Mission Statement: To provide high-quality, cost-effective healthcare, and promote wellness throughout our community.
Outpatient Registration operates Monday through Friday from 6:00am to 5:00pm. Scheduling and Precertification opens from 8:30am-5:00pm weekdays, in order to maintain the same hours as physician's offices. Both departments close on holidays that are observed by the physician's offices. Of course, emergency department registration and inpatient admissions are open around the clock, 365-days per year.
Scheduling: Our department has a round-robin type phone system that allows calls from our direct line 706/439-6450 to roll over to the next available scheduler.
Typically, the ordering physician's offices call to schedule exams. The appointment date and time is determined by urgency, resource availability, the patient’s personal schedule, and the patient’s insurance pre-certification requirements. The scheduler collects the required information, finds the best available slot, and gives the preparation instructions to the office to pass along to their patients. We also call patients to remind them of their appointments.
Copays and Deductibles: Our department collects copayments and deductibles at time of service.
Advance Directives: A set of written instructions that a person gives to specify what actions should be taken for their health if they are no longer able to make decisions due to illness or incapacity. The instruction appoints someone, usually called an agent, to make such decisions on their behalf. All patients are asked upon inpatient admission if they have completed advance healthcare directives. If they have not, they are asked if they want information about advance directives. We have packets in both English & Spanish that walk them through the process. When patients do have them, we scan them into the medical record & keep a hard copy stored in the office (for downtime operations). Advance directives can be brought to the admissions office any time, so patients don’t have to wait until they have an emergency. Patients may access the website link below to review and/or print the Advanced Directive Booklet.