APPOINTMENT POLICY
Please scroll down for each topics:
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SCHEDULING AN APPOINTMENT -
CANCELLING YOUR APPOINTMENT
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STANDARD CONSULTATION TIME
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MINOR SUGERIES
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VISIT WITHOUT APPOINTMENT or EMERGENCY VISIT -
RE-FILLING REGULARLY-TAKEN MEDICATIONS
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REQUESTING A MEDICAL DOCUMENT
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PHYSICAL EXAMINATIONS
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LABORATORY AND IMAGE STUDIES
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IMMUNIZATION / VACCINATION APPOINTMENTS
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TELEPHONE CONSULTATIONS
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REPORTING OF TEST RESULTS
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OUT OF HOUR SERVICE or SERIOUS EMERGENCY CARES
SCHEDULING AN APPOINTMENT
All consultations are by appointment with the receptionist.
To make an appointment,
please call DURING OUR OFFICE HOURS
and talk to the receptionist (not to the doctor)
186-03-3409-0764
or
186-03-3400-7522
ANONYMOUS CALLER ID MAY NOT BE ANSWERED
Phone Answering Hours
Mon: 15:00-16:45
Tue, Thu, Fri: 10:00-12:45 & 15:00-16:45
Sat: 10:00-12:45 only
Closed: Wed, Sun, Japanese holidays.
Please do not try to attempt a call after 17:00, for your effort may just fail.
Based upon availability, appointments can be given at the earliest convenience.
Appointments involving special procedures such as physical examinations, surgeries, or consultation that may take longer than the standard time (i.e. discussion, advice, second opinions, primary cares for minor traffic accidents) must be informed at the time of your telephone call.
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CANCELING YOUR APPOINTMENT
If you are unable to keep an appointment, we ask that you kindly provide us with at least 2-hours notice. This courtesy, on your part, will make it possible to give your appointment to another patient.
You may be charged for our loss of revenue and for the inconvenience caused to the other patients, if your cancellation was not informed within 1 hour prior to your physical examination, surgery, or discussion.
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STANDARD CONSULTATION TIME
Non-NHI patients
Approximately 20 minute block.
Could purchase longer time on demand.
NHI Patients
5 minute block and ONLY ONE topic per visit.
Because we put weight on patient-physician relationship, more time will be taken than an average Japanese hospital, as you can see above. We understand that some issues may demand more and to try to share and understand each patients' feelings, our standard time may not be enough.
Non-NHI patients are welcomed to inform the receptionist upon making your appointment that you wish to block longer consultation time for yourself. The prolonged consultation will be charged in correlation to your time spent.
However, if your time spent in the doctor's office was as a result of special procedures or tests, the time factor will not be counted, unless the patient overrides the next patient's appointment by his/her questions.
We appreciate your understanding for shifting your time for the acutely injured or ill, emergency patient. We always try our very best to keep the time, however because of unexpected conditions (such as care needing special care or examination, or emergency visits), your kind understandings to wait beyond your scheduled time is appreciated. Your turn will eventually come respective to the appointments indicated on the receptionist's book. However, if you show up without an appointment, the nurse will need to professionally assess your condition, but in most cases your slot will be after all the appointment has been covered. (Please read below.)
We are sorry to make the NHI visits shorter, but this is the very best we can do to continue our serving the international community and at the same time minimize our risk. From the administrative view and experiences, the NHI seems to consider "3-minutes-consultation" the "standard" and "enough time" for an average medical service, and does not set the consultation fee enough to do more than what they can actually imagine (for an average Japanese patient will not consume more than 3 minutes anyway... most of them do not have any questions or curiosity on what is going on).
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MINOR SURGERIES
Minor surgeries will be held only on weekdays in the afternoon period, with an advance arrangement. All patients are advised to make their preparation visit for explanation of the actual procedure and the expected outcome. Follow-up visits for cleaning is not mandatory in many cases, but depending on the condition, patients must be prepared to pay daily visits.
Canceling surgery within 1 hour prior to your time, or missing your appointment will be charged (private practice fee), to cover our loss of revenue and preparation fee (regardless to your NHI status).
Most of the surgeries experienced at THE KING CLINIC are listed below:
- Closure of cuts and wounds (including debridment).
- Removal of foreign body in the flesh.
- Removal of warts, skin tags, and benign tumors of the skin.
- Removal of subcutaneous cysts and benign tumors.
- Surgical care for the ingrown toe-nail(s).
- Incision and drainage of the infected skin.
- Decompression of the haematoma under the nail(s).
