Below you will find answers to questions we frequently receive. Should you need further assistance, please call us at your preferred location and we will happily answer your questions.
During sick call hours, no appointment is necessary and children will be seen in the order that they check in at the office. Our sick call hours are designed for the assessment and treatment of new symptoms and illness.
Due to time constraints, during our sick call hours we will not be able to address issues other than the acute symptoms/issues. We also schedule same-day sick visits throughout the day, Monday through Friday, to accommodate patients who become sick during the course of the day.
Urgent Care Referral Policy
At Childrens Health Care, we strive to provide the best care for our patients at both sick and well visits. This includes timely availability of our pediatric providers for urgent visits, with access to your child's medical records, in a friendly and familiar setting. With rare exceptions, such as extreme inclement weather or other emergencies, we are open 365 mornings a year for walk-in sick call and also have urgent appointments available each weekday until 8:00pm.
In most cases, we therefore will not issue referrals or provide approval to insurance companies for outside urgent care or walk-in clinic visits for services that could have been provided in one of our offices on days when we are open. if you have a question about the need for urgent care for your child, please call and speak to our triage nurses or the on-call provider, who can help guide you to the most appropriate care.
A fever is only a symptom. Your child has a fever if:
- Rectal or forehead temperature is 100.4F or higher (38C)
- Oral and mouth temperature is 100F or higher (37.8C)
- Under the arm (armpit) temperature is 100.4 or higher (38.C)
Please note:
- Ear temperatures are not accurate
- Forehead temperatures must be digital. Forehead strips are not accurate.
Further reading:
A child may return to school when they have been fever free (below 100.4) for 24 hours.
Children’s Health Care providers are available by phone for emergencies, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. When our offices are closed, you will reach our answering service. They will contact our on-call provider. If you do not receive a return call within 20 minutes, please place another call to our answering service.
If it is a true medical emergency please call 911.
Thank you for your interest in joining our practice! For new patients, we will need your child’s previous medicals records in order to set up physical appointment with one of our providers. Once you phone our office and register your demographic and insurance information, we are available to see you as needed for sick visits. Please check with your current provider to determine their policy for requesting medical records, which often require your written consent.
For newborn babies, please call and share the happy news of your child's birth with us. We will register you and set up your first appointment based on recommendations from the neonatologist.
We accept cash, checks, and most major credit cards and debit cards. CHC provides equal access to all patients regardless of source of payment. CHC can provide uninsured patients information about obtaining coverage. Please contact our billing office should you have any financial questions or concerns at (978) 462-9311.
We accept most major health plans including Massachusetts and New Hampshire Medicaid plans. Please call our billing department for more specifics if needed at (978) 462-9311.
Our comprehensive patient portal allows you to:
- Schedule appointments (Patients requiring same day appointments for illness should not use this online feature, but continue to call the call the office directly.)
- Check scheduled appointment dates
- Request medication refills
- Request referrals
- Update/change demographic information (address, phone, email, insurance, etc.)
- Send non-emergent questions to a provider
- Print immunization records
- View lab and x-ray results
- View visit summaries
- Access account/billing information
At your next visit to any of our offices, please speak with one of the members of our front office staff. They can help you get started. There are no forms to complete, and it’s quick and easy. A user name and temporary password will be e-mailed to you, which you can use to set up your account online at your own convenience.
You can access the patient portal via our website at chcmass.com. There is a patient portal link button on the very top of each page.
Here are the current car seat laws in Massachusetts.
All patients are responsible for calling their primary care physician’s office for his/her authorization prior to scheduling any specialty appointments. After the specialty visit has been scheduled, please call our referral department with the appointment date, physician’s name, and, if available, their office fax number. Please note: Referrals are contingent upon the member’s insurance plan and its guidelines. Therefore, even though our office may recommend a specialist, it is ultimately the parents’ obligation to ensure that this specialist is a covered physician with their insurance plan.
Please call the member service number on your insurance card for any questions you may have pertaining to your particular plan.
URGENT CARE REFERRAL POLICY
At Childrens Health Care, we strive to provide the best care for our patients at both sick and well visits. This includes timely availability of our pediatric providers for urgent visits, with access to your child's medical records, in a friendly and familiar setting. With rare exceptions, such as extreme inclement weather or other emergencies, we are open 365 mornings a year for walk-in sick call and also have urgent appointments available each weekday until 8:00pm.
In most cases, we therefore will not issue referrals or provide approval to insurance companies for outside urgent care or walk-in clinic visits for services that could have been provided in one of our offices on days when we are open. if you have a question about the need for urgent care for your child, please call and speak to our triage nurses or the on-call provider, who can help guide you to the most appropriate care.