If Iʼm sick, can Machen Family Medical call in an antibiotic without being seen?

Not usually. Treating a patient by phone without seeing them can be dangerous and illegal. There are only certain situations in which treating over the phone is appropriate. If you are sick, you probably need to be seen by a healthcare professional. Also, most upper respiratory problems are caused by a virus that cannot be treated with an antibiotic.

What happens if I have a problem at night or on the weekends?

Machen Family Medical is a solo practice and cannot be on call 24/7. If you are experiencing an emergency, then we recommend that you go to the ER immediately. If you are experiencing an illness that cannot wait until office hours, then we recommend an urgent care clinic. If you are experiencing an illness that can wait until normal office hours, know that we will work you in first thing in the morning for a sick visit.

What is Machen Family Medicine’s policy on controlled medications?

Narcotics (Codeine, Hydrocodone, etc), Benzodiazepines (Xanax, Valium, Ativan, etc). are all classified by the DEA as controlled substances. Due to the addiction potential of these particular medications, you will be required to participate in our Opioid Treatment Program. Participation in this program includes a signed Opioid Treatment Agreement, initial and periodic urine/oral drug screening and periodic pill counts. Acceptance into this program is at the discretion of our team following review of a completed Initial Chronic Pain Management History form, past medical records and the initial drug screening results. Patients will be contacted if they meet the treatment guidelines and will be required to attend routine office visits and participate in their treatment plan to remain eligible for prescription obtainment. Strict guidelines must be followed for prescribing these medications. We are required by the Arkansas State Medical Board and Arkansas State Board of Nursing to follow these guidelines along with the CDC guidelines for prescribing opioids for chronic pain.

What happens to my chart if the computers crash?

There is no need to worry about the safety of your information. All of your information is backed up in multiple locations. Even if there is a fire in the building and all the computers are destroyed, there is a secure backup at another location. All the computers and your information is password protected. It is more secure than paper records.

What happens if I need to be admitted to the hospital?

Machen Family Medical utilizes the hospitalist program. Hospitalists are physicians that practice solely in the hospital, are available 24/7, and do not have any clinic responsibilities. If you go to the ER and need to be admitted, let them know you are our patient. The hospitalist will admit and care for you during your hospital stay but will communicate with our office if needed, including sending a summary of your hospital stay after you are discharged.

What is Machen Family Medical’s policy on medication samples?

We prefers to use samples for a short term trial to see if a medication will work for you. They would rather start you on a medication that will work AND you are able to afford.

How often do I need to visit Machen Family Medical?

We would like to see everyone at least yearly for a physical and blood work. This gives us a chance to review any medications you are taking, discuss routine screening, and do a complete physical. Those patients with chronic medical problems such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol will need to be seen every 3-6 months depending on the severity and how well controlled these diseases are. If you have not been seen us in a reasonable amount of time, depending on your medical issues, your refills may be denied until you have a visited us again.

How does Machen Family Medical handle refills?

We prefer to have the pharmacy fax a refill request. We will make every effort to get these done in a timely fashion, but request that you allow 24 hours for processing. If we get a refill request for a medication that was not included on your initial medication list you provided us, we may call and ask some questions so that we can have the most accurate list possible of your medications.

How quickly can I be seen when I call for an appointment?

Machen Family Medical has a modified open-access scheduling policy. That means that a certain number of appointments are reserved for routine appointments, leaving room for same day appointments. Our first priority in scheduling patients is urgent or sick appointments. We do our very best to see sick patients on the same day to limit urgent care and ER visits. We will also try to see non-urgent appointments on the same day if possible. If we donʼt have an appointment available the same day, usually we will be able to offer you an appointment in the next couple of days.