Preparing for Your Visit
Please bring with you to your appointment:
- Your current medical insurance identification card
- A list of current medications
- Any medical records (including x-rays) from your prior physician if you are a new patient of Community Care Physicians
- If you are a new pediatric patient, please bring your immunization records with you to your appointment if you haven’t already mailed them to our office.
Waiting Times
We value your time and are committed to making your visit with our family physicians as efficient as possible. Our care team continues to monitor patients’ total visit time. We adjust our resources to ensure a timely experience in our office.
For your convenience, you can connect your wireless device to the internet at no cost while in our waiting area. Our Wi-Fi computer networking technology (hot spot) allows your computer, PDA, smart phone, or other Wi-Fi compatible device to send and receive internet data via a wireless network.
NOTE: This does not interact with our secure business network.
Prescription Information
Please bring with you to your appointment your pill bottles and a list of your current medications with doses, expiration dates and number of refills available. This information helps us determine which medications need to be refilled.
Most prescription refills can be completed in 24-48 hours.
Controlled Substances
Controlled substances (narcotics, sedatives, stimulants, and the like) require special handling. Refills are limited, and in some cases are not permitted by law.
All prescriptions for controlled substances must be picked up in person at our office by the person for whom they are prescribed, or by their designated health care proxy.
Community Care physicians are not permitted to provide prescriptions for controlled substances by telephone when they are on-call.
Referrals
Your family medicine provider may recommend that you be evaluated and treated by sub-specialty physicians if your medical condition warrants.
Community Care Physicians includes a number of excellent sub-specialty physicians, all of which share electronic health records and imaging studies allowing your records to be immediately accessed by the providers administering your care. We are happy to refer you to any of these Community Care specialists when needed or to any appropriate sub-specialist whom you prefer.
Our office will provide notifications to, or request authorization from your health insurer if these are required.
We will provide the consultant with your relevant medical history so that the consultant is informed.
At Community Care Family Medicine, we offer referral processing in 24-48 hours.
Co-payments and Account Balances
Payment is expected at the time of service.
If your insurance requires that you pay a co-payment, they require us to collect it. For your convenience we accept cash, checks and most major credit cards. If we must bill you for the co-payment, an additional processing fee is charged.
Confidentiality Privacy & HIPAA
Your personal health information is strictly confidential and will not be divulged to ANYONE without your written permission except to other physicians involved in your care, to your insurer for billing and quality assurance, or by court order.
When you arrive for your appointment, you will be provided with a copy of our Notice of Privacy Practices. You will be asked to sign an acknowledgment that you received it for our records.
Advanced Directives
It is prudent to designate a trusted person to make medical decisions on your behalf if you are incapacitated and unable to decide for yourself. This individual is called a “health care proxy.”
If you have particular instructions with regard to the type of treatment you wish (or do not wish) under certain circumstances, you should inform your health care proxy and you may state your wishes on the form.
Forms for designating a health care proxy are produced by New York State, and may be obtained from our office.