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Office Policies
Welcome to our orthopaedic practice. Our staff is made up of qualified
professionals who work together to bring you the highest quality
orthopaedic care. This information is provided to answer the questions
most frequently asked by patients.
What
is an Orthopaedic Surgeon?
Orthopaedics is a
branch of surgery involving the treatment or correction of diseases,
injuries and loss of normal function of the bones, joints, ligaments
and muscles. This includes fractures, sprains, sports injuries, work
and accident-related injuries, arthritis, low back and neck disorders,
bursitis, tendonitis, stroke, development problems in children as well
as many other problems of the musculoskeletal system.
Surgery, when needed,
may include fracture repair, joint replacement, arthroscopic and other
joint surgery and disc surgery. However, many forms of treatment are
non-surgical in nature and less than half our patients require surgery
for successful treatment.
Do I
Still need My Primary Care Physician?
Yes, your primary
care physician is in charge of your general health care and is aware
of your total health needs. If you need a referral to a primary care
physician, please contact the Medical Society in your community or ask
your physician at Webster Orthopaedic Medical Group.
Appointments
Office hours are from
8:30 to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Telephone 1.800.943.8099 to
schedule an appointment. Your appointment schedule will vary depending
on the doctor's hospital rounds and surgery schedule. We believe that
our patient's time and our time is valuable. In the event of a delay,
we will do our best to notify you in advance. Please notify us as soon
as possible in the event you need to reschedule your appointment. If
you need to be seen immediately, we will do our best to accommodate
you. Emergency care is given first priority.
Emergency
Care
Emergency care is
always available during office hours. Tell the receptionist of the
urgency and ask to speak with the physician's assistant. She will
immediately notify your physician (or any other physician in the group
if yours is unavailable). Calls received at other times will be
answered by the operator from our answering service. They will contact
the on-call physician from this office. We encourage you to call
during routine office hours so that you can be best assured of
reaching your regular physician and so that we will have your medical
records available. If your call is an emergency, call 911.
Telephone
Calls
Except in
emergencies, our doctors do not accept calls while they are seeing
patients. Our staff is experienced and able to answer most questions
and, if not, will accept your call and relay your message to the
physician. When necessary, they will obtain appropriate answers from
the physician immediately or give you an approximate time to expect a
return telephone call.
Prescriptions
All
new prescriptions are given to the patient at the time of their visit.
Requests for refills of medications
should be made during office hours when your medical records are
available. Please have the pharmacy fax us the prescription. At times,
a refill may not be given if you have not had an office visit in more
than six months.
Paying For Your Care
In general, fees
charged in this office are comparable with those charged by other
orthopaedic surgeons in this area. After each visit, co-payment is
expected on the day of service. Monthly statements are mailed to each
patient.
You should feel free
to request an estimate of the charges for any surgery when scheduling
a surgery date. It may not be possible to quote an exact figure. A
specified period of postoperative care will be included in the charge
for your operation. This includes routine postoperative treatment
directly related to the surgery but not x-rays, cast changes, or
unrelated conditions which might arise.
Medical
Insurance
Insurance is often
complicated. Should you require surgery nearly all insurance carriers
cover a percentage of the surgeon's fee. The percentage of coverage
does vary with policies. To avoid confusion, it is best to review your
personal policy or consult your insurance carrier. We require 20
percent payment on an insurance claim unless surgery will be covered
in full, e.g. workman's compensation claims. Unusual circumstances can
be worked out with our Billing Manager on an individual basis.
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