|
| |
All businesses, especially a medical office,
have regulations that guide their day-to-day activities. Some are
literally the rule of law, some are simply office policies to allow us to serve
you and others promptly and efficiently, and others are in place to ensure the
best treatment plan and medications for your pet's good health.
Rules can be annoying, but please understand
that each one is there for a solid reason. If you feel that you've been
unnecessarily inconvenienced or that your pet's health was not our first
concern, please call our office and speak directly to Dr. Clark or Dr. Macherey.
MEDICATIONS
-
Heartworm preventative can be sold if your
last purchase was within the period covered by the last box of medication
purchased. If there has been a lapse (a 6 month box extending, for
example, over 10 months), we will require a heartworm test before it can be
dispensed. This is for the safety of your pet.
-
Chronic medications can be refilled for no
more than 1 year. At that time, we must see your pet for a physical
exam before further refills can be authorized. Pets on chronic medication
should ALWAYS be examined at least annually.
-
Refills of other medications must be
authorized by a doctor and that decision will be based on the specific problem,
its history, and the medication in question.
-
Online prescriptions will be authorized
only if it is a prescription that would be filled according to these guidelines.
-
Prescriptions can only be filled for pets with which we have a "valid
client-doctor-patient relationship". This legal requirement requires
that one of our doctors has seen your pet before a prescription medication can
be dispensed..
PAYMENT POLICY
-
We accept cash, checks (local), VISA, Master Card
and Discover Card.
-
We
welcome pet insurance.
-
All services are expected to be paid for at the
time they are rendered.
-
A deposit may be required for an illness or
surgery requiring hospitalization, or for some boarding.
-
Arrangements must be made in advance for any
services performed without immediate payment.
-
We are happy to hold checks for unexpected,
non-elective services for a short period of time.
OFFICE PROCEDURES
-
We are pleased to offer extended hours and
are proud that, for over 30 years, our services have been available to the
public for 12 hours on weekdays. We are also open from 8-12 on Saturday. Please
understand that our staff works hard and all have their own family and pets.
Our closing hours will be followed unless a true life-threatening emergency
exists. After hours emergencies are referred to the Nashville Pet
Emergency Clinic, so there is never a time that your pet cannot receive
urgently needed care.
-
Our staff and doctors arrive at 7AM to treat
hospitalized patients and begin a new day of care. If you have a pet
boarding with us, we ask that you wait until 8AM to get them. This allows
us to complete our medical treatments and morning census.
-
For the
safety of your pet, as well as others in the building, we require that all
pets be either on a leash, in a carrier, or securely in your arms. Not
only does this protect against the unexpected snap or bite from another patient,
but it also limits the contact your pet might have with a sick and contagious
pet nearby. Remember this is a hospital and we see infectious diseases!!
-
We
recommend that you call ahead for an appointment, but we also welcome
walk-ins. Appointments are given priority over walk-ins, however.
If you have a life-threatening emergency, please declare that quickly and
you will be seen IMMEDIATELY.
-
Appointments allow us to see you in the most timely manner and we ask that every
effort be made to be on time. When you arrive late, it prevents the next
appointment from being seen on time. As a courtesy to the next
appointment, if a patient arrives more than 20 minutes late, s/he will then be
worked in as a walk-in.
This page last updated
10/02/2011
|
