APPOINTMENTS

As parents of a new baby, you are about to embark on one of the most exciting and challenging of life's journeys. We have prepared this information to help you through the next few weeks. Remember, you will see eight consecutive hours of sleep again, although not for awhile.

Coming in for a visit

If you are coming in to the office for the first time, please fill out and bring with you our age specific registration form. Please bring your insurance card with you to every visit. If you have a co-payment with your insurance plan, payment is expected at the time of service.

Our physicians make every effort to stay on time; emergencies, however are unavoidable especially in primary care. We appreciate patients making every effort to be on time; if you are going to be late, please notify the office to see whether the appointment should be kept or need to be rescheduled. Missed appointments or appointments cancelled with less than 24 hours notice will incur a charge.

Please notify the office ahead of time if you plan to bring a second (or third) child to an existing appointment and want him or her to be seen as well. Having multiple children seen in a single time slot makes the doctor run late and is not fair to those who are waiting.

Well Child Appointments

For well child check-ups, please call as much as three months in advance to schedule that appointment to give yourself the most options of scheduling times. Some time slots are in high demand such as after school hours and first thing in the morning. Well child check-ups are normally scheduled at 3-5 days of age, and 1,2,4,6,9,12,18 months, and then annually starting about 2 years of age. This schedule can vary and not all insurance plans cover check-ups at the American Academy of Pediatrics' recommended intervals. Parents will be responsible for payment of visits demanded by schools or camps but not covered by insurance. Please consult your own insurance policies for this information.

Sick Visits

Children are seen by appointment only. Our policy is o see anyone requesting an appointment for a sick child on that same day if at all possible. If your child needs to be seen on an emergency basis, we will make every effort to take care of your child as soon as possible. There may be times, however, when it is physically impossible to see all the patients who request to be seen on a given day. Our triage nurses can help you decide whether or not your child needs to be seen on that day. Our triage staff are trained and advised by our physicians. The triage staff will also help you with advice for appropriate comfort measures to use when care and observation at home is the appropriate course of action.