No Show Policy
While we understand that circumstances arise that do not allow appointments to be kept,
please remember to be courteous to us and our other patients by calling at least one hour before the appointment time to reschedule. Often times, the schedule will be full, and this will give us a chance to reschedule another child at that time.
This policy will obviously not affect a majority of the patients of Southwest Pediatrics,
but we are striving to keep missed appointments to a minimum. Missed appointments may
keep others from getting the care they need. Therefore, the following has been established
effective May 1, 2020.
Fees will be applied for each missed visit for each child. A $25.00 charge will be assessed for a
sick or well visit. Understand that insurance will not cover this charge, regardless of the usual
copay or deductible, therefore, a bill will be sent to the patient.
Continued missed appointments could result in a dismissal from Southwest Pediatrics.
This policy will help to ensure that children can be seen when needed. As always, it is
Southwest Pediatrics’ goal to deliver the highest quality pediatric care for children.
Any unpaid late fees will result in not being able to schedule any future visits with
Southwest Pediatrics.
Vaccination Policy
We firmly believe:
- Vaccines are effective in preventing illness and saving lives.
- All children and young adults should receive all the recommended vaccines according to the schedule published by the Centers for Disease Control and the American Academy of Pediatrics.
- Vaccinating children and young adults may be the single most important health-promoting intervention we perform as health care providers, and that you can perform as parents/caregivers.
- Vaccines are safe.
- Based on all available literature, evidence and current studies, vaccines do not cause autism or other developmental disabilities.
The recommended vaccines and the immunization schedule given are the results of years and years of scientific study and data gathering on millions of children by thousands of our brightest scientists and physicians.
The vaccine campaign is truly a victim of its own successes. Because vaccines are so effective at preventing illness, most people have never seen a child with polio, tetanus, whooping cough, bacterial meningitis or even chicken pox, or known a friend or family member whose child died from one of these diseases. Such success can make us complacent about vaccinating. This attitude, if it becomes widespread, will lead to tragic results.
Over the past several years, some people in the United States and Europe have chosen not to vaccinate their children with the MMR vaccine after publication of research (since found to be fabricated) that the vaccines caused autism. As a result of under-immunization, there have been throughout Europe and the U.S. outbreaks of measles as well as deaths from complications of measles.
Furthermore, those who do not vaccinate their children are taking advantage of millions of others who do vaccinate their children, which decreases the likelihood that an immunized child will contract one of these diseases. We feel such an attitude to be unacceptable.
We are making you aware of these facts to emphasize the importance of vaccinating your child. We recognize that the choice may be a very emotional one for some parents. We will do everything we can to convince you that vaccinating according to the schedule is the right thing to do.
However, should you have doubts, please discuss these with your health care provider. If you choose not to adhere to the recommended schedule, you will be required to sign a release of liability form and agree that all vaccines recommended up to and including 18 months must be completed in that time. Please be advised that delaying or breaking up the vaccines, in order to give one or two at a time over two or more visits, goes against expert recommendations, and can put your child at risk for serious illness or death.
Finally, if you should absolutely refuse to vaccinate your child despite all of our efforts, we will ask you to find another health care provide who shares your views. We do not keep a list of such providers nor would we recommend any such physician. By not vaccinating, you are putting your child at unnecessary risk for life-threatening illness and disability, and even death.
As medical professionals we feel strongly that vaccinating children on schedule with currently available vaccines is absolutely the right thing to do for all children and young adults.
It is not recommended to “split” a child’s vaccines into multiple appointments. However, for parents who choose to do so, there will be a $25 fee to cover the expenses involved with each
additional visit needed to administer the vaccines.
- The $25 fee will be due at the time of the additional date of service, prior to the administering of vaccines.
- The patient/parent is responsible for this fee. It will not be submitted to any insurance companies.
Controlled Substance Policy
Please review this notice carefully. If you have any questions, please contact the office.
Prescriptions for controlled substances may not be mailed, faxed or called in to a pharmacy. In accordance with D.E.A. regulations, you may receive up to 3 one month prescriptions if your child is stable on his/her dose.
If you have mail order prescription benefits through your insurance company, please let your provider know.
When calling our office for a refill please provide us with the following information: Caller’s name and phone number, Patient’s name, date of birth, medication, strength, quantity and the name of the individual who will be picking up the prescription.
When requesting a refill on your medication, please give our staff till the end of the business day to send your prescription to your pharmacy.
If you would like us to call you when your prescription has been sent, please let us know the best phone number to reach you.
A medication follow-up appointment is required every 6 months due to the nature of the medication. One of these may be combined with a yearly physical, but you will be charged for a separate office visit. This is required by your insurance company and saves you an extra visit to our office which would also necessitate a separate charge.
Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.