Narcotic Drug Prescriptions

It is the policy of Mousam Valley Orthopaedics not to refill narcotic medications (e.g., Vicodin, Codeine, Percocet), after hours, or on weekends.  It is the responsibility of the patient to anticipate shortage of these medications and notify the office during regular working hours so that a message can be left with the prescribing physician.  In this way, your physician can address the situation personally rather than involving other physicians that may not be aware of your specific case.  Failure to address these needs by the patient will not warrant emergency prescription renewal on an after hour basis. 
      Patients who require narcotic usage longer than six weeks following an injury will be considered to be a chronic pain management issue.  Current recommendations are to have chronic pain managed through pain clinics and our office will be glad to set up  the appropriate referral to a pain clinic of your choice.

Payment Options

Payments are expected at the time of visit.  All insurance co-payments will be collected at the time of appointment.  Patients who are not covered by insurance must make payments in full.  Any other arrangements must be approved by our billing office.

We accept cash, personal checks, Visa and Mastercard.

X-ray Policy

We have an x-ray machine and certified x-ray technician in our office during most normal office hours.  If you have had x-rays elsewhere notify our office staff while scheduling your appointment.  The x-rays taken in our office are read by our Orthopaedic Surgeons and are the property of Mousam Valley Orthopaedics.  X-rays may be taken to other physicians but must be returned to our office.  (Copies of your x-rays can be  purchased for $7.00 not covered by insurance).

Canceling Appointments

Please call us as soon as possible when you know that you will have to cancel your appointment with us.  A minimum of 48-hour notice is appreciated. 

Preparing For Your Appointment

When making your appointment please indicate any concerns that you may have so that we can explain our procedures to you.  You may print out our new patient form, complete it, and bring it in with you for your appointment.  This will save time.  If you have any questions when completing the form, please wait until your appointment; our front desk can answer any questions.

If you will be evaluated for a knee, hip or back problem please wear or bring a pair of shorts from home.  Any one being examined for a shoulder problem is asked to bring or wear a tank top, otherwise a johnnie will be provided.

Scheduling Appointments

Appointments are scheduled by calling our office:  324-1488.  New patient or "new problem" appointments are not scheduled later than 3:00 pm (follow-up appointments may be scheduled later in the day) - this is to allow adequate time to complete evaluation and x-rays if necessary.  We will attempt to accommodate your schedule as much as possible.

Currently we have two physicians and one physician assistant who see patients.  If you have no specific provider preference, the wait for a routine new patient appointment is generally 1-3 weeks.  If you have a  provider preference, you may have to wait longer for the next available appointment with that provider.  Emergency cases will be discussed with  the referring physician and usually will be seen by the "on-call" doctor for that day. 

Children under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian to their first appointment.  The only exception to this rule is for a truly life or limb threatening situation.  An uncomplicated broken bone does not usually meet this criteria.

Elaine is in charge of appointments and specific concerns may be addressed to her.

Re-Scheduling Appointments

Due to the fact that we are a surgical office, there will be times when the physicians will be detained at the hospital or times when they will have to leave unexpectedly.  For this reason, we may need to re-schedule your appointment.  We make every attempt to keep waiting to a minimum but emergencies do arise and we appreciate your understanding in these situations.

Emergency Room Referrals

You have been referred to Mousam Valley Orthopaedics for further evaluation and care of your orthopaedic injury or problem.  We are delighted to have you as a patient in our office.

You must call for an appointment during normal working hours:

The physician on call can be reached at all other times for true emergencies.  We are unable to provide prescriptions or refills until you have actually been seen in our office.  Due to the volume of patients referred to our office, your appointment may be with our Physician Assistant rather than the specific doctor you have been referred to.  Be assured that he is fully capable of handling your problem and the care of all patients is under the direct supervision of one of our physicians.

If your injury is chronic (old or ongoing), please obtain all records, x-rays, reports, scans, etc., prior to your appointment (you may bring these to the office before your appointment for the physician to review).  The office staff will be glad to help you in the process.

If your problem is acute (new) and if the x-rays and if the x-rays have been taken at Goodall Hospital, notify the office and we will obtain the x-rays.   You will need to bring x-rays taken at other hospitals.  Again, notify the office staff when you make an appointment and they will help you in any way they can.

Our office participates in many health insurance plans.  Many of these plans require that you obtain a referral from your primary care physician.  This is true even if the Emergency Room physician refers you to this office.  Please obtain all necessary referrals prior to your appointment.

If you do not have health insurance, our office will discuss a payment plan with you.

We look forward to helping you.