Frequently
Asked Questions
What
is a Family Physician?
What
do I need to know prior to my first appointment?
What
do I need to know prior to appointment for an adult complete
physical examination?
What
do I need to know prior to appointment for a child complete
physical examination?
What
if I am unable to keep my appointment?
What
if I need a prescription medicine refilled?
What
if I need a referral to see a specialist?
What
if I have a medical question for one of the providers?
What
if I need to speak to a provider after office hours?
What
is a Family Physician?
A Family Physician
is a doctor who takes care of your whole family. Family
Physician specializes in Family Medicine, the medical
specialty which provides continuing, comprehensive health
care for the individual and family. It is a specialty
in breadth that integrates the biological, clinical and
behavioral sciences. The scope of family medicine encompasses
all ages, both sexes, each organ system and every disease
entity.
Family physicians are
trained in all areas of medicine. After graduating from
medical school, they complete three more years of specialized
medical residency training in Family Medicine, and then
take examination to become board certified. They continue
to educate themselves through continuing medical education.
This allows them to apply the latest medical breakthroughs
to the everyday care of their patients. Family physicians
create caring relationships with patients and their families.
They help them make the right health care decisions. They
know when to treat a patient, and when to bring in another
specialist patient can trust.
What do I need to
know prior to my first appointment?
Please make sure
that you arrive at least 15 minutes prior to your appointment
time. This is important so you have enough time to fill
out some paper work that is required prior to seeing the
provider. Do not forget to bring your insurance card.
You are required to pay your insurance co-pay at the time
of office visit. We accept Cash, Check, Visa, MasterCard
and American express card.
What do I need to
know prior to appointment for an adult complete physical
examination?
Please arrive 10
minutes prior to your appointment time, so as to allow
enough time to fill out any paper work required before
you see the provider. Your provider will order some blood
tests based on your specific health needs. If you are
planning to go to the laboratory for the blood tests after
your visit to our office, please do not eat or drink anything
except water 10-12 hours prior to the test.
What do I need to
know prior to appointment for a child complete physical
examination?
Please arrive 10
minutes prior to your appointment time, so as to allow
enough time to fill out any paper work required before
you see the provider. Please bring any forms (such as
school/college physical form, sports/camp physical form,
medication form for school etc) that need to be filled
and signed by the provider. Do not forget to bring a copy
of your child’s immunization record.
What if I am unable
to keep my appointment?
Please be considerate and inform us as soon as you come to know that you
will be unable to keep your appointment. This will help
us assign the appointment slot to another patient who
needs to be seen.
What
if I need a referral to see a specialist?
Most of the time you need to be seen by a provider in
our office before getting a referral to see another specialist.
This is important so as to get authorization from your
insurance company to see a specialist. It takes at least
3 business days to process a routine referral. Urgent
referrals will be processed same day if permitted by your
insurance company. You will need to fill out a form regarding
specialist information and also information about your
disease/diagnosis for which a referral is required. Please
understand that there will be a charge of $25 for same-day
processing of a non-urgent referral request.
What if I have a
medical question for one of the providers?
If you have a question for a provider, please call us
and leave a detail message with the front office secretary.
Providers are not available to take your call right away
because they are busy with the patients all day. However,
providers do check the messages intermittently throughout
the day and will return your call as soon as the time
allows, usually the same day but sometimes the next day
(depending on the urgency of the problem).
What if I need
to speak to a provider after office hours?
If you have an urgent question and would like to speak
to a provider, please dial 703-723-3110 and follow the
prompts to leave a detailed message and your phone number
for the provider. You will get a call back within 20-30
minutes. If you have not received a call after 30 minutes,
please page the provider again because sometimes a page
may not go through.
