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Office Policies & Procedures â€‹

Office Hours

Our office is open for patient care Monday through Friday from 8am to 10pm. We are closed for lunch from 12pm to 1:30pm daily and open Saturdays from 9am to 12noon.  

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Appointments

Patients are seen on an appointment basis. Well Child visits should be scheduled in advance as much as possible. Our office will be available in helping you schedule your child's appointment around your schedule. We will make every effort to see sick patients on a same day basis. We ask for you to call in to be given a time to come in to alleviate long waiting times. 

 

Night Clinic and Saturday’s are for sick visits only. 

 

Patients are seen in the following order:

 

    1. Appointments (made at least 24 hours in advance)

    2. Same Day Call-Ins (which are not considered        

 appointments) 

    3. No walk ins.  

 

We value your time and will make every attempt to see your child in a timely manner. Please extend us the same courtesy and be on time for your appointment. If you are running late for your appointment, please notify the office and we will attempt to make accommodations within our schedule. Patients who are more than 15 minutes late will be rescheduled for the next available appointment date. 

 

Please consider the needs of other patients. To improve access for other patients please call our office to cancel or reschedule any appointments you are unable to keep.     

 

Some visits may require more time. Please inform the receptionist upon scheduling an appointment if your child has a detailed problem such as ADHD, learning disability or in need of a procedure (ex. abscess, ingrown toe nail removal, sutures, etc.).  This enables us to plan accordingly.

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After Hours

We are available to you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If your child has an acute illness, injury or other medical emergency after hours please call our office and you will be connected to the Tele-Nurse On Call. All you do is call the office number and wait on the line to be connected. 

These call are for urgent problems only. 

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Telemedicine on the weekend

In the event that you would like a medical consult after speaking to the nurse she can then get you connected to a medical provider from the clinic for a telemedicine consultation. Any payment required by our insurance will be collected by our staff Monday. 

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Always call our office before heading to the ER or urgent care. 

 

Vaccination Policy

Here at Advanced Kids Care, we firmly believe that all children and young adults should receive all of the recommended vaccines according to the schedule published by the American Academy of Pediatrics as well as the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Because we are committed to protecting the health of your children through vaccination, we require that all of our patients be vaccinated. We do not take any new patients who do not want to vaccinate nor do we do an alternate vaccine schedule.

 

Conferences 

We understand there are times you require special appointments to meet with our providers to discuss various issue from behavioral problems to family environment. The preferred days and times for these types of appointments are Tuesdays and Thursdays at 11am.   

 

Nurse Visit Appointments

If you are instructed by your provider to return on another day for lab work or to drop off specimens (urine, stool, etc.) we ask that you make an appointment for a nurse visit to alleviate your waiting time. Nurse visit appointments waiting time may range anywhere from 5 minutes – 20 minutes, if the visit takes longer than 20 minutes please advise the front office. 

 

Waiting Room Policy 

In an effort to minimize exposure to illness, we have partitioned our front lobby into separate well and sick waiting areas. Transmission of most colds and contagious diseases is through direct contact with respiratory droplets and not through the air. Please wait in your designated area to help minimize transmission. 

 

Reminder Calls

Reminder calls for appointments are placed as a courtesy. These calls are not mandatory and not receiving a reminder does not mean you no longer have an appointment.

 

Medical Assistant Triage

Because we understand that you may have questions that do not need a visit, you may call the office and press option 2 to be transferred to our medical assistants. Our medical assistants are available to assist you during normal business hours. They will take the message for the provider and call you back with the provider’s response in a timely manner on the same day.   

 

After Hours Telephone Calls 

We are available to you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If your child has an acute illness, injury or other medical emergency after hours please call our office and you will be connected to the Tele-Nurse On Call. Please do not call after hours for lab results, refills on prescriptions or referrals; these must be done during normal business hours. 

 

Cell Phone Etiquette

Please do not use your cell phone when approaching the front desk or upon entering the exam rooms. Cell phones can be very disruptive to the flow of patients. Taking pictures and video recordings are not allowed in exam rooms.

 

School/Work Excuses 

We are only able to provide school and work excuses for patients and/or parents who are seen within our office. At the end of each office visit, you will be provided with an excuse noting the day that you were seen and the date most appropriate for you to return to school or work. Please do not ask our office to excuse missed days outside of these guidelines.   

