Telephone and communications
We receive a high volume of phone calls everyday. Please be aware that this volume increases in the winter, and there may be a brief wait time on most mornings, especially Mondays (or the day following a holiday when we are closed.) Except for emergencies, the physicians will return all messages taken during the day as soon as possible between office consultations. This often occurs around lunchtime or in the late afternoon. Please convey concerns or questions clearly and allow a reasonable time for us to return your call. Our nurses are trained to respond to the majority of phone calls and will always be acting under a physician's direction. We seldom prescribe medication over the phone. Please remember if you are waiting for the doctor to call you at home, turn off your answering/fax machine and release caller ID from blocked numbers.
Appointments
All office visits are by "Appointment Only". Unfortunately, we cannot accept walk-ins. When you call for an appointment, our nurse or receptionist will ask you a few questions regarding the nature of your problem or concern. For a routine health care appointment, please call 4 to 6 weeks in advance (especially for camp or school physicals in the summer). Emergencies and acute illnesses are always given priority and will be seen within 48 hours, generally sooner.
Please call to schedule your routine appointments between 10 AM and 5 PM, Monday through thursday and 10 AM and 4PM on Friday, since call volume is very high for scheduling sick appointments between 8 AM and 10 AM. Evening and weekend office hours are for urgent care only.
New Patients
All of our doctors are accepting new patients with commercial insurance plans. We are not acceptiing new patients under medicial assistance at this time. We ask that you choose one of our doctors as your primary care physician. Please have your previous primary care physician forward your child's health records to us as soon as possible. A current immunization history will be needed for your next well physical.
Prescriptions and Refills
Our office at Waterloo Crossing offers a refill voicemail line (Option 2). Requests for non-controlled medications are normally completed within 24 hours. Controlled medications may take up to one week and cannot be phoned in to your pharmacy.
Forms and Medical Records
Forms can be dropped off in our office, with all parent sections completed, and will be ready in 5-7 business days. We will gladly mail your forms if you include a self-addressed, stamped envelope. There is a small fee for forms not presented at the time of a visit.
Copies of medical records can be requested and depending on the size may take up to three weeks to complete. If transferring from our practice, your records will be archived and kept off-site in a secure location. There may be a nominal fee for retrieval and/or copying of your medical records.
Referrals
Many HMO and PPO insurance plans require a written referral from your Primary Care Physician (PCP) to be taken to the specialist at the time of visit.
Referrals will only be issued if approved by your PCP and are medically necessary. Most insurance companies also require an examination by the PCP prior to issuing a referral. Failure to follow your insurance company's referral policies may result in your paying the entire fee for medical services.
Procedure for Obtaining Referrals
Call the specialist in your health provider network.
After obtaining an appointment, call our referral executive (443-451-1600, option 7) to give us the appointment date and time.
The written referral can be picked up at our office, in most cases, in three business days. Some insurance companies only have referrals by phone. Please check with your insurance as to which type of referral you require. We CANNOT "back date" any referral, so please follow the proper procedures. Referrals can be faxed if the number is provided.
Financial Responsibility
All co-payments are due when you check-in for your visit. We will file our charges with your insurance carrier if we contract with the plan. An updated insurance card is required to be on file, and a demographic information form must be completed annually.
NO SHOWS AND CANCELLATIONS: We require 24 hour notice of cancellations for routine checkups, consultation, pre-ops, and med checks. Cancellations of these appointments with less than 24 hours notice may be subject to a $50.00 cancellation fee.
Same day sick appointments require a cancellation of 2 hours prior to the appointment otherwise a $30.00 charge may incur.
Missed appointments are missed opportunities for other patients
Meet & Greet
The Pediatric Center offers meet & greets for our "parents in waiting".
Questions
If you have any questions, please contact our office manager. Mary Jo Burja.
Contact Information
Billing : For any billing issues or questions our staff is available Monday through Friday from 9:00 AM until 4:00 PM at 443-451-1600, option 5.
Office Manager: Mary Jo Burja is available Monday through Thursday 9:00 AM until 4:00 PM at 443-451-1600.
Emails: [email protected] and [email protected]
Hours of Operation
Monday thru Friday: 8:00 a.m. to 4:45 p.m.
Saturdays: 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Saturdays are for emergency and newborns only.