to know their expectations are met and exceeded, and to know they can count on me. And the best place for me to do that is here.

My Aim in Jupiter This Year

Coming into my first year with Jupiter, my focus is simple. I want to take it all in. I’m not walking in with preconceptions or trying to change a practice that already works so well. Instead, I’m looking forward to growing deeper in my functional medicine education while getting to know the incredible staff, patients, and community here.

The level of care at this practice is unlike anything I’ve experienced. From the front desk to the medical assistants to Dr. Rosenberg himself, everyone operates at the highest standard, rooted in a genuinely healthy culture. I’m honored to be even a small part of that.

To conclude, I’d just like to say thank you for welcoming me into this wonderful community. I look forward to getting to know you and your story.