How to Contact Saugatuck Pediatrics

Also: Contact Saugatuck Pediatrics

MyKidsChart Patient Portal

You can send messages via your MyKidsChart portal any time of day or night. All acute issues will be addressed by the end of a business day. However, we are often able to respond quickly between patients. 

Please do not send portal messages about urgent issues – these deserve a phone call to the office. For urgent questions on weekends and holidays, please call the on-call physician, as the portal is not checked regularly during these times. 

  • Understand that if you need to send a photo, you probably need an appointment. Rashes and lacerations need to be seen in living color/3 dimensions to adequately assess. 
  • Certain non-urgent messages (i.e. behavioral issues, chronic conditions) may take up to 3 business days for a response if your regular pediatrician is not in the office. 
  • Prescription refills should be sent through the portal, again allow up to 72 hours for processing as these should be handled by your primary pediatrician. If your prescription request is urgent (i.e. you need an inhaler for your wheezing child) please do call. 
  • Routine appointment requests can also be sent through the portal, please allow 2 business days for a response. 

Phone

Always start with the office number. If we are not in the office, you will hear a recording with directions on how to contact the after hours physician. 

  • Please do NOT send photos to this number, it may prevent the message from going through. 
  • Please do NOT call or text our personal cell phones (unless directed to do so.) We all love our patients/jobs, but also love our family and off time! 
  • After-hours coverage is for acute medical issues only– please use the portal for more routine questions. Our website has many articles about the diagnosis and management of basic childhood illnesses, as well as weight-based dosing charts for acetaminophen, ibuprofen and other medications. Weather delays/closings will always be posted on our website, with updates sent via email- no need to call the after-hours number.

Weekends/Holidays/Evenings

As a pediatric office, we see patients every day of the year. On weekends and holidays, we ask that you contact us prior to 10 am if you feel your child needs to be seen for an acute medical problem. Later appointments are not always possible, but we can give you advice on whether to seek emergency care or how to administer home care until we can see your child. 

Insurance Code 99051

We’re proud to be available for care every day of the year, so we’re always here when you need us. To reflect the extra level and hours of service we provide, and to help them track appointments that occur in the evenings or on weekends, insurance companies ask us to apply a special code to these visits. With that insurance code, there is a small additional charge for all office visits after 5pm, and for all weekend/holiday visits.

  • Most private insurance companies, and ALL public insurance plans, cover this charge — though, in some cases, it may be applied to your deductible.
  • We want to let you know in advance, in case you want to check with your insurance provider about the specifics of your plan.
  • If you do contact your insurance company, ask about code 99051, which is the standard code used by insurance companies to identify a visit outside of the standard 8:30am-5pm, Monday-Friday time frame.

Call Us First

No one knows your child like you, and no one can take care of them medically like us. One of your Saugatuck Pediatrics doctors is on-call at all times and we want to hear from you before you take your child to the ER or an urgi-care. 

Other than for obvious emergencies (please call 911) it is sometimes hard for parents to know if a sick child need to be seen right away, or if it is OK to wait until. Most things can wait until morning and many times there is a benefit in waiting. Call us and we will help you figure out the best treatment for your child, whether it is going to the ER (we can call ahead) or scheduling an appointment during regular office hours.