PHONE MESSAGES:
Phone call messages are considered on a priority basis. Emergency medical situations have the highest priority. Please leave messages that specify in detail the issue that is to be addressed. Do not simply leave a message saying: “Have Dr. Smith call me back.” Without detail, phone calls may not be returned promptly. If there is a specific question that needs to be answered then specify the question in the message. Specific questions that do not require a return phone call can typically be handled very quickly if sufficient information is provided. Please remember that there may be charges for time spent in responding to phone calls.
EMAILS:
For a number of reasons – including privacy related concerns – we typically do not correspond via email. In specific situations, arrangements can be made to convey information via email as opposed to using our secure fax line (703-569- 7248). Please remember that there may be charges for time spent responding to emails.
FORENSIC/LEGAL/COURT-ORDERED ISSUES:
Health insurance covers services which are necessary for the direct or indirect diagnosis and treatment of medical conditions. Services that are primarily forensic or legal in nature may not be covered by your health insurance. Please be aware should your lawyer, probation officer, etc., communicate with us, ask for letters, request documentation or otherwise utilize our time that you may incur charges that are significantly higher than copays that you may be paying for medically related services. Medically related court ordered reports generally are covered by your insurance but follow-up calls, the rendering of specific professional opinions, and responses to documentation requests, even when related to the testing, may not be covered by your health insurance. Please be careful asking about letters. Please ask any individual with whom you are dealing to be quite cautious in communicating with us and in requesting letters and other documents – if you want to minimize your own expenses.
RECORDS REQUESTS:
Requesting records and other information can be quite expensive for you. Make sure you have compelling need for records before requesting them. Records are rarely of any use to anyone other than the person who authored them. They rarely have information that can be interpreted by anyone other than the author. Parties requesting records often expect that session notes and test data will provide explanatory information that they typically do not provide. In the same way that notes of a classroom lecture created by a college student are not a detailed reflection of the college lecture, a session note is designed to primarily help refresh the memory of the author and is not a complete report or a specific account of what happened. In addition, not all records can be released in response to a records request.
