New Patients
Welcome Future Families of Lydig Pediatrics! Whether you are an expecting parent, a new parent, new to the area or transferring care, we are excited to support and guide you in the most complex and wonderful task of your life - parenting.
Expecting Parents
We provide free consultations to expectant families. Please call and arrange a prenatal visit if you are a new parent-to-be. This is an opportunity for you to meet with our doctor and staff, tour our practice, and ask any questions you may have regarding our practice and about being a parent of newborn. We look forward to watching your family grow!
Newborns
We will be happy to be the first one who your newborn visit after hospital discharge. At first visit we provide families with important information regarding growth, development, feeding, sleep, and more. We gladly answer all of your questions. If possible, please request the hospital physician for all medical records pertinent to your baby's delivery and newborn care and bring a copy with you to the first office appointment.
Transfer from Another Physician
We welcome new patients transferring into our practice and want to help make this transition as smooth as possible. All new patients must be accompanied by their parent or legal guardian for the initial visit. It would be very helpful to have your child’s growth chart and immunization records. If possible, provide us with a copy of your child's previous medical records for our provider to review. Whether your first visit is for a new baby or you are bringing your older children to our practice, please plan to arrive 15 minutes prior to your appointment in order to have enough time to complete the initial paperwork.
Please remember to bring a copy of your child's health insurance card.
New Patient Forms
To reduce waiting time during your first visit and increase record accuracy, please complete and sign the NEW PATIENT REGISTRATION FORM.
Services and Procedures
Prenatal Visit
If you are about to be the parent of a newborn, CONGRATULATIONS! We look forward to meeting you and your family. We provide free consultations to expectant mothers. If this is your first baby or you are new to our practice, call us at 718-772-0070 to schedule a prenatal or “meet the doctor” visit. This free visit is a great opportunity for you and your spouse or partner to meet the provider, ask questions and learn more about our practice.
Newborn Care
If you choose our office to be your baby medical home, inform your obstetrician and the hospital that you would like our physician to be your baby’s pediatrician. Unless you have been advised otherwise, we usually like to see your baby for the first office visit when she/he is about 3-5 days old. Contact our office as soon as possible to schedule this first appointment. At the first visit your baby will be thoroughly examined by our pediatrician and any questions you have will be addressed. We provide appropriate guidance to our new mothers regarding development, feeding, sleep, safety and address many other questions.
It is important to contact your health insurance carrier as soon as possible after baby’s birth, and to advise them that you’ve chosen our doctor as baby’s primary care provider (PCP), if one is required.
Well Infant/Child/Adolescent Visit
Our practice strongly believes that continuous relationship between the pediatrician and your child is important to the overall quality of care. We learn more about your child with each and every wellness visit. At these visits, we will monitor your child's growth and development as well as provide anticipatory guidance of what to expect until your child’s next well child check. It is also a time to discuss other topics and to share questions or concerns that matter most to you about your child.
Vaccinations as a part of well child visit or separate visit. We follow the immunization schedule recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Detailed information about each immunization is available on the CDC's Vaccination Information Sheets in our office and online at http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/vis/default.htm
Laboratory Tests
There are a number of laboratory tests ordered in conjunction with well child care, such as hemoglobin, hematocrit, and lead screening. In addition, audiometry and vision screening are ordered at appropriate well visits or when clinically indicated. Most childhood illnesses can be diagnosed by a complete history and thorough physical examination, but occasionally laboratory tests are necessary. The laboratory testing for the well or sick patient may be performed in our office or ordered at a conveniently located laboratory.
Adolescent Appointments
Adolescence is a time of transition from childhood to young adult. Because many changes occur during this time we believe it is important to continue regular annual wellness visits. We enjoy guiding adolescents through the physical and emotional changes that make the transition to young adulthood such an exciting, rewarding, but often turbulent time. During your office visits we will address all issues concerning these changes, as well as overall health. We will also serve as a resource to parents as they guide their teens into adulthood.
Sick Visit
We offer same day appointments and will schedule you at our earliest availability.
