After hours calls will be directed to our answering service. The answering service staff has no medical training and cannot answer your questions. Their purpose is to direct your call to the appropriate source for emergencies. When you call they will ask your name, child’s name and age, phone number and the nature of the problem. Within a short period of time you will receive a return call from one of our pediatricians.

Calls will be returned by the on-call provider. For calls placed between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. you will be requested to take your child to the Emergency Room. The Emergency Room personnel will then contact the on-call pediatrician to discuss the problem and determine the appropriate treatment. This limitation of telephone access is for your child’s well being. It is very difficult during the light of day to ascertain over the telephone the severity of illness and the necessity for immediate versus somewhat delayed evaluation. It is even more difficult when the physician is awakened from sleep. It is far better to have an ill child assessed by examination from an alert physician than by telephone from a drowsy physician, as this is when potential problems may arise. Under such circumstances the only safe response to a concern sufficient to warrant a middle of the night call is to recommend immediate evaluation by a physician in the Emergency Room.

It is better to anticipate problems, rather than wait until concern has escalated into an emergency. Illness that has been present several days should be discussed during office hours.

Prescriptions

When the office is closed, we are unable to refill prescriptions or call in new prescriptions as the physician on call does not have access to medical records.

Prescription refills require you call your pharmacy and they will contact us if necessary.

Telephones

The telephone can be a great help to both you and the pediatrician. Most initial contacts concerning a sick child will occur on the telephone. Counseling for simple problems such as feeding and sleeping behavior can effectively be handled on the telephone during office hours. Most importantly it is a useful way of getting in touch with the pediatrician in the event of an emergency.

Because of its usefulness and familiarity, parents and physicians may come to depend on the telephone more than they should. Accurate diagnosis of a child’s illness cannot be performed on the telephone. For example, even an accurate description of most skin rash is of little value in trying to determine the cause. A parent’s report of the severity of symptoms is often colored by the fears and anxieties natural in a concerned parent making an accurate assessment of an illness difficult, if not impossible, on the telephone.

Consider the telephone as a way of getting in touch with us. Do not attempt to use it as a way of diagnosing and treating illness. A child ill enough to require medication is usually ill enough to warrant an examination. For this reason, our practitioners and physicians will not call in a new antibiotic prescription for illness. This does not mean that every time you call an office visit will be necessary. Your accurate report of symptoms is the single most important factor in helping to decide what needs to be done. Communication should be as specific as possible. Such descriptions as “terribly sick” or “burning up” are of little value in determining how ill your child is. It is more helpful to know how many times a child has vomited in an hour, or describing them as listless.

When you call during office hours you will usually speak to one of our staff members or a Nurse Practitioner. All of our staff is trained to handle a parent’s questions. Trust the person you speak with, we do! Many times the person with whom you are speaking will address your question with the pediatrician and will then call you back. Frequently, you will be called back by a Nurse Practitioner. Depending on the nature of your concern and your personal request to the receptionist, the pediatrician will call you back personally. If there is any question concerning the severity of your child’s illness or possibility of complications you will be asked to bring your child in for evaluation. If you feel your child should be seen, state that when you call the office. This will eliminate unnecessary questions.

Finally, we ask you be patient and remember that many parents have questions and you may be asked to hold when calling, but you will always get through and your call will be returned as quickly as possible.