HLS endocrinology is a private practice dedicated to providing personalized care for patients and their loved ones. Discussing and understanding financial and patient responsibilities is an important step in our partnership and one that helps to ensure an aligned and sustainable medical relationship.
*Please read this thoroughly and ask Dr. Duchon any questions that you may have. *
We appreciate the opportunity to take care of your Endocrine needs.
Intake forms, blood work and medical records:
New patient paperwork (including forms) needs to be turned in before we finalize the appointment. If an appointment was tentatively scheduled forms need to be submitted 48h prior to the appointment otherwise reschedule.
We also prefer to have patients’ laboratory results and records before scheduling to make the visit go smoothly.
Results, refills, and prior authorizations:
- I agree to come to my follow-up appointments or schedule a telephone encounter so I can discuss the results of any of my results and what they mean to my care.
- Refills may take 48-72 business hours. Please plan accordingly. If you are overdue for labs and follow up are, a one-time ONE month refill will be sent. Please make sure labs and follow up are completed prior to the completion of the one-month refill. Refills are best obtained by asking your pharmacy to send us a refill request. DO NOT CALL for refill requests.
- I agree to request all refills at the time of my visit. I understand that if I cancel or reschedule an appointment, I may run out of my required medication.
- Prior authorizations cannot be completed over the weekend.
Mode of communication and response time:
- Please use the patient portal (Patient Ally) for communication. Do not use the admin email. Please limit calls to the office as we are with patients most of the day and can better respond to portal messages.
- After-hour calls and weekends are only for emergencies. Scheduling/refill or other issues will only be addressed during business hours. After hours calls may require a telemedicine appointment which may apply to your copay/deductible.
- Dr. Duchon is unable to call patients or respond to multiple or long portal messages. Discussions outside of quick questions which can be answered by staff might require a scheduled appointment, either telemedicine or in person to address all concerns at once. Any phone or digital interaction that requires a time commitment over 5 min will be billed to your insurance accordingly.
- Please note copays and deductibles for the visit are due at the time of service. We are not able to offer payment plans.
- Please note our staff is working hard and covering multiple tasks at any given time.
DO NOT CALL REPEATEDLY. ANY TASK CAN TAKE UP TO 3 BUSINESS DAYS TO COMPLETE. IF IT’S URGENT, YOU MAY NEED TO SCHEDULE A SAME DAY APPT (in person or telemedicine) IF AVAILABLE.
- Please note that rude behavior of any kind is not acceptable and may serve as grounds for dismissal from the practice. We value our employees. We value our patients. We expect mutually respectful communication. NO EXCEPTIONS.
Rescheduling and Cancellation policy:
- For New patients, we allow only a ONE time reschedule if notified over 48 business hours. New patients that do not show up for their appointment WILL NOT BE RESCHEDULED. There will be a nonrefundable $70 fee to reschedule appointment if you reschedule within 48 hs.
- For patients requiring interpreter service: This is paid for by the clinic and arranged in advance for your visit. There might be a $120 fee to reschedule if you cancel within 48h, do not show up or are late for your appointment and it needs to be cancelled.
- For follow up patients, if there is a “no show” or less than 48-hour cancellation there is a $50 fee to reschedule the appointment
- Multiple late cancellations or no-shows may result in dismissal from the practice.
Late Arrival Policy:
(15 min late arrival for new patient visit / 10 min late arrival for follow-up)
- Dr. Duchon wants all patients to have the opportunity to be seen for his/her entire scheduled visit time. Thus, she operates under a “therapist” model, meaning each appointment has a dedicated length of time.
- I understand that arriving late for my appointment may result in my visit being truncated to allow for others to be seen on time.
- I also understand that a shortened visit may result in an incomplete assessment, and I may need to return for further assessment.
- I also understand that if I arrive late for the visit, I may not be seen and will still be required to pay the late cancellation fee of $50.
Hospital/Emergency Policy:
- Dr. Duchon does not go to the hospital. She may recommend I go to the Emergency Room if I have symptoms of an emergent condition or need to be seen urgently, but my care will be under the hospital physicians.
- Dr. Duchon, however, will make every best effort to communicate with my treating doctors, it is ultimately my responsibility to own my records and carry the names and contact information of my doctors to the ER.
Controlled Medications/Marijuana Policy:
- Dr. Duchon does not prescribe opiates or medical marijuana for the treatment of chronic pain, or benzodiazepines for the treatment of chronic anxiety or insomnia. She does not take over the prescribing of these medications from another physician.
Telemedicine Consultations:
- I understand that my doctor will sometimes engage me in a telemedicine (video and phone) consultation, for example during a public health emergency where it is safer to remain at home.
- I understand the telemedicine consultation will not be the same as a direct office visit since I will not be in the same room as my doctor.
- I understand that my doctor assumes I am alone during our consultation, and she will not know if there are any other people in the same room as me, or within hearing distance, unless I say so, thus confidentiality may be breached if she discusses topics of a private nature.
- I understand there are other potential risks to this technology, including interruptions, unauthorized access, and technical difficulties. My doctor or I can discontinue the visit at any time if we so desire.
- I understand as an alternative to a telemedicine consultation, I can cancel and reschedule my visit for a later time or seek care from another doctor’s office. I understand if my doctor feels a direct physical examination or other testing are necessary, she will ask me to come in for another visit in order to complete any remaining tests.
- I understand I and/or my insurance company will be billed for the visit in the same manner as regular office visits or phone visits and it is my responsibility to ensure the service is covered by my insurance prior to video visit being conducted.
- I understand my insurance will be billed for telephone visits or digital communication if such is conducted according to the time dedicated to such a visit or complexity and it is my responsibility to ensure this service is being covered.
PLEASE READ: Dr. Duchon practices traditional Endocrinology.
- While she spends a lot of time with patients discussing their health concerns, she is not able to co-manage care with alternative medicine practices or manage care outside of current guidelines. We want to be sure you are aware before scheduling.
- She may consider armour/desiccated thyroid medication in some cases. She manages dosages of any thyroid treatment based on TSH levels. She will NOT check reverse t3 levels.
- She does a thorough evaluation of Endocrine issues BUT this is done at her discretion and not solely per patient request.
We do not manage certain conditions unless there is a clear workup indicating a potential Endocrine cause. This includes:
- Hair loss – we recommend PCP and dermatology evaluation.
- Menopause and/or low libido in women- while some evaluation may be done in our office, we recommend management of this with a Gynecologist who is better equipped to manage this. Dr. Duchon does not prescribe testosterone for women.
For our patients with Diabetes:
While we understand managing a chronic medical disease is difficult, we do expect our patients to be equally interested in optimal management of their diabetes.
We Require:
1. Compliance with the medication regimen and lifestyle changes at one’s best ability.
2. Monitoring sugars as recommended by doctor.
3. Being up to date with laboratory tests and follow-up appointments.
We require patients with A1C over 10% to follow up every 2-4 weeks until sugars are under better control. We require patients with A1C 8-10% to follow up every 4-6 weeks until sugars are under better control. We are here to work together for the best management of your diabetes. Except under extenuating circumstances, if labs and follow up are more than a month out of the recommended schedule, you may be at risk of being released from this practice.
- We value evidence-based management and want to have a mutually respectful clinical relationship.
- Dr. Duchon is a specialist and cannot function as a primary care physician. We advise that all our patients have a primary care physician, and we request that accurate contact is provided for communication.
Violence and Threats:
Any threats, or aggressive or violent behavior directed toward staff, other patients, or neighboring businesses will result in dismissal from the practice.
Updates:
We will update these policies from time to time. You may review the latest policies on request.