What are your office hours?

Our Frederick office is open from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Monday through Friday and Saturday mornings from 8:30 a.m. to noon. This office is closed on Sunday.

Our Mt. Airy office is open 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office is closed on Saturday and Sunday.

Walk-in hour:

Both the Frederick and Mt. Airy Offices have a walk-in hour from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. Monday through Friday, at which time acute sick patients are seen without the need of an appointment. This time should be utilized for acute illness and not for chronic or routine services. WE DO NOT HAVE A WALK-IN HOUR ON SATURDAY.

How do I make an appointment?

Our appointment receptionist is available to make appointments from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. from Monday through Friday. We do not answer our phones from 12:30 to 1:30 during lunch.

Can my child be seen on the same day that I call?

Our goal is to be accessible to our patients by making every effort to accommodate all of our sick children. Therefore our Frederick office offers evening appointments as well as Saturday morning appointments for acute sickness. Both offices have appointments reserved for sick, same day appointments during the day time hours.

If your child is ill and you need to make an appointment to be seen or if you are not sure if your child needs to be seen, please call our office as early in the day as possible. This will help us work in all emergencies in a timely fashion.

What if I have a non-urgent call for medical advice during the day or are unsure if my child needs an appointment?

Please call our nurse line and leave a message. A member of our nursing staff will return your call. Our well trained nursing staff has many years of experience in pediatric telephone triage and can handle a variety of medical questions. If for some reason you need to speak directly with a particular provider, the message will be relayed and your call will be returned by the end of the day.

What if I have an emergency after office hours?

We have a provider from our practice on call to handle emergencies that arise after office hours, every night. Please call our office phone number: 301-694-0606 and our answering service will take your message and pass it on to the provider on call that night.

Please be considerate of these after hour services and only utilize them for true emergencies that you feel would be unsafe to wait until the following morning. By limiting the after hours phone calls to emergencies, our physicians are more accessible to those parents with children who may have a true emergency. This is especially helpful during our very busy cold weather months.

We make every effort to return all after hours phone calls within 30 minutes. If you have a life-threatening emergency and feel that it would be unsafe to wait, please call 911 or proceed to the nearest Emergency Room. If you have not received a call back within 30 minutes, please call our number again and inform the answering service that you have not received a return call, just in case they have incorrect information or our provider did not receive the page.

Which health insurances do you accept?

As a service to you, we will submit your claim for you as long as we have a current copy of your insurance card on file and we have proof that you have chosen our office as your provider. Without this information, it is impossible for us to file your claim. Co-pays and deductibles should be paid at the time of the visit.

We will do our best to assist you in understanding your insurance plan, but please realize there may be many different insurance plans within your insurance company. It is in your best interest to understand the services and benefits that are covered by your plan with your insurance company. This is particularly true for newborns and patients new to our practice.

We are participating providers for Aetna, Carefirst BlueCross/Blue Shield/Blue Choice, CIGNA, Coventry, Informed, MAMSI, MDIPA, Optimum Choice, OneNet, Private Healthcare Systems, Multiplan, NCPPO, HealthNet/Tricare, United Healthcare and many smaller insurance companies.

Please direct any questions to our billing manager.

When does my child need a check-up?

Children require frequent health maintenance visits through childhood. We perform routine physical exams and health maintenance at 4 - 5 days of age, 2 weeks, 1 month, 2 months, 4 months, 6 months, 9 months, 12 months, 15 months, 18 months, 24 months, and then annually. Please schedule these appointments at least one month in advance whenever possible.

Please call in advance to schedule appointments to discuss medical and behavioral issues that are too complex to fully address at routine visit, so that we may allow adequate time for your visit.

What is your practice's philosophy on vaccinations?

In the United States, with the routine use of vaccinations, we have successfully protected our children from many diseases that used to significantly injure and kill thousands of children every year. Therefore, we support the policy of the American Academy of Pediatrics that all children should be vaccinated. We are committed to providing for the health of your child as well as to the other children in our practice. Please see our Resources section for the most current and objective information on vaccines.

What is your practice's philosophy on the use of antibiotics?

We treat antibiotics the same way we treat all other medications. If the use of antibiotics will help your child's condition and the risks of side effects are outweighed by the anticipated benefits, we will recommend an antibiotic.

Many people incorrectly believe that every child with a fever or with a discolored discharge from the nose or the eyes requires an antibiotic. In fact, those illnesses caused by bacteria respond to antibiotics, whereas illnesses caused by viruses will not respond. Additionally, many minor bacterial infections will resolve without the use of antibiotics. We cannot determine over the phone whether a bacteria or a virus causes your child's illness.

Therefore, prior to prescribing antibiotics, we ask that you come in for an office visit.

What is HIPAA?

HIPAA is the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. It was created to ensure that a patient's medical information does not fall into the hands of someone who could make an adverse determination about employment, insurability, or otherwise discriminate on the basis of that information.

What does that mean to you?

When visiting any healthcare professional, including the doctors in our practice, you will be asked to sign a form stating that you are aware that the office has a privacy policy in effect and that you have had an opportunity to review that policy. A copy of our office's policy sits on the sign-in counter in a binder and if you would like a copy, one can be prepared at your request.

At Frederick Pediatric Associates, we are supporters of protecting patient privacy and welcome the new guidelines.

How do I get a referral?

Please leave a detailed message with the required information on our referral line when requesting a referral. Please allow at least 3 days for the referral to be completed.

How do I get a refill?

Please leave a detailed message on our prescription refill line when requesting a refill. Please follow the instructions on this line and leave a message with the necessary information. Please allow 48 hours for your prescription to be ready.