Although children often catch small colds and viruses that are manageable from the comfort of home, some types of sickness require pediatric attention. Our office values our patients’ health, which is why we offer same-day sick visit appointments. Bringing your child to his or her pediatrician, rather than a hospital or urgent care facility, ensures he or she feels comfortable in the office setting, and also ensures the individualized attention that we provide at our facility.
Chronic illness We help parents and children deal with chronic conditions and we provide them with an individual treatment plan.
Referrals to specialists We help you to schedule an appointment with other specialists
School, Sports, Camp Physicals
We will gladly complete these forms for you. However, in order to do this your child must have had a well exam within the last 12 months.
Ear Piercing
We offer ear piercing for infants and older children.
Suture/Staple Removal
We remove sutures and staples. However, if you had received sutures or staples by a plastic surgeon, you must return to them for removal.
Wart Cryotherapy
We offer cryotherapy for wart removal which involves freezing the wart with a very cold substance.
Ear wax removal The impacted wax could be the cause of ear pain and loss of hearing.
Irrigating the ear canal will remove excess wax, and cleans the ear canal.
Travel Medicine We provide consultations for children and adults regarding international travel. During these visits we discuss country/region-specific travel risks, tips to prevent diseases, and offer required immunizations and preventive medications.
Office Policies
Appointment Policy
At Lydig Pediatrics one of our goals is to have an office that runs smoothly and does not have patients sitting in the lobby waiting for long periods of time. We cannot do this without your assistance. Please call (718) 772-0070 to schedule your child’s appointment. Please make the person scheduling your appointment aware of ALL problems you wish to discuss at your appointment. Alert us if your child has a complex or chronic issue to allow adequate time for the visit.
When you schedule an appointment, we reserve that time just for you. We are committed to honoring the appointment time of our scheduled patients, so it is critical that you
confirm your appointment within 24 hours of your appointment time and that you arrive 15 minutes earlier of the scheduled time.
Our Responsibility to You
We promise to work with you to find the time that works best for you.
We will call you in advance to remind you of your appointment.
Your Responsibility to Us
Appointments must be confirmed within 24 hours of the appointment time by responding to our confirmation call.
If you miss our confirmation call or need a different appointment time, please contact us as soon as possible to either confirm or reschedule based upon current availability.
Arrive on time or early for your appointment.
If you arrive for your appointment that has not been confirmed and/or you are more than 15 minutes late for your appointment, we will try our best to see you as a walk-in patient with priority over other patients who don’t require urgent care.
However, if you are more than 30 minutes late you will be seen as a walk-in patient and wait time will be based upon our current availability or, otherwise, you will need to reschedule.
Please contact us as soon as possible if you’re running late.
Sick Visits - We do our best to accommodate all sick children for the same-day visits. Please call as early as possible and we will try to schedule your child to be seen that day by our physician.
We welcome walk-ins, but for acute problems it may be necessary to wait while the provider sees scheduled patients so that we may honor their appointment time. For chronic or non-urgent problems you may be offered an appointment on a different day.
To expedite your visit, we recommend you call in advance whenever possible.
Well Visits - Annual exams and sports physicals must be scheduled in advance. Plan ahead for yearly exams during the busy pre-camp/pre-school seasons.
We recommend you show up 15 minutes prior to your child’s appointment in order to fill out any paperwork. Please have your updated insurance card and information with you at all times.
We have a 24-hour cancellation policy. If you do not cancel within 24 hours of your appointment time or miss your appointment you may be assessed a Failed Appointment Fee.
Excessive missed or late-cancellations of scheduled appointment may result in discharge from the practice.
COPAYMENT AND DEDUCTIBLES - Many insurance plans require you to pay a copayment and/or meet a yearly deductible. Copayments and yearly deductibles constitute a contractual obligation between you and your health plan provider. If the copayment obligation is not met, your health plan provider has the right to deny any and all charges, which could leave you responsible for all services rendered during your visit. Copayments are due at the time of service.
TELEPHONE CALLS
After hours phone calls We provide 24-hour coverage as a service to our patients. For urgent medical issues that arise after business hours or on weekends, call the main office phone number and leave voicemail. Physician on call will receive message and return your call as soon as possible. For medical emergencies, please dial 9-1-1.
