If you have to cancel a visit, please call us at 520-290-9151, 24 hours before the visit. If you do not show up for your visit without cancelling it in advance, then you will be charged a $25 no show fee. Three cancellations in a row by a patient may result in the termination of the patient’s relationship with BIM because the lack of commitment and participation by the patient makes it impossible for us to provide the patient with the best health care. If you find it difficult to maintain your appointments because of financial difficulty or lack of insurance, please call our office at 520-290-9151 and speak to one of our friendly staff to discuss your options.
Whether you are a new patient or an existing patient, you should bring with you your current insurance card, current identification, medication lists, and allergy lists. You may also bring a family member, friend or care-giver with you to the appointment but we must obtain your permission first before we allow a non-family member to sit in on your appointment. If you are a new patient, bring in your completed new patient packet. You may also bring past medical histories or records if you have them. It may take up to two weeks to receive your medical records from your previous physician. Please also remember to bring your co-pay and any amount due on past bills. Co-pays are due at the time of service.
BIM does not perform Physicals on New Patients during their initial visit because we have not established an adequate history or relationship with you as a New Patient. Physicals are age, sex and person specific. We are able to give you the most appropriate Physical once we have gotten to know you better. The familiarity allows us to recognize or be aware of health issues or concerns that may be specific to you as we perform your Physical.
A Physical, or Well Check, is a basic review of your systems. It is also known as a preventive visit. This is different than a regular office visit which is considered a problem oriented visit by your insurance company. A Physical consists of a height, weight, body mass index review, and may also include a simplistic review of cholesterol, blood pressure and/or diabetes or other specific examination based on your age and sex. An appointment is made specifically for a Physical and in most cases; we cannot combine such a visit with a problem oriented visit or a follow up visit. Preventive examinations, as defined by most insurance companies, do not allow us to discuss in detail problems or health issues that may be found during the exam. Any such discussion may lead the insurance company to decide that a problem oriented visit had also occurred. This may include instances when a controlled health issue such as high cholesterol or diabetes requires additional lab work and/or a new prescription. If your insurance company covers a preventive exam, you will be financially responsible for any portion it deems as problem oriented or not covered as part of your preventive exam. The National Institute of Health recommends two Physicals during their 20’s for individuals between 18-39 years old. For individuals between 40-65 years old, a Physical is recommended every 1 to 5 years. For individuals 65 and older, a Physical is recommended once a year. Some employers require annual physicals.
We understand that your time is valuable and that you may have many health concerns during your visit. Because we value your time and value what you get out of your experience, we want to make sure that your health concerns receive the attention they need. As such, it is prudent and imperative that we only address your most severe, pressing, or life threatening issues. This may be one, two or three of your health concerns. You and the physician have to work together to decide what those might be. You know what is your most pressing concern (i.e., what hurts the most), your health care provider is the expert that can help you understand why one health concern might be more important than another. By focusing on your most pressing health concerns, your health care provider will have enough time to discuss with you what the health concern means, its effect on your body as a whole, treatment options, and the importance of following through on the appropriate treatment. Also, by focusing our attention on your critical health concerns, we give our other patients the same respect for their time as we have given you.
At BIM, our doctors have 20 plus years of practice experience. Our doctors participate in many continuing education programs to stay abreast of the latest and best medical education and research. They have taken American Board of Internal Medicine recertification exams every ten years and passed them. We do not order or prescribe unnecessary tests, labs or medication. In fact, there may be times that you as a patient think you need a particular test or medication because you heard about it, read about it or your friend recommended it. If our doctors feel the test or the medication is not in your best interest it will not be ordered or prescribed.
Whether you need to come in is based on your lab results and can only be determined once we have reviewed your results. There may be certain instances where you do not need to come in to discuss your results.Your health care professional at BIM has several years of experience in deciphering what lab results mean. Helping you understand your lab results is part of BIM’s promise to educate you about your health and wellbeing in the best manner possible. Coming in for an appointment gives us the time necessary to make sure all your questions are answered and that you fully understand your lab results.
If you have lost or forgotten your prescription, please call our office at 520-290-9151 or log on to the patient portal and click on the “My Health” link on the right hand side. Then click on “Medications” to see a list of medications you have been prescribed. If it was prescribed by us, you will see our name (one of our doctors) next to it. You can call your pharmacy because if it is on that list, they most likely already received the prescription.