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VISIT WITHOUT APPOINTMENT or EMERGENCY VISIT
(Terminology: "Emergency" here literally means a medical condition that has acutely occurred in a very short time prior to the visit, needing immediate medical attention because the condition may threaten patient's vital outcome.)
- We do not have any emergency room, ICU/CCU, or beds to treat the patients in vital crisis, to stay, or to be observed. If this is the case you may want to call 119 for ambulance.
- Patient with acute illness but could not make an appointment does have a chance to be seen by the doctor after being assessed by the nurse. Depending on the assessment, patient must accept waiting for the ongoing consultation to complete before being taken care of.
- Patients without an appointment but do not have the medical evidence or assessment to need immediate care can still be seen, must be prepared for a long waiting time. Depending on the clinic schedule, this patient may have the chance of being the very last patient of the day.
- Any medical documentation needing the doctor's signature or authorisation should be called few days in advance. We try our best to prepare them as soon as the clinic schedule allows.
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RE-FILLING REGULARLY-TAKEN MEDICATIONS
- Patients needing refills of their regularly taken medications, needing no consultation with the doctor are still advised to call our receptionist in (at least) a day advance. The patient must be making regular visits to THE KING CLINIC at least once every 1-3 months, and must be under good control. This way we shall be able to prepare your medications to be picked up rather than waiting for the nurse finishing with the visiting patients.
PLEASE DO NOT CALL ON THE DAY YOU WILL RUN OUT of you medication(s).
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REQUESTING A MEDICAL DOCUMENT
Any medical documentation needing the doctor's signature or authorization should be called few days in advance. We try our best to prepare them as soon as the clinic schedule allows. List of fees for documentation and authorizations are available to be browsed at the receptionist.
One claim form completion or signature is available without charge for each claim made to the insurance company. (Non-NHI patients only.)
We will not issue any medical document intended to be used for court cases.
Referral letters are charged for each signature or issuing. Re-issuing of any document will be charged. (Referral letters are accepted by the NHI, but not a medical certificate/report.)
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PHYSICAL EXAMINATIONS
Physical/medical examinations of any type is available throughout the service hours. Physical examinations are time consuming, and we would like to give chances to the ill patients that can only come on Saturdays. Canceling physical examination within 1 hour prior to your time, or missing your appointment will be charged (private practice fee), to cover our loss of revenue and preparation fee.
Please mention your purpose of visit upon making a call to the receptionist.
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LABORATORY AND IMAGE STUDIES
We accept laboratory and image studies anytime during office hours, but with the doctor's consultation.
Patients are welcomed to bring in their stock of images to request advice and / or referral, at individual responsibility related to the type of image / data brought in.
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IMMUNIZATION / VACCINATION APPOINTMENTS
Please check the availability of your vaccine when making the appointment. If available, these can be administered during any service hours by the doctor. Please read the "Vaccinations" page.
All vaccines stocked and administered at THE KING CLINIC are legitimate, strictly-temperature-controlled, and valid. Dr. King will always double-check with you that the vaccines you get have not yet expired.
We plead for your patience of the Dr. King administering the vaccines instead of the nurse. This is due to the Japanese Law that the imported vaccines are not to be administered by the nurse or any colleague doctor(s).
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TELEPHONE CONSULTATIONS
Telephone consultations can be arranged only for LONG-TIME-established-and-recently-visited patient, with certain conditions fulfilled. The consultation will regard only of the registered non-NHI patient. Patients will be responsible for the full amount of the service(s).
We clearly refuse the request of telephone consultation or doctor access of new, unregistered, or an acquaintance of any patient, including private friends. (Private friends are requested to call his private cell phone after his office hours.)
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REPORTING OF TEST RESULTS
As a standard procedure, the doctor is the only one that will inform the patient of the report (on the expected time of results reaching us from the labs). Dr. King will not disclose results to any of the family members (if the patient is over age 20, by Japanese law), without prior request from the patient him/herself. The conversation/e-mail over the result, will be very brief, unless the result is life threatening. The patient is requested to make the call (since the doctor will not call the patient unless very urgent) either at 13:00, or at 17:00 (M, T, T, F only).
No discussion will be made over the phone in any case (excluding non-NHI patients).
The second option is to have them faxed/mailed/sent to the patient where the fax/shipping fee is on the patient's responsibility, due at the time of testing. Please understand that we only send out the original print out from the laboratory without any doctor's translation, comments or recommendations.
Patients are advised to visit for further intervention or discussion in any case.
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OUT OF HOUR SERVICE or SERIOUS EMERGENCY CARES
We deeply regret to announce that these services are not available regularly. You may want to call larger hospitals with emergency rooms or call:
Tokyo Metropolitan Health and Medical Information Center
03-5285-8181 (daily 9:00-20:00)
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