• During the COVID-19 pandemic, our office thought it would be better to separate patients with cold-like symptoms from those who were well. We received a lot of positive feedback about our ability to keep children who are sick separate from those who present for well child checks. Therefore, our well office is located at 1208 Pemberton Drive and our sick office is located at 1201 Pemberton Drive, Suite 1E.
• Depending on your child’s concern and the schedules that day, you may be asked to bring your child to the sick office even if your child doesn’t have a fever or cold symptoms.

• When our office is closed after work hours, during weekends, and holidays, our patients can still reach us for urgent matters through our Answering Service. Should you need to urgently speak to a healthcare provider after hours, please call our main office number 410-742-7660. The answering service has nurses who will try to help answer your questions and can contact the on-call provider if needed.
• We STRONGLY encourage you to use our after-hour services as many issues can be triaged over the phone and we might be able to avoid a trip to the ER/Urgent Care if possible.

TIPS:

• If you feel that your child has a life-threatening emergency (for example, he/she is unconscious, having a seizure, bleeding profusely, has severe difficulty breathing, has suffered severe burns or injuries, etc.), it is most appropriate to call 911 immediately instead of our emergency answering service.
• Urgent Care Centers are an excellent alternative to the Emergency Room. They are used to treat patients who have an injury or illness that requires immediate care but isn’t serious enough to warrant a visit to the hospital Emergency Room.
• Urgent care centers can be used for non-emergency visits that CANNOT wait until the next day. If you need guidance in deciding whether your child’s condition can wait to the following day or warrants a visit to the urgent care center or Emergency Room, PLEASE call our answering service as above.

Based on recent feedback from our families, we are offering Saturday morning hours to better serve or patients. These appointments are for sick visits during the fall and winter months. These Saturday mornings are currently being offered from October through March each year from 9 am through 11:30 am. It’s recommended to call ahead, but we are able to accommodate some “walk-in” visits without an appointment.

Our practice strongly believes that all children should receive vaccines according to the schedule recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Center for Disease Control (CDC). Vaccines, vaccine ingredients, vaccine schedules and vaccine grouping have all been rigorously studied and have repeatedly been shown to be safe and effective. These studies have been replicated in several countries throughout the world. We know that every decision we make involves assuming some risk and when choosing to vaccinate children we must scrutinize the risks and benefits. Fortunately, in all but a few cases (children with cancer, children that have compromised immune systems or children that are allergic to vaccine components) the benefits of vaccines heavily outweigh the risks. We want the best healthcare for every child in our community (our own children included) and the science is definitely clear that the best healthcare you can provide your child includes receiving the recommended vaccines on schedule.

If you have reservations we are happy to discuss the science and evidence behind the recommended vaccines. If you ultimately decide you do not wish to vaccinate your child or wish to follow an alternate vaccine schedule, you will be asked to find another pediatric practice that better suits your family.

Yes, for the most part, most minor illnesses are not a contraindication for vaccines. The only time we would postpone a vaccine is if the child has an acute illness accompanied by fever (temperature greater than 100.4° Fahrenheit) less than 48 hours prior to vaccination.

You are welcome to schedule all well checks with the same provider of your choosing.

If your child needs to be seen for a more urgent matter, such as a same day sick visit or for an acute concern, we cannot guarantee an appointment with the same provider.

Based on the nuances of each insurance plan, we encourage you to call or email us with information specific to your insurance company and plan.