Where are you located and how do I get there?

We are located at Macomber-Kirkaldy House at 793 Main Road in Westport, MA, just across the street from Lees Market. Maps and driving directions can be found on our Contacts page.

How do I contact you after hours or on weekends or holidays?

Anytime we are not in the office, calls to our main telephone number (508.636.7890) will roll to the Charlton Memorial Hospital answering service, which will take your message.

Whom should I call in an emergency?

In a true emergency, call 911 or go directly to the nearest Emergency Room. If in doubt, call our main telephone number (508.636.7890). If after hours, the answering service will page us.

What are my options for contacting your office?

If you prefer to call us, please do. However, if your request or the matter you wish to discuss is not urgent, you may find it more convenient to contact us by e-mail or by using one of our online forms for appointments, prescription refills, or to initiate a referral to a specialist. Please be aware that this is not a secure web-site and refrain from posting any private or sensitive information. Please do not use e-mail for notifying us of symptoms!

As an office-based practice, how do you provide coverage of patients who are admitted to the hospital?

The Southcoast Hospitals and St. Anne’s are now employing hospitalist services. These are physicians who specialize in hospital care. They are in the hospital full time, and are experts in inpatient care. When our patients are admitted to the hospital, one of these physicians will assume management of all decisions. We will receive reports and be available by telephone. Once discharged, patients will return to us for follow-up. All discharge summaries will be included in the patient’s outpatient chart with us to ensure continuity of care.

Are you accepting new patients?

Periodically we are able to reopen the practice to new patients. When existing patients cannot be easily accommodated for urgent problems the same day they call we resort to closing our panel until attrition allows for opening again. Please e-mail if you are a prospective new patient. When able, we are currently welcoming new patients to Dr. Cristina Pacheco’s panel only. Drs. Hood and Pacheco work closely together to ensure that all our patients’ needs are met.

What insurance do you accept?

Click here for a list of the health insurance coverage that we currently accept. The increasingly onerous administrative burden and obstructionist policies of the third party health insurance companies has forced us to cancel some insurance contracts. Our existing patients are well aware of this ongoing struggle, and are currently advised to seek non-HMO plans (PPOs and the like) at their next open enrollment. This way, after providing payment at the time of service at PCP, patients may obtain reimbursement directly from a cancelled insurer. Expert assistance with this process will be provided by our experienced and courteous administrative staff.

How do I get a copy of my medical records transferred from my current doctor?

You need to fill out a medical records release form and forward it to your current doctor. A copy of this form may be obtained on our New Patients page.

I have a billing question. Whom should I contact ?

Please contact Kathy Lord in our office at 508.636.7890 or e-mail us at billing@primarycarepartnership.com

How much advance notice is needed for a prescription refill request?

Please bring all prescription requests to your office visits. If a prescription must be requested over the phone, please allow us 3 days notice and provide name, dosage, instructions and pharmacy name, location, and telephone number. As an alternative to calling, you may find it more convenient to use our online form for prescription requests. We used electronic prescribing in 2008, at the urging of BCBSMA, but discontinued it when the vendor ceased operations a year later. (As of 2012 we are being financially penalized for not having it, but will resume only if we find a product that is reliable and affordable.)

How do I get a referral authorized?

Usually, an office evaluation will be necessary to obtain an appropriate referral. In cases where you are certain a referral is appropriate, please call with as much advance notice as possible. It is OK to make the appointment(s) first yourself, then call us with the doctor's name, diagnosis, and number of visits needed. Please do not expect a same-day authorization. A week's notice is appreciated. You may find it more convenient to use our online form for referral authorizations. For those discontinued third party insurance plans (e.g. Harvard Pilgrim), we will no longer be able to authorize referrals for our patients with HMOs that require in network provider referral authorization. (See advice to switch into PPOs, above) Prior authorization for other services most likely will still be obtainable through our office.

What is your office policy regarding filling out official forms for patients?

In keeping with the standard for primary care practices, we reserve the right to charge a processing fee of $35 for the completion of disability and physical exam forms. This fee will be waived when presented at the time of an office visit.

When should I arrive for my appointment?

We ask that you arrive 15 minutes early for a routine 15 minute appointment, 30 minutes ahead of time for a complete physical examination. This allows the nursing staff to prepare you for your visit with the provider and still get started on time.

Will having intercourse the night before my pap test interfere with the results?

Yes, sex within 12 hours prior to a pap smear may cause inflammatory changes that compromise the test results.

When is the best time to do a breast exam? A mammogram?

The best time to do a breast exam or a mammogram is the week after menstruation. This is because the premenstrual fluid retention some women experience can result in mistaking physiological cysts for lumps, or cause discomfort with mammography.

Cancellations

We reserve the right to assess a no-show fee of $50 for appointments missed or canceled with less than 24 hours notice.