Once we've had our first appointment, you will have unlimited access to your own health record and the ability to communicate with me in a totally secure and confidential way. Communicating through your patient portal, also known as your Patient Passport, is the best way to communicate with me. You can also schedule your own visits through your Patient Passport! To access your health record, click here. You need to be "invited" to join your Patient Passport in order to use this link, which I do at our first visit.
For true emergencies, call 911. For regular communication about your health, the best way to contact me is through your Patient Passport. I check messages every weekday and do my best to respond within 1-2 business days.
If you have an urgent medical problem that is not an emergency, then call me at 360-406-5220 and press "1" to leave a medically urgent voicemail. I typically respond to urgent voicemails within 3 hours.
I use email as a way to communicate my monthly newsletters. I do not respond to patients in email form due to privacy laws.
I communicate the times I'm out of town via emailed newsletters, voicemail updates, and text auto-responders. If you need medical care while I'm out of the office, I do recommend our local walk in clinics:
Our first visit is typically an hour long. We will review the Patient Agreement (required by the State of Washington and included in the enrollment website) if we haven't already done so. We will review your New Patient History Form, which you'll have a link to a couple days before our visit. We will start to set up a plan together for what the priorities are in your health.
Our follow up visits are typically 30-45 minutes long, longer if arranged in advance. Very simple issues can often be addressed in less than 30 minutes. My goal is that we have ample time to address each issue thoroughly as it comes up. In the long run, that approach will be a better use of everyone's time.
When you arrive, typically there is someone working at the front desk. While these people will let me know you are here, they don't work for me or schedule our appointments. My goal is to be ready when you arrive so you don't have long to wait.
When you leave, you will have a summary of our visit that you can view on your Patient Passport. If you do not have access to a computer with internet, I can print this for you at the end of your visit.
To schedule visits, log on to your Patient Passport. You can also leave a voicemail, and we will help you schedule.