Who We Are
We’re glad you’ve chosen a doctor at Northcourt Pediatrics to be your child’s pediatrician. We look forward to caring for your children as they grow to adulthood. We’ve enclosed a handbook to let you know about our office and our approach to the practice of medicine. We hope you find it informative. If you have any questions, please call the office. You’ll find our staff courteous and helpful.
Please take a few minutes to download and fill out our New Patient Registration Packet or Newborn Registration Packet from our website, and return it to our office. This information will help us start caring for your child even before his/her first visit.
Also, be sure to inform your insurance company that you are selecting one of our doctors as your child’s primary physician.
Kirsten P Magowan MD
If your child is a newborn and you have a family policy, most insurance companies also require paperwork before they will insure a newborn, even if the rest of the family is insured.
Plan to stop by the office, if you haven't already, to meet the staff and take a look around. If you call first to let us know you're coming, your doctor will to take a minute between patients to say hello!
Here is some helpful information about our practice.
MISSION STATEMENT
To provide continuous quality medical care to children from birth through adolescence. To keep children healthy by providing well checkups at regular intervals throughout childhood. To treat sick children quickly and responsibly to make them healthy again. To help families obtain necessary specialty services for their children.
When one of our doctors accepts your child as a patient, that doctor assumes responsibility for your child's healthcare. This doctor becomes your child's Primary Care Physician or PCP and will see your child for Well exams and sick visits whenever possible.
You should always call our office first regarding any medical problems except in extreme emergencies that require immediate first aid (call 911). Our doctors participate in a coverage group with several other doctors as well as an emergency nurse triage center. This means there is always a qualified medical professional available to handle any medical situation that may occur 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, even 366 days each leap year! For appointments and non-urgent medical questions, it is best to call our office during normal office hours. If your child has an urgent problem after hours, which you don't think can wait until morning you should call our office number. Our answering service will contact the covering doctor or nurse triage center. They are authorized to act on your PCP's behalf. They will call you back to discuss your situation with you and help you decide what to do. Many problems can be handled over the phone; others require immediate action. (Make sure to leave your phone line open for the call). Depending on the urgency of your call, the answering service will let you know how soon to expect a callback. This will always be less than an hour and usually within a half-hour. If the situation is urgent, please let the answering service know, and they will take immediate action. If you have not heard back from anyone in that time frame, please call the answering service again to make sure they have the correct number at which to contact you.
OFFICE HOURS
Monday: 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Tuesday: 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Wednesday: 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Thursday: 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Friday: 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
24-hour on-call care is provided by covering pediatricians for emergencies and sick visits.
Our doctors have admitting privileges at Crouse, University (Upstate), and St. Joseph's hospitals and participate with most of the major insurance companies. Please be sure to present your insurance card each time you check-in, and let us know whenever your policy changes (e.g., new copay or deductible) or if you receive a new insurance card, change insurance, or terminate your insurance.
Please be sure to inform your insurance company of any additions to your family! Even if you already have a family policy, most insurance companies require forms and paperwork to be submitted before your newborn child is covered on your insurance. We will require proof of insurance from you before we can bill your insurance for a new child.
KEEPING YOUR CHILD HEALTHY:
After the birth of your baby the hospital will inform us and your child will be examined by the pediatrician in the hospital within 24 hours of his/her birth.
Your child will be examined daily until the pediatrician, in consultation with you, determines that your child is ready to be discharged from the hospital.
In cooperation with the New York State Health Department, we participate in the New York State Immunization Information System (NYSIIS). NYSIIS maintains the immunization records for children living in New York State and makes them quickly available when they are needed. We are confident that it is an excellent program, and confidentiality is guaranteed. It will benefit all children and help to eliminate childhood disease, and we are asking you to help.
We generally reserve the morning schedule for well exams on infants and children up to 5 years old. This protects the very young children, who are more susceptible to illness from exposure to sick children in the waiting room. We schedule older well exams and sick visits in the late morning and afternoon.
Please report any symptoms - (rash, fever, diarrhea, cough, etc.) when making an appointment.
Any child suspected of being highly contagious will be put in an exam room immediately.
TREATING SICKNESS AND INJURY:
Children get sick, children get injured. When your child is sick, our goal is to get him/her well as soon as possible. Very often your child will run a mild fever or have a cough or sniffle that may not require medication. Many illnesses will go away by themselves. If you have any concern about your child, feel free to call our office during regular office hours. Our well-trained staff can answer many of your questions. If you or they feel it is appropriate you may speak with our nurse or the doctor. If you or they think it is necessary they will schedule an appointment with the doctor, or refer you to the appropriate facility for tests or x-rays.
Please note: During the current pandemic we are taking precautions to protect you, your child, other patients, and our staff. You may be directed to speak with a nurse or doctor. If your child has COVID symptoms you will be asked to have your child tested for COVID before we can see you safely at our office. You may be given the option of a telemedicine visit, or be referred to a pediatric urgent care facility such as Golisano After Hours.
