OFFICE POLICY ON AFTER-HOURS CARE

We would like to clarify our office policy regarding walk-in-clinics.

Although there is some necessity at times for visits to walk-in clinics, we would really advise against the use of, and appreciate your avoidance of, walk-in clinics.

There are several reasons for this:

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• Walk-in clinics are for brief and episodic encounters. Care is provided by doctors whom you don’t know and who are not aware of your medical history. For this reason, they cannot possibly provide the quality of care or follow-up care you would get from your family doctor.

• We take special care to leave adequate room for you to book appointments the day of your problem and at your convenience however, due to the unpredictable nature of this business; sometimes you may have to wait in the waiting room.

• We provide after hours services (our group “after-hours clinics”) through our family doctor group (the South Oakville Family Health Organization) normally from 5pm to 8pm daily. After hours care is provided by family doctors, our trusted colleagues, who can readily communicate with us about your care if required. You can locate these services by calling  905-815-9177  on the day you need to be seen.

• The government pays us on average $9 per month to care for you 24/7. For this fee we promised to provide convenient and available hours. When you access the use of a walk-in clinic the government pays twice: once to the walk-in clinic and once to us on a monthly basis. For this reason, this office is financially penalized for every walk-in clinic visit you make. 

Therefore, when you need medical care please consider this step-by-step approach to accessing care:

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1. Phone the Telephone Health Advisory Service (THAS 1-866-553-7205) and see if it is something that can be handled over the phone.

2. If you can wait, please make an appointment with our office for the next available spot.

3. If it is urgent, please call the office as soon as possible so we can try to accommodate you that day

4. If you cannot wait until the next day, please see one of our Family Health Organization’s after-hours on-call doctors (locate the physician’s office by calling 905-815-9177).

5. Please use the ER if you are concerned that the problem is urgent or life threatening and cannot wait.

6. Lastly, please use a walk-in clinic if all other options are exhausted.

Thank you for your consideration.