Lincoln Pediatrics prides itself on our availability to our patients and their families. It surprises us many times our families are unaware just how available we are. We always encourage our families to CALL US FIRST before heading to the urgent care or ER because we can often see your child in our office, temporize the situation and see them the next day, or guide you as to where you should take your child to be seen. Please review the following information:

1. Monday through Friday we are answering the phone in the office at 8:00 AM and on Saturday at 8 AM. We do not have Sunday office hours, but a physician is still available by phone. See below.
2. Monday through Friday we utilize our pediatric nurse, Judy, to handle many of the routine calls. If you need to speak to a physician, we will catch up on calls at lunchtime or the end of the day. Urgent calls are usually referred immediately to a provider.
3. Monday through Thursday we are in the office until 7 PM, and Fridays until 5 PM.
4. Each Saturday we are in the office until at least noon seeing patients. On the Saturdays we are also covering for Blackstone Valley Pediatrics, we are there until later in the afternoon, but there is no set time that we finish up. It varies with the demand for appointments.
5. Monday through Friday until 9 PM and weekends and Holidays until 6 PM, a physician will return calls from families. You should expect a return call within the hour unless we are still finishing up in the office. In that case a return call may be a little more delayed. We encourage families to call again if they have not been reached in a timely fashion (1-2 hours) or if the situation has become more urgent.
6. Monday through Friday after 9 PM and weekends and Holidays after 6 PM, we use a nursing service call Nurse Telephone Triage. They are a professional nursing service trained in the telephone management of sick children. They provide excellent care, have physician back-up, and provide an email the next day documenting the phone encounter. This goes in the individual child’s record.
7. ANYTIME YOU ARE CONSIDERING TAKING A CHILD TO AN EMERGENCY ROOM OR URGENT CARE, PLEASE CALL US FIRST. We can often manage the situation over the phone, make a timely appointment for your child the next day, or guide you to the best place to take your child for evaluation. Hasbro provides excellent care, but is not always the best or most convenient place to take you child. That is where we can help.
8. Anytime you need to reach us, call our regular number at 401-334-4021, and when you hear the voice recording, push zero and you will be directed to our answering service. They will relay the message to the appropriate person. If our phone lines are not working properly, an alternative number to reach us is 401-276-8023. This number should be used only when our phone system is out of commission.
9. Monday through Friday you will only get a representative from our office returning your call. On weekends it may vary between our office and Blackstone Valley Pediatrics (BVP) who we share weekend coverage with. Depending on the timing of your call, someone from BVP may return your call, or you may be directed to make an appointment for your child to be seen at their office.

We hope these reminders will be helpful this season. Again, we encourage all children to get the flu shot!

Sincerely,

LPA