Hospital Policies

Appointments

• Patients are seen by appointment only.

• We reserve appointment slots for same day sick appointments to accommodate patients with urgent care needs.

• We offer a limited number of daytime admission appointments for clients whose schedule is not compatible with an available appointment time. Daytime admissions must be scheduled in advance.

• Please arrive for your appointment on time. If you are going to be late, please let us know. If you are more than 10 minutes late, you may be asked to reschedule.Should you need to cancel or reschedule an appointment, please contact us as soon as possible, and no later than 24 hours prior to your scheduled appointment. We reserve the right to charge a fee equal to one half of the examination price for all missed appointments (“no shows”) and appointments which, absent a compelling reason, are not canceled with 24 hour advance notice. Three or more FAMILY “no shows” may result in a discharge from the practice.

Payment

• We accept Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover, as well as debit cards, check cards, ApplePay, GooglePay, Samsung Pay and cash. We do not accept checks or Care Credit.

• We also offer payment plans and Pet Health Savings Accounts. Learn more.

• With the exception of our payment plans, we operate on a payment-at-time-of-service basis for all visits including pharmacy and lab services.

• If you have pet insurance, we are happy to provide you with the necessary documentation to submit a claim to your insurance carrier.

• A $100 non-refundable deposit is required at the time of scheduling for all surgeries, dental treatment and other anesthetic procedures. The deposit will be applied to the procedure on the date it is performed.

• For all surgeries, dental procedures, emergencies and other inpatient procedures and treatments, you will receive a customized treatment plan and estimate. Upon admission, a minimum payment equal to 100% of the low end of the estimate is due. For example, if the estimate is $300-$400, you would be asked to pay $300 when your cat is admitted to the hospital. Payment for the balance of charges is due upon your cat’s release from the hospital. Please keep in mind that the estimate may not be a complete representation of the final bill if additional charges are incurred.

Prescriptions

• We can prescribe medications for patients only if a current veterinarian/client/patient relationship (VCPR) exists. Our practice defines a current VCPR as our veterinarian having seen the patient for a physical exam within the past year.

• Prescription refill requests can be submitted online or by phone. Unless it is an emergency, please allow 2 business days for refill requests to be processed. You will be notified by email or text message when your request has been processed.

• We are happy to provide a printed prescription for any medication we prescribe so that it can be filled at the pharmacy of your choosing. You may pick up the printed prescription from our office during regular business hours or we can mail the prescription to your home.

• We can transmit prescriptions electronically to Brava Veterinary Compounding Pharmacy (located in Morrisville) or MyVetStoreOnline. Medications purchased from MyVetStoreOnline are shipped directly from the manufacturer or from Midwest Veterinary Supply, a leading distributor of pharmaceuticals in the veterinary market.

• To prevent transcription errors and delays, and to ensure security and confidentiality of client data, we do not phone, fax or email prescriptions to any pharmacy not listed above or to any individual (including clients). We also do not approve or deny requests from pharmacies via fax, phone or email for the same reasons, except for those explicitly listed above.

• Prescriptions for controlled substances must be picked up from our office during regular business hours. We cannot mail prescriptions for controlled substances. Your signature is required at the time of pick up.

• Prescription medications cannot be returned once dispensed. Once they leave the hospital, these medications are considered misbranded, adulterated and unsafe by the FDA. Non-prescription items, including but not limited to supplements, shampoos, etc. may be returned for a full refund ONLY if they are unopened in their original packaging.

Messages

• We strive to return patient calls, emails, and text messages as soon as possible. Non-urgent messages will be returned within 24-48 hours. Please call our office directly for any urgent issues.

• All messages received outside of our regular office hours will be addressed the next business day.

Privacy

• Client and patient privacy is very important to us. We will only discuss a patient’s care or a client’s account with the person or persons listed on the account. We will not release information to anyone else including a family member or friend unless the original account holder gives us written permission to do so. The only exception to this is sharing records with another veterinary hospital.

• If you would like your cat’s medical records released to another veterinary hospital, boarding facility, or groomer, please complete the Medical Record Release Authorization.

Please allow up to 48 hours for your request to be processed.

Code of Conduct

Atrium Cat Hospital seeks to provide a welcoming and safe environment for all people and their cats. As such, we have a zero-tolerance policy for the following behavior:

• Verbal abuse, malicious or harmful statements about others, profanity or disrespect directed at a person or cat

• Any form of harassment

• Discriminatory comments and/or actions

• Intimidation tactics and/or threats

• Public disclosure of another’s private information

• Suspicion of being under the influence of alcohol or drugs

• Failure to comply with requests from our staff, including restraining your cat on a leash or in a carrier

• In the event that this policy is violated, we reserve the right to discontinue services immediately. This policy is strictly enforced and non-compliance will result in corrective measures being taken, which may include termination of veterinary care, being asked to leave the property and the potential of involvement by law enforcement.

Dismissal From the Practice

• We sincerely hope that we never have to part ways with a client. However, extenuating circumstances may make this necessary. If this occurs, the client will be notified by certified mail of this non-negotiable decision. A copy of all medical records will be transferred to the animal hospital of the client’s choice.