Office Policies

To ensure appropriate attention to the needs of patients and facilitate an efficient flow of office systems, we have developed the following office policies. We hope that a careful reading of these policies will answer many of your questions. Thank you in advance for your consideration, cooperation and compliance with regard to our policies. If you have further questions, our staff will be happy to assist you.

Office Hours

Monday - Thursday, 9:00am - 5:00pm
Friday, 9:00am - 3:00pm

Holiday Hours

Holiday hours will be posted in the office and on the answering machine one week in advance. Please check your medication refills and call the office prior to the holiday hours if refills are needed.

After Hours

We do not have an after hours practice. Please call 911 or proceed to the nearest emergency room if you have an emergency after hours or during the weekend.

Appointment Scheduling

You may schedule an appointment during regular business hours. We will make every effort to schedule you in a timely fashion to meet your needs.

Cancellation Policy

Our staff usually will give patients an appointment reminder call 24-48 hours before their scheduled appointment. In the event you do not receive a reminder call, the responsibility for your scheduled appointment is still your responsibility. If you know that you will not be able to make your appointment, please call to cancel as soon as possible so that others in need can be scheduled.

PSMC requires at least 24-hour notice to cancel or change an appointment. Notice of cancellation or rescheduling should be made during regular office hours. A cancellation made after regular office hours will apply to the next business day. If we do not receive the requested 24-hour cancellation notice, a fee may be charged per our Appointment Cancellation Policy.

HIPAA Policy

The Pain and Stress Management Center respects the privacy of protected health information and understands the importance of keeping this information confidential and secure. Please carefully review our HIPAA Policy for further information about how medical information about you may be used and disclosed and how you can get access to this information.

Insurance Policy

Dr. Ximenes is a provider for a number of commercial insurance carriers. He is also contracted with several independent networks that may enable a patient to file for in-network benefits, even if Dr. Ximenes is otherwise considered an "out-of-network" provider. Dr. Ximenes is not a provider for Medicare or Medicaid and we do not see or treat any work-related injuries or illnesses.

Due to the numerous and ever-changing policies and groups, it is the responsibility of the patient to ensure that you are seeing a network provider. It is also the responsibility of the patient to determine if a referral is needed for visits to a specialist and to seek a referral from your primary care physician if one is required. Please verify this and your benefits by calling the toll-free phone number on the back of your insurance card.

Lab Results

All patients who need lab results will be required to make an appointment to be seen to have interpretation of these results. You may have a copy of your results without an appointment, but this will be without interpretation, diagnosis or treatment. If your results are abnormal and require immediate attention, you will be contacted to make an appointment to discuss them with the physician.

Prescription Refills

Notify Dr. Ximenes of any prescriptions needed at the time of your appointment. He will try to ensure you have enough refills to last until you are due for your next appointment. However, if you need refills prior to your scheduled appointment, please have your pharmacy FAX the request to us with a 48-hour notice. We will make every attempt to be as prompt as possible in completing your refill requests appropriately. If your prescription request has not been addressed after 48 hours please contact the office.

Patient Confidentiality

For your protection, we cannot release any information without the signed consent of the patient. This includes information to a spouse or family member. All patients age 18 or older must sign a consent if they wish for their health information to be discussed with a parent.

Payment Policy

All services are to be paid for in full at the time of service. There is a $35 charge for returned checks.