Scheduling an appointment:
All appointments are scheduled in advance. You may make your appointment in person or by telephone. We will provide you with the earliest appointment available. If your physician is not available, we will offer you an alternative choice, such as an appointment with another doctor in the office. When scheduling physical exams (for example, annual, work, or school physicals), please call as far ahead as possible.
Please call the office first to make an appointment. Walk-in patients may not be seen except in an emergency. Phone hours are from 9am to 5pm Monday-Friday, Physician hours are from 9:00 - 11:45 a.m. and 2 - 4:45 p.m.
Patient registration:
All patients must show their insurance indentification card and provide registration and insurance information at each visit. Insurance companies also require your signature annually. It is extremely important that your insurance information remains current.
Your visit:
Please plan to arrive in the reception area 10 minutes early for your appointment. Please check in at the desk so that we can check your registration information to make certain it is current and accurate and collect and co-payments that are due with your insurance plan.
Practice Portal:
Go to https://mycare.elcaminohospital.org and click the Sign Up Now link in the New User box. Important Note: You can only sign up after your visit.
When you visit us you will be given an opportunity to sign up for our electronic practice portal, using a personalized secure access code. The portal will give you electronic access to your records and our staff so that you may communicate with us through the internet. You may use the portal to make non-urgent requests relating to your medical care. If you have any technical problems with the portal, after receiving the access code during your appointment, please email myCareHelp@elcaminohospital.org. Please do NOT use this portal for billing questions as the portal will redirect you to the El Camino Hospital Billing Department which is separate from our office. Instead, please call our billing department at 408-560-2714.
Medical advice:
Advice is provided over the phone and through our electronic portal by medical assistants in consultation with your physician. Please inform the medical assistant of the purpose of your call so that he/she can advise you regarding your current medical condition, answer immediate questions, and prioritize appointments to assist the most urgent cases. Usually you'll have to leave a message and receive a response later. Response time is determined by the nature of the call.
Emergency/After Hours:
A physician is always on call for emergency care. If you need urgent medical attention after regular office hours, call (408) 358 1811 and an advice nurse will help you. In addition, the appropriate physician will be alerted to your condition.
In a life-threatening situation you should to immediately to the Good Samaritan Hospital emergency room (www.goodsamsanjose.com), El Camino Hospital Los Gatos emergency room (https://www.elcaminohospital.org/), or the closest emergency room. If you need an ambulance, call 911.
Hospital care:
When necessary, most of our patients are hospitalized at Good Samaritan Hospital or El Camino Hospital Los Gatos, and cared for by designated physicians who practice inpatient medicine. The inpatient physician and your primary care physician physician will coordinate their efforts to give you the best care possible.
Laboratory services:
Laboratory tests are ordered after the physician has evaluated the patient. The results are then communicated to the patient by phone, US mail, or electronically through our practice portal. Routine results are available in 3-7 days depending on the test.
Labcorp (www.labcorp.com) and Quest (www.questdiagnostics.com) provide drawing stations throughout our community. While appointments are available directly from the lab, they also do accepts patients on a first come, first served basis. Be sure to know if you should fast prior to having your labwork completed. It is the patient's reponsibility to verify which laboratory his/her insurance will cover. Our staff can assist you.
Radiology/EKG:
We commonly use VRI (www.valleyradiologyimaging.com) for your radiology needs. Some radiology procedures are done on a first come first-served basis. Special procedures, including mammography and ultrasound require appointments. The results are then communicated to the patient by phone, US mail, or electronically through our practice portal. Routine results are available in 3-7 days depending on the test.
EKGs are performed in our office.
Prescriptions:
To renew or refill a prescription, call the pharmacy that issued your prescription (the phone number is on your prescription label). You pharmacy will refill your prescription if refill authorizations remain. If no refills remain, your pharmacy will request authorization directly from our office. Call the pharmacy at least 3-5 business days before your medication refill is needed. For example, call on Friday for refills needed by Thursday.
If you need a prescription for a NEW medicine, please call our main number (408) 358-1811. Please inform us of the name of the medication, its purpose, and whether you are picking up the prescription or would like it mailed to you. If you want the order to be directly sent to the pharmacy, please give us the name, address, and phone number of the pharmacy. Controlled substance refills must be picked up in person.
Some prescription refills require an office visit, in order to ensure that medications are used safely and effectively. Patients will be notified by office or pharmacy staff if an appointment is needed.
Sometimes, your insurance pays only for generic medication, or medications appearing on your plan's pre-approved list, known as a formulary. If appropriate, your physician will prescribe a suitable alternative on the formulary if your current medication is not covered.
Referrals:
Your primary care doctor is the principal physician responsible for your care. Many managed care insurances require that we care for certain problems that may have been referred to specialists in the past. We think that this is reasonable. For example, rather that referring you to a dermatologist, we will usually take care of warts, keratoses, moles, and simple skin procedures in our office.
Referrals usually require review by Utilization Management Committee run by your insurance plan. You will be notified of approval by mail within 10 working days, at which point you may make an appointment with the specialist. You will also be notified within 10 days is there is a problem with the referral.
You may request referral by telephone or through our electronic portal. These requests must include the following information: the name of the specialist you need to see, the reason you need to see the specialist, and your current insurance. If you are calling in the request we also need: your name with spelling and your phone number. Failure to leave this information will result in no authorization.
Patients are responsible for compliance with the guidelines of their insurance. Diagnostic procedures, medical equipment, oxygen, medical care, and medical services at home may require authorization. Refer to your insurance guidelines whenever there is a medical need.
Medical records:
Because we use the EPIC electronic medical record system, your doctor will have access to your records at all facilities that use the EPIC medical record system, including Stanford Health Care, El Camino Hospital, Valley Medical Center, Sutter/Palo Alto Medical Foundation, and Kaiser. We may also request records during your appointment to obtain other information relevant to your care from other facilities.
You will have access to your own records by completing a record release request.
Billing:
Copays, co-insurances, balances are due at the time of service. Billing of copays will incur a $5.00 surcharge. To obtain the breakdown of patient responsibility please see Explanation of Benefits provided by your insurance. Please call (408) 560-2714 for any billing questions.
How can you help us better serve you?
- Know your health plan benefits
- Be prepared with questions at the time of your office visit.
- Give the doctor a list of all your prescriptions.
- Notify us of any births, deaths, or changes in name, address, phone, email, or marital status.
- Notify us of any change in your insurance
- Call as far in advance as possible to schedule an appointment
Give us at least 24 hours notice when you must cancel an appointment.
- Let us know how we are doing.