Terms & Policies

 

OFFICE POLICIES:

In an effort to provide the best possible experience for our patients, we have established office policies that we ask our patients to review and sign as part of our new patient paperwork prior to the first visit.

  • Office Visit co-pays are expected at the time of service per contractual obligation with the insurance companies.

  • There will be a $100 fee for cosmetic consultations collected at the time of service. This fee will be applied to the surgery, should you proceed with scheduling.

  • We accept most major credit or debit cards, cash, money orders or cashier's checks. NO personal checks, please.

  • There will be a $25 charge for returned checks.

  • Because we know that everyone's time is valuable, we ask that you inform the receptionist of any and all concerns you would like for Dr. McLaughlin to address when scheduling your appointment. This will allow sufficient time for your consultation and prevent any unnecessary wait time for our other patients.

  • In order to communicate effectively with our nurse and Dr. McLaughlin, we ask that you refrain from using your cellular phones during your consultation time.

CANCELLATION/ NO SHOW POLICY:

  • If you are unable to keep your scheduled appointment, we ask that you kindly provide us with at least 24 hours‘ notice. This courtesy will make it possible to give your appointment to another patient.

We understand that there are times when you must miss an appointment due to emergencies or obligations for work or family. However, when you do not call to cancel an appointment, you may be preventing another patient from being seen. Conversely, the situation may arise where another patient fails to cancel and we are unable to schedule you for a visit, due to a seemingly full schedule. Please review the following requirements:

  • Patients who do not give 24 hours' notice to cancel an appointment will be billed for the full session.

  • Patients who need to reschedule and do not do so more than 24 hours prior to the schedule appointment will be billed for the full session amount.

  • Patients that do not call or show up for their scheduled appointment will be billed for the full session amount.

SKINCARE PRODUCT REFUND POLICY:

We do not offer refunds on products purchased. In the event of an adverse reaction, products may be returned for a credit within 30 days from the date of purchase. Our medical aesthetician can assist in finding a more suitable product for exchange. Defective products (i.e., a broken pump) may be exchanged within 14 days for the same product.Refunds are not valid for treatments.

EMERGENCIES:

If you are having a life threatening emergency, please dial 911. Otherwise, you may contact the office directly at 817.870.4833 during normal business hours. If it is outside of normal business hours, our answering service can connect you with Dr. McLaughlin or the on-call physician. 

HIPAA INFORMATION:

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) provides safeguards to protect your privacy. Implementation of HIPAA requirements officially began on April 14, 2003. Many of the policies have been our practice for years. This form is a "friendly" version. A more complete text is posted in the office. What this is all about: Specifically, there are rules and restrictions on who may see or be notified of your Protected Health Information (PHI). These restrictions do not include the normal interchange of information necessary to provide you with office services. HIPAA provides certain rights and protections to you as the patient. We balance these needs with our goal of providing you with quality professional service and care. Additional information is available from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. www.hhs.gov We have adopted the following policies:1. Patient information will be kept confidential except as is necessary to provide services or to ensure that all administrative matters related to your care are handled appropriately. This specifically includes the sharing of information with other healthcare providers, laboratories, health insurance payers as is necessary and appropriate for your care. Patient files may be stored in open file racks and will not contain any coding which identifies a patient’s condition or information which is not already a matter of public record. The normal course of providing care means that such records may be left, at least temporarily, in administrative areas such as the front office, examination room, etc. Those records will not be available to persons other than office staff . You agree to the normal procedures utilized within the office for the handling of charts, patient records, PHI and other documents or information.2. It is the policy of this office to remind patients of their appointments. We may do this by telephone, e-mail, U.S mail, or by any means convenient for the practice and/or as requested by you. We may send you other communications informing you of changes to office policy and new technology that you might find valuable or informative.3. The practice utilizes a number of vendors in the conduct of business. These vendors may have access to PHI but must agree to abide by the confidentiality rules of HIPAA.4. You understand and agree to inspections of the office and review of documents which may include PHI by government agencies or insurance payers in normal performance of their duties.5. You agree to bring any concerns or complaints regarding privacy to the attention of the office manager or the doctor.6. Your confidential information will not be used for the purposes of marketing or advertising of products, goods or services.7. We agree to provide patients with access to their records in accordance with state and federal laws.8. We may change, add, delete or modify any of these provisions to better serve the needs of the both the practice and the patient.9. You have the right to request restrictions in the use of your protected health information and to request change in certain policies used within the office concerning your PHI. However, we are not obligated to alter internal policies to conform to your request.

ADVANCE DIRECTIVES:

An advance directive is a a written statement of a person's wishes regarding medical treatment, often including a living will, made to ensure those wishes are carried out should the person be unable to communicate them to a doctor. In the event that you are unable to communicate your desires for medical care, have you established an Advance Directive? If so, please have a copy forwarded to our office for your permanent record.