Communication of Concerns – Contacting the Doctor

We care for many people who have serious illnesses, and perform many operations, so we have many patients who are convalescent. It is common for people in these situations to have questions about their condition, and sometimes acute problems or concerns will arise.

If the concern does not seem to be an emergency, please call our office at any time. We have a doctor on call 24 hours each day - we'll try to address the problem by phone.

We will work with you to deal safely with the concern, and will try to avoid sending you to the emergency room, unless it is clearly necessary. Most of our patients have a known diagnosis, so if their condition deteriorates, and if urgent hospitalization is necessary, we can avoid emergency room care in two ways:

If you have an emergency, please state this to our staff, so they can direct you appropriately. If you ever have a question about emergencies, call 911 and go to a hospital.

For routine matters, please remember that we are surgeons, and are often in the operating room, so there may be delays in answering phone messages.