Calls during office hours: We encourage you to call the office with your questions during working hours. You can talk to a medical assistant, or you may leave a message for your primary care doctor. When you leave a message during office hours, we will do our best to get back with you as quickly as possible. Let the medical assistant know if your call is urgent. Lengthy discussions are best done at scheduled appointments.
PRESCRIPTIONS - No new medications, including antibiotics, are prescribed without first being examined by our physician. For chronic conditions, we will be more than happy to refill your prescription, provided that we have been following your child for this condition. Please try to call during regular business hours for prescription refills.
REFERRALS - We are proud of providing comprehensive care to our patients but there are times when it is necessary to refer to specialists for further evaluation and treatment. If you are enrolled in a managed care plan, a referral from your primary care physician to a specialist must be provided by our office in order for your services to be covered under your insurance. We will provide referrals to physicians participating in your insurance plan after evaluating the clinical complaint. When a referral is required, we request at least 48-72 hours to process the request. Most referrals can be faxed, but some must be picked up. If you know, please leave the name of the doctor with whom your child has the appointment, the telephone number, fax number, the doctor's NPI number, the date of the appointment, and your current insurance information.
MEDICAL RECORDS/HEALTH FORMS/LETTERS - Should you wish to acquire a copy of your child's medical records, you must submit your request in writing. Please, allow 5-7 business days for your form to be completed. Concerning forms for school, camps, and day care, as well as prescription refills for daily or chronically used medications, please allow 2-3 days to fill out these non-urgent items. We will call to let you know when it is ready to be picked up. If you would rather have us mail your health form, please provide a stamped, self-addressed envelope.
When possible, we will do our best to complete the health form during your visit with the doctor.
When picking up any medical records, health forms, doctor's letters, or prescriptions, you must present photo identification.
FINANCIAL POLICY
It is our goal to make sure you receive the maximum financial benefit from your insurance provider and to make sure that your account is handled in the most efficient manner possible. In order to accomplish this goal it is important that we have your understanding and cooperation in adhering to our financial policies.
Account Responsibility
As the parent or guardian of a child registered with Lydig Pediatrics, you are agreeing to be
responsible for all balances incurred on behalf of your child’s medical care. All balances are due upon receipt of a statement from our offices. If you feel your statement is incorrect or you are having financial difficulties, please contact our office within 15 days. If your insurance company denies your claim or does not pay your claim within 45 days after we have filed the claim, the outstanding balance becomes your responsibility. Please contact us immediately if you are having a dispute with your insurance company or you think your claim has been denied in error.
Parent Payment Responsibility
The parent authorizing treatment for a child will be the parent responsible for those charges. If a divorce or custody decree requires the other parent to pay all or part of the costs, it is the authorizing parent’s responsibility to collect from the other parent. If the non-custodial parent is responsible for medical treatment charges on behalf of the child, we advise that the non-custodial parent or guardian responsible for payment of charges for a child’s medical treatment be present at the first patient visit of the child to sign the necessary papers. Otherwise, the parent authorizing the treatment will be responsible for those charges, until such time as the appropriate forms are signed by the parent responsible for medical treatment costs and such signed forms are delivered to our office. Lydig Pediatrics will not intervene to determine a parent’s responsibility for payment.
Payment for Services
Payment in full is due at the time of service. Payment is expected in full at the time of service for:
Copayments and/or insurance deductibles
If we are not contracted with your insurance company
If you do not have insurance coverage
If we are unable to verify your insurance eligibility or we do not have your new insurance information on file
Payment is due within 15 days of receipt of your statement. If your account becomes past due we reserve the right to send you to collections and you will be responsible for all collection and fees that the practice incurs as a result. We reserve the right to refuse to see any patient that has been placed into collection.
Insurance Coverage
In order to provide your child medical services we are contracted with insurance companies. We agree to file your claim in the proper manner and to reasonably assist you if there are questions with your claim. It is your responsibility to know and understand your insurance coverage. We will contact your insurance company to verify that you have coverage but
we cannot be responsible for contacting them to obtain your benefit coverage.
Services Rendered
If your child is being seen for a well check up or preventive visit and another condition is treated
during the same appointment, we will bill for each service of the services performed.
Refunds
Overpayments will be refunded to responsible parties.