Appointment Information
How do I make an appointment?
- You can make an appointment by using the patient portal or by calling one of our friendly team members at 208-263-1435, option #2. (New patients must contact the office to schedule an appointment).
- We recommend that you call the day of or day before you would like to be seen to have the best chance of getting an appointment time that works for you. Our phones open at 7:30 AM.
- If you are unable to keep an appointment, please call as soon as possible to cancel or reschedule so that we can accommodate other patients that need to be seen.
What is a "Quick Sick / Urgent Care" visit?
We understand the inconvenience of having to make an appointment just because you have a minor illness. Available for established patients - we now offer Quick Sick / Urgent Care visits for acute minor illness and injuries needing only brief evaluation.
Examples include sore throat, cough, rash and ear infection. Just call our office or walk in anytime between the hours of 7:30 AM to 4:30 PM weekdays – no appointment needed! We will do our best to get you seen as soon as possible.
If you do not have your medical home at Family Health Center yet, please make an appointment as noted above. We can usually make appointments the same day or next day after your call.
What is "Open Access" or "Same Day Scheduling"?
- "Open Access" or "Same Day Scheduling" means, in most cases, you can see your doctor the day you call or the next day no matter what medical service you need.
- You no longer need to have appointments pre-booked weeks in advance. If your doctor is unavailable, you will be offered a choice amongst the other available providers.
- The goal is to reduce your waiting time both for and at your appointment. Of course, if you prefer a specific appointment time it can be pre-scheduled as we have always done.
Appointment Policies
Cancellation policy
If you know you will not be able to keep your appointment please call to let us know. Given enough notice we can often schedule another patient in your time slot. We appreciate 24 hours notice!
No show policy
If is our policy to contact patients who miss their appointments and give them the option to reschedule. However, if a patient misses to many appointments we may require that they only are allowed to schedule "same day" appointments. If appointments continue to get missed we may have to discharge that patient from the practice.
Fired / Discharged Patients
Occasionally we have to fire or discharge a patient from the practice. This could be due to the amount of appointments missed or bad debt or it could be because a patient is verbally or physically abusive to a staff member. Our staff are very important to us and they work very hard to provide our patients with polite and courteous service. Because we love our staff we have a zero tolerance policy for patients who display abuse behaviors.
Wait times
We understand that your time is very important and we will do our best to stay on time. However, there may be times that your appointment will be delayed. In these instances our staff will do their best to keep you informed of how long the delay may be and give you the option to reschedule.
Appointment FAQ's
What time should I arrive for my appointment?
At Family Health Center, we make every effort to run on time. To help us stay on time we ask that new patients or any patient with a change in their insurance or demographics arrive 15 minutes prior to their scheduled appointment time. We ask that all other patients arrive 5 minutes prior to their scheduled appointment time to allow for sign-in and collection of your co-payment. We know your time is valuable and will do our best to see you on time.
What should I bring with me?
Important things you will need:
- Your insurance card
- Your co-payment
- Your drivers license (for new patients)
- Your medications or list of your medications (Name, Dose, How often you take them)
What about lab work?
If you are an established patient you may stop by anytime between 8:00 AM and 4:30 PM to have your blood drawn.
You should only be fasting if advised to do so by your nurse or physician. Fasting means nothing to eat or drink, except water, for 8 hours. We usually tell patients nothing but water after midnight.
How do I get a prescription refill?
- It is our practice policy to provide a sufficient amount of medication to our patients until they are due for a follow up appointment. If you have run out of medication, it is likely that your doctor will need to see you. If this is the case please call 208-263-1435 to schedule an appointment with your doctor.
- You may also contact your pharmacy, and have them request a refill on your behalf.
- You may also request a refill through the Patient Portal.
If I have a medical question, who should I call?
- For urgent issues please call 9-1-1.
- For non-urgent questions contact our office at 208-263-1435, option #2 and one of our friendly staff members will assist you. They will ask for some basic information such as your concern, what symptoms you are having, when they started, etc. The staff will send a message to your care team with the information you provided and the nurse will return your call as soon as they can.
- For urgent matters, after hours please call 208-263-1435. We have a physician on call 24 hours a day.
- Send us a message via your secure patient portal!
If you need care after hours you can reach the on call physician by calling 208-263-1435 and pressing 0. You will be transferred to the answering service who will collect some basic information and page the doctor on call.
How do I request a copy of my medical record?
- To request a copy of your most recent chart notes, labs, etc., the easiest way is to send your request through the patient portal.
- If you are needing a complete copy of your chart please sign a medical release. You may mail your form, fax it or drop it by our office. *Please note there may be a charge.
- If you have questions you can contact our medical record department at 208-263-1435, Option #4