New Patients

It is crucial when choosing a pediatric practice for your children that you have given serious consideration to the fit between the practice philosophies and your own. Excellent care happens when the providers and office staff are aligned with your family’s priorities and philosophies regarding medical care. Medical care is enhanced by mutual respect of the patient and the medical care provider.

Please read our thoughts on a variety of commonly encountered situations in any pediatric practice.

VACCINES

Our vaccine policy follows the schedule outlined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics. We vaccinate our own children on schedule and expect to do the same with our patients. Families who do not wish to immunize their children according to the recommended schedule established by the CDC and AAP should seek care elsewhere.

ANTIBIOTICS

We work hard to not overuse antibiotics. We educate families on appropriate use of antibiotics, and follow evidence-based guidelines. We do not automatically treat ear pain or a green runny nose with antibiotics. We do not routinely prescribe antibiotics over the phone as we do not believe that to be responsible medical care. We will prescribe an antibiotic when we feel it is clinically indicated.

MEDICAL HOME

We work hard to provide comprehensive medical care and serve as your medical home. To that end, we expect that you contact our office first before seeking specialty care or using an urgent care because of convenience We want to be involved in either providing care for your child(ren) in our office or referring you to the most appropriate specialist for the given situation; we aim to coordinate and manage your child’s total health care. Our office believes in the use of up-to-date medical technology so as to help you be better health - educated parents as well as to provide easy access to our office and your child’s health information. We encourage you to reference our website routinely – it is full of information – and to sign up for the patient portal.

OFFICE HOURS

We make every effort to meet the needs of our patients, offering both routine and acute care appointments at our office during traditional business hours. We do not at this time offer walk-in visits. Click here for our office hours.

URGENT CARE

As we are your medical home, we strongly discourage the use of urgent care facilities. There are several reasons behind this statement:

• They are not staffed with pediatric providers and the care rendered is often not based upon pediatric guidelines.
• We do not routinely receive any information about your child’s visit from the urgent care.
• They do not have access to your child’s medical record, which is a very important collection of information when treating a patient.

NO ONE LESS THAN 2 YEARS OF AGE SHOULD EVER BE CARED FOR AT AN URGENT CARE.

SCHEDULING APPOINTMENTS

For well visits, please call our appointment line. Well visits may be scheduled up to 6 months in advance. You will receive an automated reminder 2 months ahead of when your child is due for their next well visit. Automated reminders are also sent out within a few days of your child’s appointment.

For acute care (sick visit), call the office to make an appointment; if you so wish, you may speak with the triage nurse first to discuss your child’s problem and verify if an appointment is needed. However, if you wish for your child to be seen, we will be happy to do so.

Please leave a message if no one is able to answer when you first call and allow 60 minutes for a return phone call. Certain days of the week can be extremely busy with the number of phone calls and it is sometimes difficult to get back immediately. Please do not call and leave multiple messages, unless your call has not been returned within the 60 minute time frame.

Of course, if you feel you have an emergency, go to the nearest emergency room or call 911.

TIMELINESS

Our providers make every effort to run on time with appointments, as we believe everyone’s time is equally important. As a courtesy, we will remind you of your upcoming appointment, via phone/text message /email. We ask that you arrive 15 minutes before your scheduled appointment time (to allow time for parking, check-in, updating your insurance information, etc). We understand sometimes things happen beyond your control that may cause you to be late.

We will try to “work you into” the schedule, but you may need to wait a while, or depending on the situation, we may ask for you to reschedule. Similarly, things can sometimes happen beyond our control that causes us to sometimes run late for appointments.

MISSED APPOINTMENTS

Missed appointments represent a loss to other patients who could have been seen in the time set aside for you. We reserve the right to charge a fee for late-cancelled or missed appointments. We request 24 hours notice for cancellation of appointments. A $25 fee will be charged for each missed appointment. The third missed appointment will result in discharge from the practice. For new patients who miss their first appointment, no further appointments will be given and the individual will not be considered a patient in our practice.

AFTER HOURS

We have a provider on call 24/7/365. When our office is closed and you have an urgent issue that cannot wait until the next time that the office is open, you can call 1-314-747-2256 and be connected to our pediatric nurse triage service through St. Louis Children’s Hospital. You will be given advice regarding your child’s problem; often times, the triage nurse will discuss the case with the provider on call. You may wish to check the "Is Your Child Sick?"section of our website for helpful information before using the triage service.

INSURANCE

Make sure that we participate in your insurance plan. Click here for a list of our participating insurances. (Insurances) It is your responsibility to know the limits and coverage of your particular health insurance policy, to show your insurance card to us at each visit, and be prepared to pay any co pays at the time of service. Our billing staff will do their best to assist you with insurance questions; however, if you have questions about your coverage of immunizations, etc it is best to check with your specific insurance plan. Our office does not want you to be surprised by a bill because services provided were not covered by your insurance. Immunizations are a very important example.

Here are some things to consider when choosing a pediatrician for your newborn:

• Please read “Are We a Good Fit for You?”.  Excellent care occurs when the priorities and philosophies of the parents and pediatrician align.
• Make sure that Pediatric Healthcare Unlimited is a participating provider on your insurance plan.
• Call our office as soon as possible once you have decided to enroll with us. You will be asked to provide insurance information for BOTH parents, regardless of marital status and regardless of which parent’s plan the baby will be added to. It is important that we hear from you before your baby is born to make sure that there are no potential insurance issues.
• If you would like, you can schedule an appointment for a prenatal visit where you can meet with your chosen pediatrician, have your questions about the practice answered, and get a feel for the office. A prenatal visit is not required; however, it is an option for you.

Once you have decided upon a pediatrician, inform your obstetrician that you have selected Pediatric Healthcare Unlimited, (Dr. Laura Hill, Dr. Janis Robison or Dr. Kathie Wuellner) for your baby’s pediatrician.

If you deliver at Alton Memorial Hospital, the hospital will contact us and one of our providers will see your baby in the hospital usually the morning following your baby’s birth. If there is an issue with the newborn, one of us would come promptly to assess your newborn.

If you deliver at another hospital, the hospital’s staff pediatrician will see your baby and then direct you to call our office and schedule an appointment upon discharge. New babies need to be seen in our office within a few days of discharge – the physician will let you know when exactly. Please make sure before you leave the hospital that you request that your baby’s records be sent to Pediatric Healthcare Unlimited and complete any necessary paperwork to make sure this happens.

PLEASE NOTE: 

Once your baby is born, it is extremely important that you add your new baby to your health insurance policy. Most insurance plans have a 30 day grace period for newborns to be added. Once the grace period has expired, if the baby has not been added, the parent will be responsible for charged incurred. Please remember to bring your insurance card, co-pay and baby's records to your first visit.