Office Policies
Welcome to A Bright Future Pediatrics! We are so happy that you have chosen to make us your child’s medical home. We strive to create an atmosphere that is friendly and warm for our patients and look forward to taking care of your children for years to come. The Practice is growing, and we would like to help the patients and parents make a smooth transition in regard to changes that will be taking place. We hope the following information is helpful in informing everyone to our office and provides a more pleasant environment.
Appointment Policy
Sick and Well Waiting
We have provided sick and well waiting areas for your convenience. If you come to the office with more than one child and one of your children is sick, then you must report to the sick waiting room. Children who are newborns and children here for a well exam, recheck, or follow up exam from a previous illness but are feeling much better should report to the well waiting room.
Sick Appointments: Sick Appointments are scheduled as same day appointments only. There may be a wait time as we will be working you in between the regular scheduled appointments.
Well Child Appointments: We recommend scheduling well visits 6-8 weeks in advance. This assures that your child will have their well visit and immunizations on time.
Cancellations: If you should need to cancel a scheduled well or other visit, please notify our office 24 hours in advance so that we may accommodate families who are on a waiting list for an earlier appointment. Failure to cancel your appointment within 24 hours will result in a $25.00 charge. This charge must be paid prior to scheduling your next appointment.
No-Shows: There may be a $75.00 no show fee for every no show appointment. After 2 no-shows, we require that a $75 deposit be paid in advance and a credit card be put on file in order to make the appointment.
- Appointment Not canceled 24 hours in advance Fee $25.00
- No Show for Appointments Fee $75.00
Our office policy states that 3 or more no-shows are grounds for dismissal from the practice. This is not to be uncaring; it is an effort to continue prompt care throughout the day for our ill children. These charges will not be billed to your insurance company; you will be responsible for payment Late for Schedule Appointments If you are going to be more than 15 minutes late, please call our office so we can reschedule your appointment for a more convenient time. If your child is sick, you may wait in the office and be worked in between patients. Please note there may be an extended wait time if you are late for your appointment.
By signing our Consent Acknowledgement Form, you acknowledge you agree and fully understand the Office Appointment Policy.
After Hours Calls
We have a physician on-call 7 days a week for emergencies only. We no longer have a nurse triage after hours. If you have routine questions, please call during our office hours. All after hour calls will be answered within a timely manner. There will be a $25.00 charge for all physician phone calls after regular business hours. If you have a question regarding medication dosage, please call your local 24-hour pharmacy or your insurance nurse line.
Release of Medical Records
Our office has 15 business days to release your child’s medical records. There will be a $35.00 charge for copying your child’s chart for the first 30 pages, $0.25 for any additional page. Medical records may be transfer to another physician at no charge.
Shot Records/School Forms
Immunization records can be accessed and printed at any time from the patient portal found on our website. Immunization records will be released within 2-3 business days after request. Please allow 5-7 business days for your school, daycare, camp, and sports physical forms. If you require the form to be completed sooner, there will be a $25 expedite fee applied. For any forms requiring more than a signature, additional fees may apply. Detailed forms and letters will be charged according to the amount of time required to complete.
Medication Refills
Please allow our office 72 hours for prescription refills. Medication refills will only be done during our normal business hours. The on-call physician will not prescribe non-urgent refills after hours or on weekends. For new prescriptions, the patient must be seen prior to any new prescriptions.
Please request all prescription refills via Patient Portal.
Patient Portal Features
Login to the website with a unique and secure login ID and update your contact information. Look-up your child’s most recent visit including the date, weight, and height at last visit. Review and print your child’s vaccination and allergy records including a record of vaccines administered. Request appointments for well visits and prescription refills. Request referrals or school/camp forms (which can be emailed to the patient after reviewed by physician). Contact the Nursing department with a non-urgent question. For the usage of this portal and online statements, please make sure that our office has your current email address and that all of your information has been updated within the last 6 months.
Please go to our website at www.abfpediatrics.com, and on the top you will see the link to the patient portal.
Any messages sent to the doctor, nursing, billing, or receptionist department will be handled in the order in which they are received within a 24 hour regular business period. Please do not contact us via patient portal with any urgent questions. Please call us at 972-208-8668.
Immunization Policy
We believe that immunizations are an important tool in protecting children and communities from potentially deadly diseases. We also believe that the safety and life-saving nature of vaccines well outweighs any associated risks. Alternative vaccine schedules (i.e. Dr. Sears) have not been researched and needlessly prolong the amount of time a child is susceptible to deadly diseases. Giving a child multiple immunizations at one visit is not overwhelming to a child’s immune system. We know that a child’s stress and pain response to receiving two or three injections at one time is the same as when they receive one injection. Spacing out immunizations increases the number of times the child has to receive injections and puts them through more stressful experiences than are needed. In short, the pediatricians of A Bright Future Pediatrics believe that it is needlessly cruel to make a child have double or triple the number of “shot visits” for no medical reason. For these reasons, we do not follow alternative vaccine schedules unless medically indicated. If you have questions about specific vaccines or vaccine safety, feel free to ask!
