WELCOME TO OUR OFFICE

We appreciate your selection of this office to serve your health needs. Since 1981, we have strived for the highest quality medical care possible and it is our intent to continue to serve you with such care.

Although you may be seen for one particular medical problem, if you have another area of concern in one of our other specialties; CHEST DISEASES, SLEEP MEDICINE or ALLERGY, please bring it to our attention.

Our staff is employed to assist our physicians in the delivery of excellent health care to you and your family. We take great pride in the training, knowledge and the capabilities of our staff.

WHY ALL THE QUESTIONS?

The front desk staff will ask you to fill out a patient information sheet. These forms are also available on this website and can be completed ahead of time. Complete answers are needed to provide you with the most efficient service. Occasionally you will be asked to update your address, telephone number and insurance information. You will be asked to sign an authorization for release of information to interested parties such as insurance companies and other providers, concerning your medical care. You also will be asked to sign an authorization for insurance companies to pay Desert Center for Allergy and Chest Diseases directly for incurred charges relating to services. We will provide you with a copy of our financial policies so no misunderstandings occur.

DOCTOR-PATIENT RELATIONS
Good patient relations are based on mutual understanding. We make a very special effort to explain everything to you regarding your condition, medicine and treatment. If you ever have any questions or something is not clear to you, do not hesitate to ask us. We are here for you.

OFFICE INFORMATION
 

Normal office hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm For your appointment, please call 602.788.7211 during our normal office hours. Of necessity and fairness to all our patients, we must work by appointment only. Although you occasionally may have a wait, please understand that when you do see the physician, you will be afforded the time needed to treat you. We make every effort to be on time for our patients and ask that you extend the same courtesy to us. Because of the critical nature of our specialty, occasionally emergencies do occur which may cause a delay, but we do all we can to honor your appointment time. We respect your time and regret any delays that may occur.

EMERGENCIES
 

One of our physician's is on call after regular office hours. Our practice does maintain a 24-hour, 7-day a week answering service for emergencies. Please call our regular office phone number 602.788.7211 and listen to the prompts. The on-call physician will return your call.

PRESCRIPTION REFILLS
Should you need a prescription refilled, it is most helpful that you contact your pharmacy rather than the office. The pharmacy will contact us with your needs concerning dosages, strengths and permissible substitutes. This will enable us to handle your needs more effectively with the pharmacist. It is our policy not to refill prescriptions if the office is closed. Please do not wait until you are completely out of your medication to contact the pharmacy. Allowing your pharmacy a 2-3 day notice to handle this for you is most helpful in obtaining your medications without interruptions.

LAB AND/OR X-RAY PROCEDURES
If your illness or injury requires outside lab and/or x-rays, you will be asked to go to another facility. These services will be billed from that facility and will not appear on your bill here. Any questions regarding those charges need to be addressed with the facility performing the service.

FINANCIAL POLICIES
It is expected that fees for office visits be paid at the time services are rendered. We accept cash, checks, or Visa/Mastercard/Discover. CO-PAYMENTS ARE DUE AT TIME OF SERVICE.

INSURANCE
For insurance charges to be billed it is necessary to bring all insurance information with you. Please update any insurance changes ONE WEEK prior to your next visit. Failure to bring insurance information may result in rescheduling your appointment or paying for your visit. We will be glad to provide you with an itemized account of your visit to submit to your insurance for reimbursement. It is your responsibility to pay any deductible amount, co-insurance or any other balance not covered by your insurance company. As a courtesy to our patients, we will file your secondary insurance. If payment is not received within 45 days of billing, we will transfer responsibility to you, the patient. Only you are ultimately responsible for the payment of our account. Your medical insurance represents a contract between you and your insurance company.

 
They are responsible to you for payment of your claims, they have no obligation to us. Therefore, our office can neither accept responsibility for collecting insurance claims, nor for negotiating a settlement for a disputed claim between you and your insurance company. Remember, you are a customer of your insurance company and you pay the premium for your insurance, either directly or indirectly. Therefore, your insurance company must be responsible to you and must answer your questions. Do no hesitate to contact them when you have a question or complaint regarding your insurance coverage.

BILLING
We understand that occasions may arise when it will be necessary that you request a statement rather than pay at time of service. Statements are sent out each month. Any payments or charges incurred after that billing date will appear on the next month's statement. Payment in full for any outstanding bill for services is expected upon receipt of your monthly statement and is past due after 30 days. We will not continue to provide medical care for patients who must be placed in collections.

REFERRALS

If you are enrolled in an HMO insurance plan, your plan requires a referral/authorization from your Primary Care Provider to be seen by a specialist. As per YOUR insurance contract, it is the patient's responsibility to obtain any referral/authorization for any visits. We will make every effort to remind you that a referral may be needed for future visits. Please obtain any authorization prior to your scheduled appointment. This will help to avoid delays.

MISSION STATEMENT

Thank you for taking the time to read this information. We hope it answers any questions you may have. It is our sincere desire to furnish the best medical care possible for our patients. We hope that this website will assist in helping you to have an understanding of how our office functions. We believe that the best patient-physician relationship develops from a mutual regard based on friendly understanding, personal interest, cooperation, effective communication and a high order of professional treatment. If you have any questions please ask us, and we will try to assist you in any way possible.