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FAQ's
Q: Can you treat my patients just like me?
A: No. No one can treat your patients exactly like you do. I will make every effort to treat your patients as similar to your treatment
style as I can. I will follow any specific instructions you leave for me regarding your clinic and patient treatment. I will also make
a point of visiting your office or speaking with you over the phone, prior to providing you with relief work, to observe/discuss your
treatment style, meet/discuss your staff and familiarize myself with or discuss your procedures and hopefully meet you in person to ease
any anxiety you may have entrusting your clinic and patients too me.
Q: What if I only treat twenty (20) patients per day, what is your fee?
A: My fee remains the same. Many clinics treat an average of 20 – 25 patients per day. I understand what you are asking, but many clinics
I provide relief services to provide service for 70 to 100+ patients per day. I have to try and allow for the middle ground between the
differences in clinics requesting my services.
Q: Why would you bill me for additional time?
A: When I provide services to your patients that need care, subsequently you will derive income from those services that I provide. If a
new patient or an existing patient needs to be seen before or after clinic hours or at my scheduled lunch time and I stay to provide that
service, I am accomplishing two things for you. First, I am helping you to get that new patient into your office so they become your
patient and not someone else’s new patient. Second, I am keeping your existing patients happy because I did what you would do…I stayed
and helped them. I hope that’s what you would want me too do.
Q: Mapquest estimates your travel time to be 39 minutes, but you billed me for the additional travel time?
A: Travel time varies depending on traffic volume, direction of travel and time of travel during the day. I make every attempt to get to
your clinic as quickly as possible and when it’s close, I will give the benefit of the doubt to you.
Q: Why do you bill for travel time?
A: I feel that it’s reasonable to travel about 40 minutes to get to work. If I have to drive longer, it is costing me considerably more
money in time and gas to get to some of the offices I provide services to. With the price of gas today, coupled with the fact I frequently
spend an additional 2 hours or more of my time on the road, $45.00 is not really that much in consideration.
Q: Why do you charge additional amounts for patient exams?
A: First answer: Many doctors get an incredible amount of new patients in one day. I have examined as many as nine (9) for a doctor
while treating 74 patients that day. It is a lot of work and can be stressful, depending on the doctor’s procedures, support staff and
other factors. I have to work a great deal harder to provide good service and stay on track for all of your patients. Second answer:
Often, doctors tend to take advantage of having a relief doctor work in their clinic and schedule an unusually high amount of re-exams
that need to be done and again, depending on the doctors procedures and support staff and other factors, this is sometimes hard to do and
treat patients. I have to work a great deal harder to get this done and provide good service to all patients.
Q: Will you analyze my x-rays and fill out patient update report requests?
A: I can do that but I may not analyze your patient’s x-rays using the same techniques as you. Eventually you will need to look at the
x-rays, since you will be the one providing the long term corrective care for your patients. I am only providing a “snap shot in time”
care for your patients. If your patients need an updated exam and report to be performed and filled out for a requesting party, you would
be the best choice to provide that level of detail for your patient’s care.
Q: Do you perform long term relief?
A: Yes. My longest contracted time of service has been 10 weeks to date.
Q: How far do you travel?
A: I have traveled across the entire state performing relief work. Travel distance within the state is not a problem. I have found my
travel times quite enjoyable.
Q: Sometimes unforeseen things happen that I have no control over and I need to cancel my service agreement with you. I do not think I
should have to pay a cancellation fee?
A: I agree with you doctor, that that at times unforeseen things come up that we have no control over. The reason why I have a
cancellation policy is that when I agree to perform vacation relief work for any doctor, I am no longer available to perform any relief
services for another doctor requesting those dates. On a daily basis, I receive calls for relief work that I commit myself to and as such
those doctors requesting those dates I turn down, seek other relief doctors to provide that service. The majority of doctor’s plan ahead
and book in advance, more often than doctors that have sudden emergencies, so when some unfortunate, unforeseen occurrence happens and a
doctor needs to cancel, I can not fill that time period and lose income. Additionally, when I book single days, it most often means I turn
down doctors that are calling me for an entire week or more of relief work. I most often can not replace those days. I make every attempt
to fill the spot you have cancelled, if enough time is allowed and refund any cancellation fee paid back to you.
Q: Why is it necessary to have an indemnification clause?
A: What the indemnification clause does or is meant for, is that in the event that a doctor is sued by a patient and at some time in the
course of their care, I provided treatment to that patient and I happen to get pulled into the suit, but my care was or is not part of
the issue, then I am indemnified by the doctor being sued. Basically if another doctor potentially messes up, I do not have to defend
myself for that.
* I may not have covered questions you need answered. If you have a suggestion, please email it to me and I will review it and add
it.
In Health,
Albert R. Bruno DC
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