What to Expect

Our team of board-certified physicians are committed to your health. To help give you a better understanding of what to expect, below is information that may be helpful to you. New patients will also benefit from knowing What To Bring.

INITIAL APPOINTMENT

Allow 1-2 hours when being seen by our medical team for the first time. Your appointment will include a consultation, physical exam and specific allergy and asthma testing, if needed.

To reschedule or cancel an appointment, we please ask for a 24-hour notice.

ALLERGY SKIN TESTING

Skin tests are done to help identify if and what you are allergic to. During the test, your skin (usually your back) is pricked with a small amount of each allergen. If you are allergic, a bump and redness will appear where the skin was pricked. After a short time, each reaction is measured for swelling and redness. A large enough skin reaction is a positive test. Your provider will compare your prick skin test results with your history of symptoms.

PREPARING FOR THE TEST

Antihistamines will impact the results of skin testing and must be stopped for five (5) days prior to the test. If the medicine is not stopped, the results may be inaccurate.

Please read the section below for more information on what medications will interfere with your allergy skin test.

Medications that May Interfere with Allergy Skin Tests

If possible, avoid these oral medications listed below for at least 5 days prior to skin testing. Read the active ingredient label of any oral allergy/cold/sinus/cough over-the-counter medicine for the ingredients listed below.

Antihistamines

Acrivastine
Actifed (Triprolidine)
Alka-Seltzer Plus, Chlor-Trimeton, Comtrex, Contac, Coricidin, PediaCare, Sine-Off, Sinutab, Sudafed Cold and Allergy, TheraFlu, Triaminic, Tylenol Cold, Vicks 44M, Vicks Nyquil (Chlorpheniramine)
Allegra, Allegra-D (Fexofenadine)
Astelin (Azelastine)

Atarax, Vistaril (Hydroxyzine)
Benadryl, Tylenol Allergy Sinus, Tylenol Flu, Tylenol PM (Diphenydramine)
Clarinex (Desloratadine)
Claritin, Claritin-D, Alavert (Loratadine)
Carbinoxamine
Dimetapp (Brompheniramine)
Dramanine (Dimenhydrinate)

Drixoral (Dexbrompheniramine)
Optimine (Azatadine)
Periactin (Cyproheptadine)
Phenergan (Promethazine)
Robitussin Night-Time Cold Formula (Doxylamine succinate)
Tavist, Tavist-D (Clemastine)
Zyrtec, Zyrtec-D (Cetirizine)

PRACTICE POLICIES

Cancellations

To reschedule or cancel an appointment, we please ask for a 24-hour notice. We reserve the right to charge a $50 fee for no-shows and cancellations without 24-hour notice. This fee is not covered by your insurance carrier. Three no-shows within a six-month period can result in a discharge from our practice.

After Hours

Please leave a message with the answering service. An on-call staff member will be reached for URGENT concerns only. Prescription refills will be handled the next business morning.

Prescription Refills

Please call in your prescription refills 48 hours in advance. Please have the phone number of your preferred pharmacy, this will further assist our staff and speed up the prescription refill process. For your safety, refills will not be called in if you have not been evaluated in our office within the past year. If you leave a message after hours, the refill request will be handled the next business morning.

Allergy Shots/Immunotherapy Injections

Immunotherapy injections are given on a walk-in basis. We require that you wait in our clinic for 20 minutes after receiving an allergy injection. Please arrive at least 20 minutes before the clinic closes to receive an allergy injection. We require our allergy shot patients to follow up with one of our providers annually to evaluate their progress.

Service Animals

AllergySA welcomes the use of service animals by any person with a disability. A service animal is defined as any dog that is trained to do work or tasks for the person with a disability.

Insurance Claims

Insurance policies are contracts between you and the insuring company. As a courtesy, one of our staff members will file your insurance claim, provided we have your current assignment of benefits. We are contracted with most insurance providers. To verify if we accept your insurance, please call or email our insurance referral specialist, [email protected].

You will be responsible for your co-pay, co-insurance and/or deductible at the time services are received. If your insurance company does not pay us within a 90 day period, you will be held responsible for payment.

Covered Benefits

At the time you make your new patient appointment, our staff will call your insurance company and obtain an estimate of your benefits. However, the benefits given are not guarantee, and we will not be responsible for incorrect information. We will notify you (if time permits) of your estimated liability payable on your first visit. At each follow up visit, our staff checks verification of insurance. You should be notified if we receive a rejection.

Referrals

Many insurance plans require a referral for office appointments and shot visits. It is your responsibility to obtain the appropriate referral from your primary care provider PRIOR to your visit. Any fees for unapproved visits will be your responsibility.

WHAT TO EXPECT