OFFICE POLICIES:
INRTODUCTION:
The following guidelines are meant to help with the smooth day to day running and efficiency
to deal with your health care needs.
SCOPE
OF PRACTICE:
Our office is a specialty
psychiatric consultaion center. we provide expert evaluations for adults, adolescents and children.
We are not designed to be an acute care clinic or a crises center.
We do not provide Over the Phone Treatment.
Primarily
our office practice is for Psychiatric Treatment; which can include medication management and psycho-therapies.
Treatments are provided by specialists providers. Medication Managment
is provided by our Staff Psychiatrist(s), Advanced Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner(s) and Physician Assistant(s). The
various modalities of therapies; including Psycho-therapy, Interpersonal Therapy, Psychodynamic Therapy, Cognitive Behavioral
Therapy, Dialectic Behavioral Therapy, Art Therapy, Play Therapy, Family and Marital Therapy, Group Therapy etc) are provided
by Reputable and Competant Licensed Therapist.
OFFICE VISITS:
Office visits
generally include review of patient files and documents; interview with the patient and collateral sources as necessary, observation
and evaluation of the patient and treatment planning as well as appropriate documentation.
Initial visits usually last approximately forty five to fifty minutes. However
depending on the complexity of the case the evaluation if the evaluation is incomplete you may be asked to return the next
available appointment slot.
Follow-up visits for
medications are termed medication management sessions; these office visits usually last approximately between fifteen minutes
to twenty minutes.
In the acute stage of medication
adjustments, follow -up visits are scheduled in intervals which depend on the acuity of the symptoms and the anticipated effectiveness
of the medications.
Once patients have stabilized,
patients are expected to follow-up with the doctor at least four times a year for a medication management check-in
visit. Alternatively patients have the option of choosing to go back to their Primary Care Prescribers for medication follow-ups
and refills.
Follow-up visits for therapy are termed Therapy sessions: these office
visits usually last approximately fourtyfive to fifty minutes.
PHONE CALLS:
"OVER THE PHONE TREATMENT"
is NOT practiced at the Puget Sound Psychiatric Center.
If a
medication question arises, the patient/parent/guardian have the option of either calling the office and relaying the
question to the Clinical Care Coordinator either verbally or via secure fax; or to come in for an appointment. to address
their concerns.
The Clinical Care Coordinator performs triage
of all calls and questions that are received and promptly brings them to the attention of the Doctor(s), Therapist(s)
the Clinical Care Coordinator then conveys the clinical appropriate instructions back to the patient. If clinically indicated
and appropriate the doctor on call may also communicate over the phone; but will refrain from practicing
"Over the Phone Treatment".
FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY:
It
is primarily the responsibility of the patient/guardian to be responsible of their financial responsibilities. Our office
staff will work with you to bill insurance companies if applicable.
MISSED APPOINTMENTS:
You
are responsible for being on time for your appointments. If you do not show up for an appointment scheduled by you then you
will be billed a no show charge.
LATE CANCELLATIONS:
Please call at least 48 business hours prior
to a planned cancellation. Failure to do so may result in a late cancellation charge.
EMERGENCY CANCELLATIONS:
In cases of extreme emergencies for either the doctor or the patient the appointment may be cancelled
at no charge to you.
MEDICATION REFILLS:
It is the policy of this office that routinely
medications refills will not be called in.
In cases
of extreme emergency a refill will be called in, for enough medications to last you until your next scheduled appointment.
No out of state medication refills will be called
in.
FOLLOW-UP APPOINTMENTS:
A follow up appointment for medication managment should be made
every two to three months. This is to ensure the highest quality of care and also to continually monitor medications in a
scientific manner.
Follow-up appointments for therapy are determined in consultation
with the therapist, based on the needs of the patient.
LABORATORY EXAMINATIONS:
If
indicated laboratory tests will be ordered. These can be essential for the continued prescription of certain medications.
Most insurance companies require that lab test orders be validated by your Primary care prescriber; and or be conducted at
designated labs. A logical approach in choosing your lab is to look for a lab which is reputable and logistically near your
home.
COLLATERAL CONTACTS:
Routine and reasonable collateral contacts necessary for treatment
coordination, consent and planning are a part of the treatment process. For this reason you will be asked to sign consents
for release of information.
Services for all other
additional collateral contacts requested by you and not covered for reimbursement by the insurance coverage provider (for
being not clinically relevant) will be charged for at the regular office rate.
CONFIDENTIALITY:
All
legal standards will be maintained. All interactions between the patient and doctor are confidential by law. However by law
the clinical confidentiality has to be broken if there is valid /justifiable clinical reason to suspect a danger to the patient
or others. Appropriate authorities may be then be informed. If ordered by court confidentiality can be breached. Most insurance
companies have a clause whereby they have access to you records. Please check with your insurance provider.
DOCUMENTATION:
Your chart notes will be kept upto date, and will reflect the initial evaluation and
subsequent progress notes.
These notes are
kept only to be used for clinical purposes. No other use of these notes will be allowed or encouraged.
Please be aware that as our clinic is only treatment focused,
Owner ship of original documents will remain with the clinic. You have the right to
review your documents. If you want to review your documents then you will be asked to make an appointment and review them
in the presence of the doctor/clinician. If you disagree with any opinion written in the documents you may ask that an addendum
be added noting your disagreement with the original documentation, however legally it can not be erased or destroyed. Each
case file will be kept in the office for one year after it has been closed. It will then be maintained for a total of seven
(the other six years in an off site storage).
COPIES
OF CHART NOTES AND RECORDS:
It is
the policy of the office not to hand over copies of Psychiatric Medical Records to the Patient/Parent/or Guardian, or anyone
else.
You
may request that copies of your chart notes and medical records be sent to your current medical provider only for continuity
of care. This service will be provided to you free of cost.
If a request is ade that copies
of the Medical Records be provided to the Primary Medical Provider then a valid written request has to be submitted. Once
the request is approved the request is, Medical records will be sent directly to the designated provider.
You may request that copies of your chart notes and medical records
be sent to your current medical provider only for continuity of care. This service will be provided to you free of cost.
REPORTS AND LETTERS:
If requested by you a letter indicating that you are in treatment, including your diagnosis
and current treatment will be provided to you. this service is free of charge.
If you require a detailed letter or report; please discuss this with your doctor prior to submitting
such request. These requests are generally not in the realm of treatment and as such are not of tp priority.
Please be aware that you will be charged for the cost of generating
such letters and reports.
EMERGENCY COVERAGE:
In case the doctor is out of town or away
for vacation or out sick; emergencies will be handled by A designated and licensed medical practitioner.
LIFE THREATENING EMERGENCIES:
In case of life threatening emergencies please call 911, or go to the nearest Emergency
Room.
PSYCHIATRIC EMERGENCIES:
Psychiatric emergencies can be lethal, In case of psychiatric
emergencies please call 911.
TERMINATION
AND DISCHARGE:
The Patient-Doctor relationship
may be terminated at any time by the patient or the doctor. The doctor would be inclined to end the patient doctor relationship
in case of the following circumstances; if there is no therapeutic benefit in the patient-doctor relationship; if there is
a conflict of interest: if there is consistent non-compliance with treatment plan or treatment recommendation.
SUBSTANCE ABUSE/DEPENDENCE:
It is the policy of this office that we strongly recommend
against the use of any and all non-prescribed substances. If you do have a substance use problem you may continue to recieve
consultation and treatment at this clinic if you agree to also receive treatment at a recognizedsubstance abuse treatment facility.