OFFICE POLICIES

Please take a moment to read the following information about the clinic and policies.

Scheduling and Office Appointments

1. To help us stay on schedule and minimize wait times, please arrive on time for your appointment.

2. Unexpected emergencies may arise and cause delays. Please be patient if this happens.

3. New Patient Visits / Preventative Assessments

   1. The objectives of this visit are for us to become acquainted with one another, to review your health history and the health history of your family, go over the office policies, understand patient’s and doctors expectations. Medical issues are not usually addressed in this first visit, please book a separate appointment to address these.

4. Regular and Follow-Up Appointments and Urgent or Semi-urgent Appointments.

   1. It is difficult to thoroughly address multiple concerns in one visit, and for multiple complex problems you may be asked to book another appointment to address multiple problems.

   2. If you have a mental health concern to discuss, or a problem you think will take an unusually long time, please tell the receptionist when you book your appointment so that extra time is allotted for your visit.

   3. If you call in and need to be seen urgently (for example: fever or if you are too sick to write an exam you have that day), please tell the receptionist and we will do our best to accommodate you with a same-day appointment. Our staff are trained to triage patient appointments, so please be sure to tell them the reason for your appointment.

5. Periodic Health Exams (“Complete Physicals”)

   1. This visit is dedicated to doing a comprehensive health review and physical exam.

   2. Please do not save problems or urgent issues for your ‘Check up’ appointment. Make an appointment to be seen separately for specific or urgent concerns.

6. Missed appointments

   1. Appointments not cancelled at least 24 hours in advance are charged to the patient at a rate of $50 for a new patient / preventative assessment, $50 for a regular appointment and $75 for a periodic health exam.

7. Reminder Calls

   1. We do not issue reminder calls. If for some reason you forget your appointment time, please feel free to call ahead of the day of your appointment and we can confirm the exact time.

8. After Hours and Urgent Care

   1. Whenever possible, we encourage our patients to avoid the use of other walk-in clinics, as they do not have your medical history and do not send reports to our office. We are now members of a Family Health Organization and share after hours coverage as well as an after hours Tele-health system. We have also increased our number of same day appointment availability to try as much as possible to accommodate patients urgent care needs.

   2. If you have a more serious problem, such as chest pain or a suspected stroke, of course, please call 911 or go to the nearest Emergency Department.

Prescription Refills:

1. We generally do not refill prescriptions over the phone. We provide enough medications to last until they should be reviewed or the patient assessed.

2. You will be asked to book an appointment to review your medications before a refill can be issued. This is to ensure proper care.

3. It is requested that you please:

   1. Anticipate your prescription renewals and book an appointment before you run out.

   2. Ask for renewals at each visit.

   3. Bring your medications to every appointment.

4. Under exceptional circumstances and at the discretion of your physician, a prescription may be renewed via phone/fax from a pharmacy, provided that it is urgent and a physical assessment is deemed not required.

5. A $20 fee will apply.

Telephone Advice:

1. Because a patient interview and examination are essential for providing quality care, we do not typically offer health advice over the phone.

2. Also, phone calls are disruptive to other patients’ appointments.

3. Receptionists are not qualified to offer medical advice.

4. To ensure proper care, please make an appointment rather than calling for health advice.

5. At the physicians discretion, the staff or doctor may call the patient to communicate issues of importance such as lab-work.

Test Results:

1. All test results are reviewed by a doctor in the clinic.

2. Patients will only be contacted if laboratory or diagnostic tests are abnormal.

Uninsured Services:

1. Some services are not covered by OHIP. The payment for these is your responsibility. Please review the list of uninsured services available at the front reception.

2. We now have available an Extended Health Plan which with a small annual fee provides coverage for most of the uninsured services and other fees.

3. Details are available in the office.

Email:

1. We have recently started using email with patients.

2. Many patients find this a convenient way to contact the office or book appointments.

3. No confidential medical information will be communicated via email.

4. If you wish to communicate using email with the office, please read and sign the email consent form and fax it or bring it into the office at your next appointment.

Conduct:

1. We do not tolerate rude and abusive behavior towards clinic staff. This may result in your dismissal from the practice. We likewise expect our staff to be courteous and professional to our patients.