POLICIES

Patients arriving at the clinic must be on time and have an appointment scheduled in advance as TMC is not accepting walk-ins at this time. Please check in at reception upon arrival and have a seat in the waiting area until the physician is ready to see you. If the matter is urgent, especially for a child, please advise our receptionist and priority will be granted.

When booking an appointment, please outline the nature of your visit with mention of specific services (e.g. cryotherapy, sports medical, etc.) and number of patients (e.g. family appointment). This is important in ensuring we allocate enough time for each procedure or service.

While we strive to be punctual, we cannot guarantee that your appointment will not incur delays due to medical emergencies or other factors, in which case our receptionist will advise you. If this occurs, please be patient. If you are unable to wait, we will reschedule your appointment to best suit you.

Please note that once you have booked an appointment with us it means that we have reserved time in our schedule exclusively for you. If you cancel your appointment less than 24 hours before it is scheduled to take place, you will be subject to a cancellation fee. To avoid a cancellation fee, please provide cancellation notice at least 24 hours prior to your appointment.

Repeat prescriptions may be issued for regular medications as arranged by your doctor. Requests for the next issue of your repeat prescription can be made by phoning TMC. We require a minimum of 48 hours to process your prescription request. Please ensure you order your repeat prescription well in advance of running out of your medication.

Regular reviews are essential to ensure efficacy and the minimization of unwanted side effects. If you have not been seen recently, your doctor may request that you make a review appointment before preparing your prescription.

A fee will apply for repeat prescriptions issued for private patients between appointments.

The doctor will call you for a follow up appointment in case of abnormal findings. Aside from this, it is the responsibility of the patient to obtain his or her test results by phoning TMC.

All new patients wishing to join TMC are invited to make an initial registration appointment that will allow the doctor to take personal details and medical history. Please specify to our reception that you would like to book a registration appointment. All new applicants must complete a registration form for our records including PPS number, medical card number (if applicable), insurance policy and list of current medications. All applicants will also need to sign a transfer of medical records form in order for your complete medical history to be forwarded. Should you already have a medical card elsewhere or wish to apply for a medical card through our practice, please discuss this with your doctor at your registration appointment.

At TMC we aim to provide a fair and efficient service for all our patients. To facilitate this, we have adopted a policy that all accounts should be settled at the time of your consultation. We thank all our patients for cooperating with this policy. Patients with outstanding balances are required to pay their balance in full prior to making any further appointments. We accept payment by cash, cheque or credit/debit card.

All GMS patients who are attending TMC for the first time must provide a valid medical card or doctor visit card to reception. Patients with expired or invalid medical cards or doctor visit cards will be required to pay as per our normal schedule of fees, as only costs incurred while cards are valid are covered by the GMS.

Please note that there is a fee for each of the following services as they are not covered by your medical card:

· Driving License Medical & Eye Tests

· Joint Injections & Minor Surgeries

· Smear Tests (unless you have a letter from CervicalCheck)

· Travel Vaccinations

· Medical examinations & reports for legal purposes

· Medical examinations & reports for insurance companies

· Medical examinations in connection with fitness to take part in sports

· Pre-employment medicals

· Pre-school examinations

· Letters or referrals other than those related to Consultants/Hospitals, letters to Social Welfare, Council or similar

Patients who require letters or forms to be completed by their doctor must allow a minimum period of 48 hours. This service may in certain circumstances occur a fee.

Patients requiring social welfare certificates / work certificates must first visit the doctor. The certificate will be issued as appropriate. Patients are advised that there is a charge for work certificates but not for social welfare certificates.

Your medical records are held in the strictest confidence. To ensure that your details are correct in our system, our staff may need to verify your name, date of birth or address when accessing your file. Only a doctor or nurse will be able to discuss clinical matters with you.

TMC is committed to treating all patients with equality, dignity and respect. We aim to have a mutually fair and courteous relationship with our patients and to provide equality of service. There is no tolerance for discrimination or harassment.

At TMC, narcotic medication and benzodiazepines are prescribed very carefully. to prevent abuse of these drugs. For our patients’ safety, we evaluate each patient’s unique case and develop a pain management plan that considers all available pain relief options, including physical therapy, chiropractic care, non-narcotic pain medication, or behavioral approaches.

Patients who are prescribed narcotics/Benzodiazepines must sign a Pain Management Agreement, which explains the responsibilities of both the physician and the patient. In addition, we require periodic random urine drug testing for other drugs (including illegal or unauthorized prescription drugs) that may cause dangerous interactions if required.

Patients who reported chronic pain or required Benzodiazepines or have been prescribed narcotic pain medication in the past by other physicians will be carefully evaluated by us at TMC to determine the best course of treatment. Therefore, we ask new patients to understand that previous use of narcotic pain medication does not mean that these medications will automatically be prescribed or renewed by us. Patients who may be at risk for withdrawal from chronic narcotic use may be counselled to seek care at a drug detox centres or specialist advice. Our goal is always to provide patients with the safest and most appropriate care. We ask for our patient’s assistance in ensuring the proper use of narcotic medication.

There is a no tolerance policy regarding disruptive, abusive and/or aggressive behavior towards our staff or other patients. We strive to provide a safe and friendly environment. We ask that patients cooperate with our policies and treat our staff in a courteous manner. Visitors engaging in disruptive behavior in a verbal or physical manner will be asked to leave the premises immediately and will be removed from the patient list. Aggressive behavior includes any personal, abusive or threatening comments, inappropriate language, physical contact, aggressive gestures and theft or damage to property. We will not hesitate to contact the Garda.