Our Philosophy
Our office staff (nurses, receptionists, insurance clerks and secretaries) is employed to assist us in the delivery of the highest quality care in the field of gastroenterology. We are proud of them and the work they do. Our facilities and state-of-the-art equipment are designed to help us provide our patients with comfort, safety, and the best possible care available. Should you have comments at any time on the care given by the physicians or staff or about our facilities, please let us hear from you.

Office Hours
The office is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. When you call for an appointment you will be seen as quickly as possible. Each of our physicians has specific hours in the office, and the receptionist will explain these to you.

By Appointment Only
Our patients are seen by appointments, thus allowing more convenience to the patient and the opportunity for better care. For appointments involving endoscopic procedures requiring sedation, you will be asked to arrange for someone to remain in the waiting room during your procedure and to drive you home after your appointment, since you cannot legally drive or operate machinery. Because of limited seating, please try to limit the number of people accompanying you to the office. WHY THE WAIT? You may see patients called in prior to you although you may have waited longer. These are patients whom the nurse or other members of the staff take care of under the doctors' supervision. They may be getting laboratory tests, injections, reviewing their bills, etc. These services do not interfere with the regular schedule. We strive to adhere to the appointment schedule; however, emergencies do occur and they must take precedence, causing some delay. We apologize in advance and ask that you try to appreciate that any one of us may some day be the one requiring emergency care.

Cancellations
If you are unable to keep an appointment, please give us at least 24 hours notice so that we may give your appointment time to another patient.

Emergencies
One of our physicians is available for emergencies at all times. During the office hours please call our office, identify yourself and relay the information to the receptionist - we will respond promptly. After office hours and on weekends, for emergencies only, please dial 732-8961 or 1-877-616-3535 if outside the Memphis area, for the physician on call. We suggest that you call us before going to one of the hospital emergency rooms, thereby minimizing patient costs, inconvenience, and lost time. No routine prescriptions will be filled at night or on weekends.

Telephone Calls (8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.)
If you have a problem or question between appointments, please call us. State the reason for the call to the receptionist. She will route the call to appointments, billing, or will refer the call to one of the nurses if the call is of a medical nature. After discussion with the physician, the nurse may be able to answer your medical questions. If she feels the matter needs to be addressed by your physician, he will return your call as soon as possible. Please leave numbers where you may be reached. It is not our policy to treat patients over the telephone. If you are ill, please contact us.

Prescriptions
It is not our policy to prescribe new medication over the telephone. Long term medications may be handled over the phone if you remain under our active care, but only during regular office hours. For better care, please try to call as early in the day as possible for your refills.

Test Results
All patients are anxious to know the results of any tests that are performed. We will notify you within one week, either by letter or telephone call of significantly abnormal laboratory, x-ray, or biopsy results. This may seem like a long time to wait, but should a serious problem be found, you will be notified as soon as we receive the results. If, for some reason, you do not receive the results within 7 to 10 days, please call our office.

Smoking
No smoking please. In the interest of health, our facilities are located in a non smoking environment and, as a consideration to our non-smoking patients, we ask that you do not smoke while in our office. There are no areas or facilities provided for smoking.

Medical Records
We regard the doctor-patient relationship as sacred - requiring trust, mutual respect and confidentiality. The contents of our medical records remain confidential and will be released only upon your written authorization.