Frequently Asked Questions
Are you accepting new patients?
Due to high volume, our office is currently closed to new or transferring patients. We are still accepting newborns as well as siblings of current patients. We apologize for the inconvenience and will update our community when we are accepting new patients in the future.
What hospitals do we use?
Our inpatients are covered by the Pediatric Hospitalists. For emergency room visits we recommend Baystate, Mercy, Wing, Marylane and Cooley Dickinson Hospital. Please ask the office or MD on call which one we recommend for a particular medical issue issue (It is your responsibility to be aware of which hospitals your insurance covers).
How do I notify the hospital that I have chosen PAM as my pediatrician?
You will be asked to name your pediatrician at the time you register for delivery. The nurses will inform our office of your baby’s birth.
Phone calls/advice or what if my child is ill after hours?
Telephone advice is available from our skilled triage staff members during our normal business hours: Monday-Thursday 8:00 am-5:00 pm, Friday 8:00 am – 4:30 pm, Saturday 8:30-1 and Sunday 9:00 am – 11:30 am. After these hours a health care provider is available by calling our answering service at 413-599-1201. We request that after-hours calls be reserved for urgent medical issues but not medical emergencies. For medical emergencies please call 911.
Emergencies are conditions such as seizures, loss of consciousness, severe bleeding , severe allergic reactions, severe breathing problems etc.
For minor emergencies, like minor lacerations, minor fractures, acute illness, etc. Please call the office first.
FOR NON-URGENT MATTERS, PLEASE CALL DURING OFFICE HOURS.
Prescriptions
When you need refills on your child’s medications, first call your pharmacy. If the pharmacy cannot refill it, then call our office during business hours. Please have your child’s full name, date of birth, medication name, strength, and the pharmacy name, location, and phone number. Please leave a phone number where you can be reached. Please allow 5 business days to process your request.
Keep For controlled substances, eg. Concerta, Adderall (most Attention Deficit Disorder medications), please allow 5 business days as these require written prescriptions by the primary doctor, and must be picked up and signed for by the parent. If a mailed prescription is required please allow 7 business days.
Keep Well child checks, school physicals, sports physicals, etc.
We encourage you to call early for your child’s appointment, as we tend to get busy during July and August, and may not be able to accommodate you at short notice. By calling early, it also makes it possible to set up the appointment with your child’s primary care Pediatrician, providing continuity of care.
Keep Forms, permission slips, camp forms, work forms etc.
Please allow 10 days for completion of any form. We cannot usually complete them during your child’s well visit due to time constraints.
Sick visits
We will make every effort to see your ill child the same day . We will particularly accommodate any ill infant. Please call early in order to minimize waiting room time.
If you have two ill children to be seen, please make it known when you are calling for an appointment, and schedule two appointments. Without an appointment, your child may not be seen at that time, and you may have to wait as the medical provider sees other scheduled patients who may be waiting.
Walk- ins
Our office does not allow walk-in appointments for sick visits. Walk-ins lead to increased wait times for scheduled patients. If you arrive without an appointment, we will schedule your child for the next available appointment time. This may involve leaving and returning to the office later in the day, or even the next day if our office is extremely busy. This allows our providers to spend the appropriate amount of time needed to address your child’s illness. In the event the walk-in visit should be treated as an emergency, our staff will direct you to the closest Emergency Department or Urgent Care.