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Our administrative office is open Monday through
Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Our clinical offices have varying
schedules. If you wish to see one of our doctors, please call ahead to
schedule an appointment. A doctor from our office is available at all
times. After regular business hours you may call our office telephone
number, and our answering service answers 24 hours a day, seven days a
week. The answering service can page the Tri-State Neurosurgical
Associates – UPMC physician who is on call.
Making an Appointment
To schedule an appointment, please call our main
office at UPMC Passavant in the North Hills at 412-630-7640 or 877-635-5234 . You may schedule an appointment at any of
our clinical offices through this central scheduling number. Let the
appointment scheduler know which doctor you would like to see and
describe your problem. Please let us know if you have seen any of our
doctors before or if this is your first visit.
Canceling an Appointment
If you must change an appointment, please call us as soon as possible.
This courtesy allows us to schedule another patient for medical care.
Postoperative Appointments
After surgery, your doctor will give you an
appointment time for your postoperative office visit. Please be sure
to call our office if you are unable to make the appointment or wish
to change the location of the visit. This will allow our staff to have
your medical records and reports available for your visit.
General Questions
If you have questions after your office visit,
please feel free to call our office. A message will be taken, and your
doctor or nurse will return your call as soon as possible. If your
call is identified as being urgent, it will be handled immediately by
our staff. We want our patients to be informed about their diagnosis
and treatment. We want you to call us with your questions or problems.
Please designate one family member to communicate with our group. This
will save time in returning calls.
After Hospitalization
You will receive discharge instructions on what
to expect as you recover at home. If you are having a problem after
discharge, please call our office. Your doctor or nurse will tell you
what to do. If you call after regular office hours, you will reach our
answering service. Give your information to the answering service,
which will contact your doctor. The doctor will then call you back.
Prescriptions
If you need to renew a medication we prescribed,
please call us during office hours several days before your last dose.
Please have the telephone number of your pharmacy ready when you call
us. We will call the new prescription to the pharmacy. We cannot renew
prescriptions for medications we did not prescribe for you.
Emergencies
If you have an emergency, go directly to your
local Emergency Department. Have the Emergency Department Physician
contact your Surgeon as soon as possible.
Patient Billing
We currently participate in most major health
insurance plans, see prior listing. If your insurance is not listed
here, please call our office to see if we accept it. We will file
claims for all services covered under these plans. You will be asked
to pay for any services not covered by your insurance, co-payments,
and deductibles at the time of your visit. We accept cash, personal
checks, Visa, and MasterCard.
Our patient accounts staff is available during
office hours to answer your billing and insurance questions. They can
assist you in arranging a payment plan to suit your budget. You may
reach our patient accounts staff by calling 412-630-7640 or 877-635-5234 between 8:00 am and 4:30 p.m., weekdays.
Approval for Services
Please call your insurance carrier before you
are admitted to the hospital. Most insurance carriers now require
patients to get approval before a hospital admission. Our staff will
assist you in every possible way to obtain approval for your surgery.
If you do not get approval from your insurance carrier before you are
admitted, the carrier may not cover the services.
Your insurance company may request a second
surgical opinion if you are scheduled for surgery. If you do not
obtain the requested second opinion, the insurance company may refuse
to pay for the procedure. Our office understands this requirement and
will help you in getting this evaluation.
Disability Claims and Forms
If your illness requires you to miss work or
become temporarily disabled, our office will assist you with
completion of your disability forms. Please complete your portion of
the claim forms and mail them to our office. If you have any questions
regarding our policy, please call our office at 1-412-630-7640 or 877-635-5234.
Disclaimer:
Every effort has been made by the author (s) to provide accurate,
up-to-date information. However, the medical knowledge base is dynamic
and errors can occur. By using the information contained herein, the
viewer willingly assumes all risks in connection with such use.
Neither the author nor UPMC shall be held responsible for errors,
omissions in information herein nor liable for any special,
consequential, or exemplary damages resulting, in whole or in part,
from any viewer(s)' use of or reliance upon, this material.
CLINICAL DISCLAIMER:
Clinical information is provided for educational purposes and not
as a medical or professional service. Person(s) who are not medical
professionals should have clinical information reviewed and
inter1preted or applied only by the appropriate health professional(s).
For questions or comments, please contact:
bostj@msx.upmc.edu
