Prepare for your next appointment

New patient

Existing patient

Policies

Schedule

New patients

Please arrive 15 minutes before your appointment to complete registration. On arrival, check in with the front desk, where someone will help walk you through final patient registration and ensure your information is correct and up to date.

You will be asked to provide the following documents to complete patient registration:

One form of photo identification
- Government-issued ID (Driver's license)
- Employee ID
- School ID
Insurance information
- Your insurance card
- Address of your insurance company.
  - This can often be found on the back of your insurance card. Make sure to check if your card has this information. If it doesn't, you'll need to provide the address yourself.
Health information
- Past hospitalizations or surgeries
- Family medical history
- List of current medication
- Immunization records
- Workers' compensation, if applicable

Unless otherwise specified, we will also ask you to complete a medical history transfer form. If you do not want your previous medical records transferred, please tell the front desk at the time you register.

If you do not register 15 minutes before your appointment, you may forfeit your appointment.

If you are unable to attend your scheduled appointment time, please immediately notify our team by calling our center. If you do not notify our team of an anticipated missed appointment, your registration will not be finalized and you will not be considered a patient of the Center.

Existing patients

Please arrive 10 minutes before your appointment. On arrival, check in with the front desk to verify your information is up to date. Please bring updated insurance information with you.

If you are unable to attend your scheduled appointment time, please immediately notify our team by phone. Established patients who do not show for appointments three times and do not attempt to communicate with our staff within a one-year period will be removed as a patient of the Center.

Policies

For family scheduling, SIU Medicine has a limit of two appointments per day. This ensures no gap in provider scheduling if a family is unable to attend.

Co-payment is expected at the time of your clinic visit.

If you are insured through a deferral program, such as Medicare, co-payment will be collected if the service is not covered in your policy. Once your deferral program has determined the amount of coverage, you will be billed for the remainder of your balance.

If you need assistance in covering your co-payment, please speak to our Billing Representative for more information.

SIU Medicine will bill your insurance directly. Please notify us of any changes in your insurance policy.

If you need assistance for uninsured coverage, please speak to our Insurance Specialist for more information.

Unless otherwise specified, we will refer you to a local hospital for processing, imaging and diagnostic tests. Please check with your insurance policy if you have coverage at the referral facility.

If you do not have coverage to the referred partner, please notify us so we can find alternative facilities for your service.

We are able to offer emergency after-hour care. Please refer to your clinic call-in number if you have a medical emergency.

Please note, emergency after-hour care may not be subject to the same pricing as scheduled appointment visits.

Springfield residents: The SIU Medicine ExpressCare is available with extended hours from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. As part of the SIU Medicine FQHC hub, your treatment will be kept within the SIU Medicine system.

A provider may recommend treatment or services that are not covered by your insurance policy. You will be asked to sign an agreement accepting fiscal responsibility for payment of uninsured service.

You can opt-out from receiving uninsured treatment and payment of said service.

If you need assistance for uninsured coverage, please speak to our Insurance Specialist for more information.

Turnaround times for lab results vary based on the type of test performed. You will be notified of lab results based on your preferred method of communication.

We offer a no-cost referral service to help find the appropriate provider for specialty care. The referral coordinator will work with you to obtain insurance authorization and schedule an appointment to see a specialty provider.

Unless otherwise notified by your primary care provider, the referral coordinator will review your information within a week. If you do not hear from a referral coordinator within a week, you may call in and ask about the status of your referral.

Referral coordinators can only assist in referrals as ordered by your primary care physician.

All medication orders, except for controlled use, are sent directly to your pharmacy. Controlled medication must be picked up in person during center hours.

Please notify your pharmacy 3-5 days in advance for refills on your prescription.

By default, we do not refill any controlled medication on new patient appointments from previous providers. Your new provider will determine if the medication is still the recommended treatment.

Patient-centered medical home

The Patient-centered medical home is a model of care that puts patients at the forefront of care. PCMHs build better relationships between people and their clinical care teams. Participation in an NCQA recognition program demonstrates that the practice or clinician values quality health care delivery and the latest clinical protocols to ensure that patients receive the best care at the right time.

Research shows that patient-centered medical homes:

Improve quality: Patients get the treatment that they need when they need it.
Reduce costs: They prevent expensive and avoidable hospitalizations, emergency room visits, and complications. This is especially true for patients with complex chronic conditions.
Improve the patient experience: They provide the personalized, comprehensive coordinated care that patients want.
Improve staff satisfaction: PCMHs have systems and structures that help staff work more efficiently.

The Springfield program is one of four family medicine programs of SIU School of Medicine. Other programs are located in Carbondale, Decatur, and Quincy. All sites have previously received recognition from the NCQA.

SIU Center for Family Medicine provides comprehensive family care, including obstetrics, gynecology, pediatric and geriatric care, with approximately 60,000 patient visits annually.