On average, our prescription renewal time is one to two business days from the time we receive a refill request from your pharmacy. However, we have no control over how long it takes for the pharmacy to fulfill your prescription. In most cases, we will fax or electronically send over your prescription. However, not all pharmacies are as technologically adept.
If you need your prescription renewed, please call the pharmacy you had your prescription filled at least 1 week before you run out of your medication. Your pharmacy will then contact us and get the doctor’s approval for the renewal. Then the pharmacy will alert you when it is ready for pick up. You may call us after you have called your pharmacy to let us know you have made the request with your pharmacy. If you call us first, we will ask you to call the pharmacy. The pharmacy is supposed to help you manage your prescriptions. You can also log on to your patient portal, click on “My Health,” then on “Medications” and request a refill. Please allow us at least 1 week to renew your order so it can to be refilled on time. Requests that ask us to refill your prescription in 24-48 hours may not be reviewed in time. We do not do routine medication renewal during afterhours and weekends.
Whether you need to come in is based on your lab results and can only be determined once we have reviewed your results. There may be certain instances where you do not need to come in to discuss your results. Your health care professional at BIM has several years of experience in deciphering what lab results mean. Helping you understand your lab results is part of BIM’s promise to educate you about your health and wellbeing in the best manner possible. Coming in for an appointment gives us the time necessary to make sure all your questions are answered and that you fully understand your lab results.
If you have lost or forgotten your prescription, please call our office at 520-290-9151 or log on to the patient portal and click on the “My Health” link on the right hand side. Then click on “Medications” to see a list of medications you have been prescribed. If it was prescribed by us, you will see our name (one of our doctors) next to it. You can call your pharmacy because if it is on that list, they most likely already received the prescription.
On average, our prescription renewal time is one to two business days from the time we receive a refill request from your pharmacy. However, we have no control over how long it takes for the pharmacy to fulfill your prescription. In most cases, we will fax or electronically send over your prescription. However, not all pharmacies are as technologically adept.
If you need your prescription renewed, please call the pharmacy you had your prescription filled at least 1 week before you run out of your medication. Your pharmacy will then contact us and get the doctor’s approval for the renewal. Then the pharmacy will alert you when it is ready for pick up. You may call us after you have called your pharmacy to let us know you have made the request with your pharmacy. If you call us first, we will ask you to call the pharmacy. The pharmacy is supposed to help you manage your prescriptions. You can also log on to your patient portal, click on “My Health,” then on “Medications” and request a refill. Please allow us at least 1 week to renew your order so it can to be refilled on time. Requests that ask us to refill your prescription in 24-48 hours may not be reviewed in time. We do not do routine medication renewal during afterhours and weekends.
There are some situations that may not require an office visit for a prescription renewal. However, your particular condition and the medicine you are on may require monitoring in order to help you manage your health and obtain your optimal wellbeing. A prescription is given for certain amount of time in order for the drug to have an effect that can be measured. At the end of the period, that effect needs to be measured to determine whether the medication should continue or be changed. Without such monitoring, the medication may have mild to severe adverse effects.\n\nIt is important that you ask your provider during your visit (when you are first prescribed the medication or when the medication is renewed) whether your particular medication requires monitoring and how often you may need to come in.
Our doctors are very experienced, qualified, licensed and continually board certified internists. No, we do not use mid-levels meaning nurse practitioners or physician assistants. Nor do we use students, interns or resident physicians. We do not consider any patient visit easy, less serious or low priority. We know when it comes to your healthcare, given an option, you would pick nothing less than an experienced internist who can quickly discern and differentiate for example, a heart attack from a bad case of “indigestion”. We take every patient very seriously. At BIM, each provider is an MD and they are highly trained to address your health issues and questions. You get a dedicated doctor for yourself who will know your entire health history and will be providing your ongoing care for years and decades to come.
No we are not a cardiology practice. We had a cardiologist that we shared our facility with briefly around year 2008. Having been trained in internal medicine and being in practice for 20 plus years, our doctors are in very good position to manage most common cardiovascular conditions. If however you do need a cardiologist’s service, we alert you right away and make appropriate referral.
Our doctors, like most general practitioners these days, no longer make hospital rounds. We have hospitalists take care of our hospitalized patients. We collaborate with the hospitalists and coordinate your care when hospitalized. Most importantly we get actively involved in their transition back to community.