Forms

We strive to complete forms that are required for school, camp, sports, jobs, etc. as soon as possible. Unfortunately, due to the volume of forms we receive and our focus on immediate health needs of our patients, we require 3 business days to complete them. Most forms have sections to be completed by the guardian and/or patient, and this information must be completed before we can accept the form. The patient must be up to date on recommended check ups. If you require your form faster than 3 days there will be $10 rush fee additional to the cost of the form.  

 

Medical Records

All medical records request must be submitted in writing. You may fill out a medical records release in our office or download one from our website. Once we receive this form, we will complete your request as quickly as possible. We charge a fee for individual requesting and personally picking up records. There is not a charge for sending these records to a physician's office.   

 

Immunization Records Request

If you are requesting immunization records to be faxed to you, you MUST give us a written consent to release that information. If you are unable to fax us the consent, we will only be able to mail them to your home or you can pick up a copy in the office. While we endeavor to process request as soon as possible, please allow up to 5 business days.    

 

Separated/Divorced Families

For families in which the parents are either separated and/or divorced, the parent bringing the child to the office is authorizing treatment. Therefore, that parent is responsible for payment on the date of service. We will NOT call or contact the other parent to obtain payment information. Please have the child’s payments and insurance information with you when arriving for your office visit. All fees associated with the visit, including but not limited to the co-pay of the child’s insurance plan, are due at the time services are rendered. Additionally, all account balances and charges deemed parents responsibility by the contracted insurance plan are due to Advanced Kids Care by the parent presenting the child for the date of service and authorizing treatment.   If there is a divorce decree requiring the other parent to pay a portion or all of the treatment cost incurred, it is the responsibility of the authorizing parent to collect from the other parent. Advanced Kids Care will not make special provisions or act as a mediator in collection of payment. We can provide a copy of the claim or receipts of charges to the authorizing parent at each visit upon request to assist in the collection of fee from the other parent.   Non-compliance of this policy may result in termination of care   

 

Consent to Treat 

We understand that sometimes its it necessary for nannies, friends, or relatives to bring  your child to be seen. In these cases please make sure you fill out the Consent to Treat form.  Our office policy is that a parent or legal guardian must accompany a minor (less than 18 years of age) at all times. This is our policy for several reasons: 

  1.  To ensure that the information we obtain is correct 

  2.  Allow you to hear our findings

  3.  To have your consent to test, immunize, or to agree on recommended procedures

  4. Allow you to learn about the expected course of treatment, what complications to watch for and request any follow up visits. 

 

Prescriptions Refills
For refills, we ask that you provide at least a 72-hour notice. Please call the pharmacy and request them to call our office for authorization on the refill. This will facilitate your request in a timelier manner. The medical assistants will submit your request to your provider. Once the refill has been authorized, it will be called to your pharmacy. If there is a problem with the request, you will be notified by our staff.

 

Controlled Substance Refills 

Please note that Controlled Substance Medication/ ADHD refills cannot be refilled over the phone. Monthly in person nurse visits are required to monitor weight.  At the scheduled nurse visit appointment patient will be vitalized and electronic refill will be send to pharmacy of choice. Dr. Douglas requires evaluation and follow up for controlled medication/ADHD refills every 4 months with blood work regardless of number of fills in between. Patient does not need to be fasting.  Follow up appointment must be scheduled during conference days and times. If you do not agree and are not in compliance with our policy we can discontinue treatment and refer the patient out to specialist.

 

Patient Information & Updates

All patients must complete our patient information form at initial visit and annually thereafter. We ask for patient updates annually to ensure we have up to date contact information. If your information changes within this time frame it is your responsibility to provide us with the accurate information. 

 

Photo Identification

For your child's protection and security, photo identification will be requested at the time of treatment, as well as medical records release.  

 

Referrals

Specialist referrals may be made during office hours and will only be provided to patients who have had a well-child exam within the last year.  It is your responsibility to contact your insurance to verify which specialist takes your insurance, what the benefits are and if a referral authorization is needed. Once you obtain this information contact our medical assistants to obtain the appointment referral.   

 

Laboratory Test Results

We will notify you of your lab test results within one week. Please call if you have questions or want to check status.   Note: If your insurance requires a preferred lab please advise our staff before labs are drawn.

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