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4/3/2024 - This is no April Fool's Joke (even two days late...) If the weather is bad tomorrow and you prefer to reschedule an appointment that is on the schedule, please be sure to call the office to let us know. As always, it is our intention to be here, regardless of the weather - however, if we do ever unexpectedly close, we will contact everyone on the schedule to let you know and to reschedule. Also - keep an eye on our Facebook page, as the most up to date information will almost always be posted there.
Please note that Dr. Albert will be bicycling across the state of Ohio, starting on May 18th and returning to the office on Tuesday, May 28th. As always, when Dr. Albert is out of the office, Marisol and Scott will be in the office to take your calls and provide the on-call provider information. We always try to provide as much notice as possible when Dr. Albert is going to be out of the office.
****************Attention**************
In regard to the Cyber-attack on Optum and Change Healthcare, companies owned by United Healthcare, our practice has been affected, only due to our EMR's connection to Change Healthcare for transmission of claims and eligibility information. Medent - our EMR - cut all connections with Change Healthcare as soon as they were made aware of the issue. This has created some work-arounds in our office and should not affect our patients' care.
We have been receiving updates from Medent since this occurred on Wednesday, February 21st, including the most recent statement from Medent from yesterday afternoon that reads:
"3/5/2024 - 3:25 p.m. EST - Connectivity to Change Healthcare (a part of Optum) is still down. This includes but is not limited to claims, remittances, and eligibility services for Change Healthcare and RPA. MEDENT is actively involved in discussions with UnitedHealth Group, Optum and Change Healthcare officials. Here is the latest update from UnitedHealth Group: "Change Healthcare can confirm we experienced a cybersecurity issue perpetrated by a cybercrime threat actor who has represented itself to us as ALPHV/Blackcat. Our experts are working to address the matter, and we are working closely with law enforcement and leading third-party consultants such as Mandiant and Palo Alto Networks on this attack against Change Healthcare systems. We are actively working to understand the impact to members, patients and customers. Patient care is our top priority, and we have multiple workarounds to ensure people have access to the medications and the care they need. Based on our ongoing investigation, there is no indication that Optum, UnitedHealthcare and UnitedHealth Group systems have been affected by this issue. We are working on multiple approaches to restore the impacted environment and continue to be proactive and aggressive with all our systems, and if we suspect any issue with the system, we will immediately take action."
If you have any questions, please call our office at 518-273-3732 and ask for Scott. Because our systems were disconnected from Change Healthcare, patient information should be secure on our end. If we become aware of any issues, we will let you know as soon as possible. If you have concerns about coverage under UnitedHealthcare, please call them directly at the phone number on the back of your insurance ID card.
Do you ever wonder why we call so far in advance of your child's annual well-child visit?
We run monthly reports to identify patients who are due, overdue, or coming due for their well-child visits within the next 5-6 months. We use these reports to call all patients that are due for a well-child visit through that time period. We will always do our best to provide the appointment times that best fit your schedule, and that is why we call to schedule these visits up to six months in advance. We can also usually schedule your child's net physical before you leave from the current visit.
Please understand that the schedule for well-child visits tends to fill quickly (especially late day or early morning appointments and appointments on school holidays). If you prefer these times of day, or holidays/school vacations, it is best to schedule the well-child visit as soon as possible, and if needed, it can be changed as long as you call us with 24 hours' notice.
Keep in mind that we also reserve time during the day to allow for patients that are ill who need a same-day appointment.
We strongly encourage everyone to schedule their child's annual well-exam as soon as they are eligible. Exams are valid for one year for administrative reasons, such as school/sports/camp/day-care forms. Some insurances require you to wait a full twelve months between annual exams, but some are more flexible with that time frame. If you are unsure, please call the member services department of your insurance - their phone number should be on the back of your child's insurance ID card.
Dr. Albert will always do his best to see all sick patients that require same-day visits, even if it means extending his day, as long as you call the office before 4:45pm, which is when the phones switch to our answering service and the on-call provider.
Dr. Albert continues to have late appointments available on Thursdays to as late as 6:00PM.
We currently do not require masks to be worn in our office, unless you or your child is ill. You are always welcome to choose to wear a mask, and if you would like to, we will continue to have masks available at the front desk.
If you are scheduling a visit for a sick child, please be prepared that we will ask you to wear a mask. You will continue to see some of the office teams (both Hoosick Street Pediatrics and Troy Pediatrics staff members) wearing masks, and this is because of our daily interactions with patients that may be ill and we are doing our best to protect ourselves and others from "catching" an illness.
We are now located at 258 Hoosick Street, suite 106. We have been sharing office space with our friends at Troy Pediatrics since September 2022, but we are still our own separate team (Dr. Albert, Marisol, and Scott). Please enter the building from the main front entrance and walk down the hall to the back of the building. If your child is ill, please call us before you enter the building, so that we can prepare appropriately.
