Office Policies

Request an appointment: call one of our local offices to schedule your next visit.

• If it’s been a year since your last check-up, call for a complete preventive care exam. Children should be scheduled for periodic well-child exams to monitor their growth and development and keep up with their immunizations.
• If you need to schedule allergy shots, blood draws, or blood pressure checks, please contact the office for the best available times.
• Disease management is one of our most important ways of keeping you healthy. For our patients with diabetes, asthma, high blood pressure, and heart disease, regularly scheduled visits are very important.
• When you’re sick, a call to the office early in the day will help us schedule you for a same-day visit. A triage nurse is available everyday from 8:00am until 4:30 pm to answer your questions. If necessary, he/she will forward important information to your doctor.
• If you have made the appointment for yourself, please don’t ask us to see another family member or friend during your appointment time. We would be happy to schedule an appointment for them at another time.
• If your address, phone number, or insurance has changed, please let us know while scheduling your appointment so that we can have the most up-to-date record for you.

Please sign in and update your information.

• When you first arrive, please register with the receptionist.
• If this is your first appointment, plan to arrive a little early to complete your registration and insurance information.
• Please bring your insurance cards, a valid photo ID, and your copay to your appointment.
• Self-pay patients (those with no insurance); please be prepared to pay for your visit at the time of service.
• Please be courteous. We ask that you do not bring food or drinks into the waiting room. Once you are in the exam room, please turn off your cell phone.

Your time is valuable - and so is the doctor’s

• Please be prompt.
• If you arrive 15 minutes or more after your scheduled appointment time, your appointment may need to be rescheduled.

Please give us 24 hours advanced notice.

• Please call us as soon as you know you won’t be able to make your appointment calling the day before will help us make that appointment available to someone who may need urgent or sick care.
• If you are a new patient and you do not show up for your first appointment, and you do not call to cancel, you will receive a letter notifying you of your termination from the practice.
• If you are already an established patient, your first no show will result in a call from our automated system notifying you of the no show and reminding you to cancel appointments.
• Your second no show will result in another call to notify you of the no show and a reminder to cancel your appointments in the future.
• If you no show three times within a 3 month period, without calling to cancel, you will receive a letter notifying you of your termination from the practice.

If you have an urgent medical situation when the office is closed, our providers can be reached 24/7!

• When you call our office after hours, you will be directed to our answering service. The representative will take your call and forward your message to the on-call provider.
• If you are experiencing a medical emergency or you believe you are experiencing a life threatening situation, call 911 immediately, or go to the emergency department of your nearest hospital.
• If your urgent medical need is not life threatening, and it is during normal business hours, please call the office. We will help you determine the best plan of care.

We know that you want to know the results of your lab tests and other diagnostic testing as soon as you can.

• When test results are returned to the office, they are first reviewed by your doctor or provider. As soon as they are available, our nursing staff will notify you of your results either by phone or by letter. Please do not call to request test results before two weeks have passed.
• You may be asked to call the office and make a follow-up appointment with your doctor to discuss the test results and follow-up plan, if necessary.

• When you need a general prescription filled, contact your pharmacy. The pharmacy will notify your provider through a secure electronic prescription refill system called E-Rx. Check with your pharmacy to see if they participate in the E-Rx system. If they don’t, your provider will provide you with hard copies of your prescription to bring to your pharmacy.
• If you need a refill for a controlled medication, please call the office. Your request will be forwarded to your provider. Please allow 24 hours for your refill to be completed.

Our Referral Specialists will assist you in scheduling and appointment.

• Our Referral Specialists are dedicated to helping patients find the right specialist. There are many things to consider- your doctor’s special orders, whether the specialist participates with your insurance company, and getting an appointment scheduled as soon as possible.
• If you have questions about a referral made by your doctor, you can reach the Referral Specialist at 716-665-7007.

We are happy to help you when we have advance notice.

• We are happy to accept medically related forms that require your doctor’s signature.
• First, fill out all of the information about the patient, like your name, address, date of birth, social security number, and employer. Make sure to sign your name if the form requires it.
• Then give the form to the receptionists at the front desk. They will forward your form to the forms nurse, who will then route it to your provider.
• We cannot complete forms for pick up on the same day. We will return the form to you within 7 to 10 business days. There is a $3.00 charge for all forms completed at this office. The charge will be collected in advance when you deliver the form.

You may request a copy of your medical record.

• When your patients are referred to a specialist or other facility for follow-up care, a complimentary copy of the medical record is forwarded to the doctor.
• Sometimes, our patients will need a copy of their medical record in order to transfer to another doctor. A records release form must be filled out in order for our records department to transfer your records to another doctor.
• Our patients may request a copy of their medical record for themselves, an insurance application or legal representation. The patient, insurer, or legal counsel will be billed at $0.75 per page.

Convenient, fast and easy! In the office, by phone, by mail, or online.

• Payment for your visit is due at the time of service. You may have a co-pay, co-insurance, or deductible that will be due at the time of your visit.
• Our knowledgeable and experienced billing department is ready to help you with payment and insurance related questions. They are available Monday through Friday, 8:00am until 4:30pm.
• You may use our new, secure online bill payment service by clicking on the button at the top of this page. Have your most recent statement ready to add your payment information.