At A Bright Future Pediatrics, we have many newborns as well as several immunocompromised/ immunodeficient patients. We feel a moral obligation to protect our weakest and most vulnerable patients to the fullest extent possible by providing them herd immunity with a cocoon of other vaccinated patients. We follow the standard of care as recognized by professional associations such as the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, and the Centers for Disease Control. All of our physicians and staff have vaccinated their children according the the standard schedule we use for our patients.
Financial Obligation
All payment is due at the time of service.
This office is contracted with many different insurance plans. All patients are expected to provide our office with current insurance information and to understand their benefits. For the convenience of our patients, our providers participate in a variety of managed care plans. Our office also acts as an advocate for our patients with their managed care plans. This may include completing pre-certifications, eligibility verification, or other similar paperwork on behalf of the patient. Ultimately, the patient is responsible for understanding their benefits and providing our office with current information so that we can handle this paperwork on their behalf in a timely manner.
Patient Financial Responsibilities
- The patient (or patient’s guardian, if a minor) is ultimately responsible for the payment for the patient’s treatment and care.
- Patients are responsible for the payment of co-pays, coinsurance, deductibles, and all other procedures or treatment not covered by their insurance plan. Payment is due at the time of service, and for your convenience, we accept cash and most major credit cards at our office.
Primary Care Physician: If you are required by your insurance company to select a primary care physician, this must be done prior to your child’s appointment.
Our mission as a practice is to provide for the health and well-being of our patients. Your health insurance is a contract between you and your health insurance company. You are financially responsible for any non-covered services. By signing our Consent Acknowledgement Form, you acknowledge you agree and fully understand the Financial Obligation Policy.
HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act)
I understand that, under the Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”), I have rights to privacy regarding my protected health information. I understand that this information can and will be used to:
- Conduct, plan, and direct my treatment and follow-up among the multiple healthcare providers who may be involved in that treatment directly and indirectly. Obtain payments from third-party payers and conduct normal healthcare operations such as quality assessments and physician certifications. I understand that as part of my healthcare, A Bright Future Pediatrics originates and maintains health records describing my health history, symptoms, examination and test results, diagnoses, treatment and any plans for future care or treatment.
I have received, read, and understand your Notice of Privacy Practices containing a more complete description of the uses and disclosures of my health information. I understand that this organization has the right to change its Notice of Privacy Practices from time to time and that I may contact this organization at any time at the address above to obtain a current copy of the Notice of Privacy Practices. By signing our Consent Acknowledgement Form, you acknowledge you agree and fully understand the Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act.
Patient Guidelines and Consent for Use of Patient Portal and E-mail Communications
This Patient Portal is provided by A Bright Future Pediatrics for the exclusive use of its patients and authorized parents, legal guardians, and other caregivers. By logging in, you attest that you are a member of one of the aforementioned groups and will use any confidential medical information that is disclosed to you only for its intended purposes. Any other use is strictly forbidden. If you believe that the security of your account has been compromised, please notify us immediately so we can reset your credentials.
To better serve our patients, this office has established an e-mail address for some forms of communication. For routine matters that do not require an immediate response, please feel free to contact us at any of the following emails:
- [email protected]: You can use this e-mail for the following inquires: medical records, educational materials, and patient forms.
- [email protected]: You can use this e-mail for the following inquires: billing, payments, or insurance questions.
The turnaround time for a routine patient communication is typically within 2 business days; however, inquiries requiring extensive involvement of the physician may cause a delay in message delivery. Should you require urgent or immediate attention, this medium is not appropriate.
When sending an e-mail, please put the subject of the message in the subject line so we may process it more efficiently. Some forms of communication (e.g., HIV and mental health) are not appropriate for e-mails. Also, be sure to put the name and return telephone number in the body of the message. We also ask that you acknowledge receipt of e-mails coming from this office by using the auto reply feature.
Communication relating to diagnosis and treatment will be filed in your medical records.
This office is dedicated to keeping your medical record information confidential. Despite our best efforts, due to the nature of e-mail, third parties may have access to messages. When communicating from work, you should be aware that some companies consider e-mail corporate property and that your messages may be monitored. In addition, you should be aware that although an email may be addressed to one person, our staff and/or colleagues will have access to this information. By signing our Consent Acknowledgement Form, you acknowledge you agree and fully understand the Patient Guidelines and Consent for Use of Patient Portal and E-mail Communications.