As you probably know, Dr. Albert is very unique - as he does not have any Nurses, Nurse Practitioners, or Physician Assistants. Many offices may have someone other than the doctor take the patient into the exam room to take their vitals and prep any vaccines or lab-work that needs to be performed - or even perform part of the exam. As your child's medical home, Dr. Albert believes that having the doctor as the only clinical contact with the patient, is important in developing the patient-pediatrician relationship.
If the office ever closes - for any reason, we will call everyone on the schedule as soon as we can, so that no one drives to the office just to find out that we have closed for the day. If the weather is questionable, please be sure to check your telephone for messages before you leave for your appointment. We will also post information on our Facebook page and here on the website as soon as we can.
Our office follows the guidelines established by the appropriate governing bodies/organizations, including New York State Department of Health, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). We also have our own office policies in regards to office visits, protocols, appointments, etc...
If you have questions regarding any of our office policies, please call Scott at 518-273-3732. We are always open to suggestions on ways to improve the office, which can include your input on our policies.
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Hoosick Street Pediatrics
258 Hoosick Street, Suite 106
Troy,
NY
12180
Phone: (518) 273-3732
Fax: (518) 272-2993 |
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OFFICE HOURS
Dr. Albert's regular office hours are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday, 8:00 - 5:00 and Thursdays 1:00 - 6:00pm.
We are closed for lunch each day from 11:45 - 1:00.
On Monday - Friday (including Thursday), Marisol and Scott are in the office as early as 8:00 to take your calls.
If necessary, we can schedule visits outside of Dr. Albert's regular office hours, but you must call ahead for these appointments.
If you have a child who is ill, and you reach us during business hours, Dr. Albert will extend his day to try to accommodate all same-day appointment requests.
After 5:00 PM during the week, a medical provider is available by telephone for questions & consultations.
On weekends & holidays, if the office is closed, an on-call medical provider is available by calling 518-273-3732. The answering service will take your information and someone will call you back within one hour.
Very important: If you have any number other than (518) 273-3732 for our office, do not use it.
If we are not open, and you call any other number that you may have for the office, you will not reach our answering service and covering provider.
We encourage you to follow our Facebook page, so that you receive updates when we post information. We generally do not post often, so we do not overwhelm you, but you will have the most current information as updates occur, including when Dr. Albert will be out of the office.
When necessary, some appointments can be made outside of business hours, but must be scheduled in advance. We do not accept "walk-in" appointments.
Please note that the office closes for the following holidays: New Year's Day, Memorial Day, The Fourth of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving (Thursday and Friday), and Christmas Day.
We believe that your primary care physician should be involved in every step of your child's care.
Dr. Albert is almost always able to see a sick patient on the same day that you call.
If he is not available, there is always an on-call physician that you can speak with.
Hoosick Street Pediatrics believes in the Medical Home philosophy. We follow evidence-based care, following guidelines and recommendations set forth by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), NY State Department of Health, the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) and others.
We follow AAP and ACIP recommendations for well-child visits and immunization schedule.
Many issues are better addressed with an appointment in your Medical Home:
- Unless it is a true emergency, call us when your child is ill - Dr. Albert (or the on-call physician) can help you decide if you should come here or if you should go to an emergency room/urgent care
- Follow up of any issue (ear infection, cough, fevers)
- Chronic (long term) concerns (asthma, constipation, acne, headaches, etc...)
- Behavioral issues
- Annual routine physicals
- Immunizations – ideally done at the medical home so records remain complete
Please let us know if your child receives an immunization at any other location, such as a pharmacy or a specialist's office (allergist, for example).
This is extremely important, so that we can keep your child's medical record complete.
If you ever find yourself running late to an appointment or that you can't keep an appointment, please give us a call as soon as possible.
We do our best to keep your time in the waiting room to a minimum, so that your child is not exposed to other children who may be contagious. If you are running late, it can put us behind schedule, causing delays for other patients. Also, if you can't keep the appointment, it is time that the doctor could have seen another child that needs care, so it is important to call us to let us know if we can make that time available to other patients.
Our office policy is that we require 24 hours' notice for cancellations or rescheduled appointments, but we understand that you will not always know that far in advance - so we do ask that you call as soon as possible. |
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Dr. Albert participates in most Major Insurances, including CDPHP, MVP, The Empire Plan, New York State Medicaid, and most Managed-Medicaid Plans.
If you do not see your specific plan listed, give us a call at (518) 273-3732. You can also call your insurance plan at the number listed on the back of your ID card for a list of participating providers, or to specifically ask if Dr. Albert is in their network.
If you are coming to Dr. Albert as a new patient, please be sure to call your insurance carrier to list Dr. Albert as your child's primary care physician.
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Dr.Albert has courtesy privileges at Samaritan Hospital.
2215 Burdett Avenue
Troy, NY 12180
(518) 271-3300 |
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