Policies

Well-visits: We believe strongly in the importance of preventive care- we want to keep your child healthy! Regularly scheduled checkups are important for monitoring your child’s growth and development as well as their general health. Well visits are also a good time to discuss any questions or concerns you might have about your child. We follow the American Academy of Pediatrics recommended schedule for checkups, which is as follows: 3-5 days after birth, 1 month, 2 months, 4 months, 6 months, 9 months, 12 months, 15 months, 18 months, 2 years, 2 1/2 years, and then annually from age 3 until age 21.

Sick visits: Please call us if your child is sick! We can help you determine if it is best to take your child to the emergency department or urgent care, or if you should bring your child into our office for a sick visit. We are always able to accommodate same day visits for sick patients, and our goal is to keep you and your child out of the ER if possible.

Vaccines: We strongly support the American Academy of Pediatrics and Centers for Disease Control recommended schedule for vaccinations. Every immunization protects against a potentially fatal disease, so the importance of vaccines cannot be overstated. These vaccinations are extremely important not only to your child’s health, but also to the health of the other children in our office and the health of the community at large. Every unvaccinated child poses a risk to other children who are unable to be vaccinated, such as children who have cancer or are otherwise severely immunocompromised. There is a lot of misinformation about the risks of vaccines, but major scientific studies have proven that immunizations are safe and effective. We encourage you to browse the CHOP Vaccine Education Center to learn more.

No-shows: When a patient has an appointment and doesn’t call ahead of time to cancel or reschedule, it prevents our office from running smoothly and makes it difficult to schedule all of our patients in a timely manner. Therefore, we require at least 24 hours of advance notice to cancel or reschedule an appointment. You will be reminded of our policy via phone and letter after the first two no-shows within a 12 month period. After a third no-show within that same 12 month period, you will be asked to choose another pediatric practice.