Administrative Info

First Time Patients

Becoming a patient of East Side Pediatrics is easy! Please follow these steps:

1. Download and complete the Release Form. Mail or fax it to us beforehand and we can obtain a copy of your child's medical records in time for their first visit in out office. Or you may give it to us at the time of their first visit, though this likely means we will not have all the information immediately at hand (important if your child has an involved medical history).
2. Download and complete the Registration Form. This also can be sent ahead of time or brought to your first visit. A completed form will expedite your check-in and markedly decrease your initial wait time. 
3. Review our Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act Policy. This does NOT need to be downloaded or signed. But it does outline our office policy protecting your health information. We take this very seriously.
   

Office Policies

• We are open from 8am to 5pm Monday through Friday.  We have many sick visit openings available each day.  Our phone lines open at 8am and we book these sick visit appointments on a first-call-first serve basis.  Your best opportunity to be seen for a same day sick visit is to call earlier in the day.
• We are open at 8am on Saturday and see patients based on demand.  There are times in the summer when demand is very low and times in the winter when demand is quite high.  Since our ending time is unpredictable on Saturdays, it is strongly recommended to call between 8am and 9am to schedule a visit.
• We can not see walk-in appointments.  Please call to make an appointment.  
• If a walk-in arrives, it is treated no differently than if that same person were making a phone call at the same time - you are offered the next available sick visit slot.  If we are booked for the day, we will be unable to see you.  
  
• Trying to accommodate well visits and same-day sick visits can be challenging.  Please show up on-time for visits (or early if registering a new patient).  If you are late for your appointment it may be difficult or impossible to see you.  Whether you can still be seen is dependent on many factors, including the arrival time of others on the schedule near your appointment time and the availability of later sick visits.  Whether you are seen is never arbitrary.  If you show up on time you will be seen.  If you show up late we will do whatever we can to see you but can never compromise the care of other patients.
  
• Medical advise is still available when the office is closed.  There is always a doctor on call and a nurse triage service to assist.  Just call our office number and either the doctor or nurse should call back within 30 minutes.  There are times when call demand is quite high.  If you do not get a call back within 30 minutes you should call back.  If your sick child's status is, or may be, an emergency, waiting 30 minutes for a response is never appropriate, so please call 911!
  

Insurance & Billing

• We accept all major forms of insurance.  We always aim to accept more insurances so that insurance coverage never interferes with our ability to see anyone or maintain the doctor-patient relationship.  If you have a less common insurance please let us know.  We'll do what we can to become one of their preferred providers.
• It is our shared responsibility to be sure insurance information is correct at the time of each visit.  Please bring your insurance card with each visit.  Without verification of valid insurance, or if you do not have insurance, you will be billed out-out-of-pocket at the time of your visit if you choose to be seen.  If you still believe that you do have valid insurance, you will need to interact directly with your insurance company for your reimbursement from them.
• Copay is due at the time of service.
• We use New England Medical Billing for our billing services.  They manage any transactions not occurring in-office.  For any billing questions or concerns, or to make payments, please call them directly at 401-453-0666.