Policies

Everyone's Time is Equally Valuable.

We ask that you arrive 5 minutes before your scheduled appointment time. We understand sometimes things happen beyond your control that may cause you to be late. However, we reserve the right to ask you to reschedule if you arrive late for your appointment.

Our practice makes every effort to run on time with appointments, as we believe everyone’s time is equally valuable.

Upcoming Appointments Via Phone/Text Message/Email

Missed Appointments: Broken appointments represent a cost to us, to you, and to other patients who could have been seen in the time set aside for you. We request 24 hours notice for cancellation of appointments.

Spirit Lake Early Childhood Tracking

PATIENTS RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

CONFIDENTIALITY

It is the policy of Spirit Lake Early Childhood Tracking to treat all patient information confidentially. This includes patient records and conversations. We will investigate any reported violation of this policy. If you have any questions, please ask a front desk representative for information. We make every effort to provide our patients with an environment, which is safe, private and respectful of our patient’s needs. If you have a complaint about our services, facilities or staff, we want to hear from you. We will do everything we can to see that your experience with us is professional in every way.

ISSUES OF CARE

Spirit Lake Early Childhood Tracking is committed to your participation in care decisions. As a client, you have the right to ask question and receive answers regarding the course of clinical care recommended by any of our health providers, including discontinued care. We urge you to follow the healthcare directions given to you by our providers. However, if you have any doubts or concerns, or if you question the care prescribed by our providers, please ask.

PATIENT RIGHTS

1. The patient has the right to receive information from health providers and to discuss the benefits, risks, and costs of appropriate treatment alternatives. Patients should receive guidance from their health providers as to the optimal course of action. Patients are also entitled to obtain copies or summaries of their medical records, to have their questions answered, to be advised of potential conflicts of interest that their health providers might have, and to receive independent professional opinions.
2. The patient has the right to make decisions regarding the health care that is recommended by his or her health provider. Accordingly, patients may accept or refuse any recommended medical treatment.
3. The patient has the right to courtesy, respect, dignity, responsiveness, and timely attention to his or her needs, regardless of race, religion, ethnic or national origin, gender, age sexual orientation, or disability.
4. The patient has the right to confidentiality, The health provider should not reveal confidential communications or information without the consent of the patient, unless provided for by law or by the need to protect the welfare of the individual or the public interest.
5. The patient has the right to continuity of health care. The health provider has an obligation to cooperate in the coordination of medically indicated care with other health providers treating the patient. The health provider may discontinue care provided they give the patient reasonable assistance and direction, and sufficient opportunity to make alternative arrangements.

PATIENT RESPONSIBILITES

1. Good communication is essential to a successful health provider-patient relationship. To the extent possible, patients have a responsibility to be truthful and to express their concerns clearly to their health providers.
2. Patients have a responsibility to provide a complete medical history, to the extent possible, including information about past illnesses, medications, hospitalizations, family history of illness and other matters relating to present health.
3. Patients have a responsibility to request information or clarification about their health status or treatment when they do not fully understand what has been described.
4. Once patients and health providers agree upon the goals of therapy, patients have a responsibility to cooperate with the treatment plan. Compliance with health provider instructions is often essential to public and individual safety. Patients also have a responsibility to disclose whether previously agreed upon treatments are being followed and to indicate when they would like to reconsider the treatment plan.
5. Patients should also have an active interest in the effects of their conduct on others and refrain from behavior that unreasonably places the health of others at risk.
6. Keep appointments or notify the program if unable to do so.

As medical professionals, we feel very strongly that vaccinating children on schedule with currently available vaccines is absolutely the right thing to do for all children and young adults. We are making you aware of these facts not to scare you or coerce you, but to emphasize the importance of vaccinating your child. We are more than willing to discuss any questions you may have about vaccines, but do require all new patients to our practice to adhere to the vaccination schedule endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)

• We firmly believe in the effectiveness of vaccines to prevent serious illness and to save lives.
• We firmly believe in the safety of our vaccines.
• We firmly believe that all children and young adults should receive all of the recommended vaccines according to the schedule published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
• We firmly believe, based on all available literature, evidence, and current studies, that vaccines do not cause autism or other developmental disabilities.
• We firmly believe that thimerosal, a preservative that has been in vaccines for decades and remains in some vaccines, does not cause autism or other developmental disabilities.
• We firmly believe that vaccinating children and young adults may be the single most important health promoting intervention we perform as health care providers, and that you can support as parents/caregivers.

The recommended vaccines and the schedule of administration are the results of years and years of scientific study and data-gathering on millions of children by thousands of our brightest scientists and physicians.

The vaccine campaign is truly a victim of its own success. It is precisely because vaccines are so effective at preventing illness that we are even discussing whether or not they should be given. Because of vaccines, many of you have never seen a child with polio, tetanus, whooping cough, bacterial meningitis, or even chickenpox, or known a friend or family member whose child died of one of these diseases. Such success can make us complacent or even lazy about vaccinating. But such an attitude, if it becomes widespread, can only lead to tragic results.

Over the past several years, many people in Europe have chosen not to vaccinate their children with the MMR (measles, mumps, rubella) vaccine after publication of an unfounded suspicion (later retracted) that the vaccine caused autism. As a result of under-immunization, there have been small outbreaks of measles and several deaths from complications of measles in Europe over the past several years. The United States experienced a record number of measles cases during 2019, with 1282 cases from 31 states reported to CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD). This is the greatest number of cases since measles elimination was documented in the U.S. in 2000.

Furthermore, we firmly believe that by not vaccinating your child, you are taking selfish advantage of thousands of others who do vaccinate their children, which decreases the likelihood that a child will contract one of these diseases. We feel such an attitude to be self-centered and unacceptable. Even delaying or “breaking up the vaccines” to give one or two at a time over additional visits goes against expert recommendations, is not supported by any scientific data, can lead to unnecessary delays and errors, and can put your child, other children, and adults at risk for serious illness (or even death). It is therefore against our medical advice as professionals at Spirit Lake Early Childhood Tracking.

Efficiency through the use of technology

You will be encouraged to consult our website, register for and use our patient portal, and effectively use automated reminders for appointments and for routine care/immunizations that are due.