Many common childhood illnesses and diseases can be handled with standard, well-defined courses of treatment, which may include medication, rest, diet, as well as perhaps the most important treatment - TLC and common sense.
When a child’s condition is more serious it is important to know what to do. We have a network of specialists, laboratories, testing facilities, and hospitals - some of the finest in the country - to treat virtually any condition that may arise. More importantly we have the knowledge of when and where to send a child whose condition goes beyond the realm of regular pediatric care.
YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES
We are committed to the health of your child. You can expect us to provide our very best effort to provide the best care possible for your child every minute of every day. More important to your child's health, development, and well-being is YOU. Healthcare begins at home, and we ask you to do your part.
LOVE:
Yes, it is a good thing to love your child. Read to your child. Sing to your child. Hug your child. Compliment your child. These are positive things, which help your child to grow and develop.
This site has a wide variety of helpful information from parents: https://healthychildren.org/English/Pages/default.aspx
WELL EXAMS
We base our schedule of well exams, immunizations, testing, and screening on the recommendations of the American Academy of Pediatrics. We ask that you accept the responsibility to bring your child to our office for all recommended well exams and immunizations. (Note: Most insurance companies cover all of the above care. A few don't. If yours doesn't, please discuss it with the doctor to see if your care can be coordinated to meet the stipulations for coverage by your insurance)
APPOINTMENTS:
If for any reason you must cancel an appointment, please be courteous to our patients and staff - call our office as soon as possible. We keep a cancellation list of people who would like an earlier appointment if it becomes available. There is also a considerable amount of work done preparing your chart before you come in. This work is wasted when you don’t keep your appointment and don’t tell us. If you have an appointment for one child, but would also like to have another child seen while you’re in, please call ahead to make sure we can accommodate you. We will make every attempt to see the additional child, but we may have to see scheduled patients first, which could prolong your visit. Please be aware that you will be charged separately for the additional child. A phone call beforehand will help us fit you in more smoothly.
MEDICATIONS
It is extremely important for you to follow dosage instructions carefully. When you have a question about "how much" or "how often," please call our office. Too much, too little, too often, or too seldom, even of a good medicine, can be harmful to your child. Needless to say, any amount of a bad medicine can be harmful.
When your child is sick, please inform the doctor of any medications, including prescription, over-the-counter, or any holistic or natural remedies you have been giving your child. If the doctor doesn't know the child has been taking certain medicine, then she will not be able to assess the child's condition properly and will not be able to prevent possibly dangerous drug interactions.
When the doctor prescribes a medication for your child it is your responsibility to make sure that the medication is given at the proper dose, at the proper time and for the proper length of time. If your child seem to be better DO NOT STOP THE MEDICATION without consulting the doctor. This could cause a more severe recurrence of the illness. If at any time you decide not to give your child the medication your doctor has prescribed it is very important that you inform the doctor of your decision.
If your child is on chronic medication, we will be happy to make sure you have refills as needed if you call during regular hours two to three days before you will run out.
Most medications for an acute illness cannot be given without an examination, so prescriptions will not be written unless your child has been seen by the doctor.
BREASTFEEDING
We highly encourage all mothers to nurse their babies. In the first few weeks, we recommend you utilize the hospital lactation consultants or call our office to help with any difficulties or questions. We want to help women nurse as long as possible for all of the health benefits to the child.
CIRCUMCISION
We encourage you to access this link in order to make an informed decision. If you elect to have your son circumcised, please discuss available anesthetic and pain relief measures with your obstetrician.
SMOKING
When you smoke during pregnancy, your child is more likely to be born with
problems, and is more likely to require medical care during infancy and childhood. A child who lives in a smoking household is more likely to develop ear infections, upper respiratory infections, bronchitis, pneumonia,and asthma. A sick child is more likely to remain sicker longer in a smoking environment. Your health is your own, but when you smoke around children, you are smoking for them. If you would like help or more information, we would like very much to help; please ask the doctor.
BICYCLE HELMETS
It is against the law in New York State for a child under the age of 14 to ride a bicycle without a helmet. We support this law. It is a good law. It is a fact that children fall off bicycles and get hurt. It is a fact that wearing a helmet can help prevent a child from dying of head injuries when they fall off of a bicycle.
CAR SEATS
New York State law requires that
Safety seats and child restraint systems must be certified according to Federal Motor Vehicles Safety Standard 213. Follow the instructions of the manufacturer of the seat or system, and make sure you install and use the seat or system correctly. Click Here to view more information on car seats.
ANY QUESTIONS?
Please call our office during regular hours, and we will be happy to talk with you. Urgent calls are handled immediately, while other calls will be returned the same day whenever possible. We also have literature available on many different topics of concern and interest regarding the health and well-being of your child.