Patient Care at Highland Family Medicine
Welcome to Highland Family Medicine of Highland Hospital and the University of Rochester! This page is designed to help acquaint you with the clinical services we offer and to provide information regarding common health problems.
Highland Family Medicine
777 South Clinton Avenue
Rochester, NY 14620
(585) 279-4800
Welcome
We look forward to providing you and your family with high quality health care and appreciate your selecting us as your family health care providers. We would like to acquaint you with our policies and procedures to help you best use our services.
Serving the Rochester community since 1967, Highland Family Medicine recently relocated to a new state-of-the-art facility at 777 South Clinton Avenue. We have free parking and are on a major bus route from downtown. We are a department of Highland Hospital/Strong Health and the site of the University of Rochester's Family Medicine Residency Training Program.
Mission
We care deeply about our patients' well-being. We are Family Physicians because we feel families are very important to the well being of individuals and even of society. We strive to know more about you, your family, where you came from, and the factors that adversely affect your health. Prevention of illness, whenever possible, is our primary goal. When you do become ill, we will work with you as a partner to return you to health as quickly as possible.
Our staff provides the full range of services available under the specialty of Family Practice. We accept patients of all ages - from before birth to the end of life. We enjoy delivering babies, caring for children, helping adolescents transition to adulthood, treating common adult medical problems, and helping those nearing the end of life make that difficult journey. From marital counseling to minor office-based surgical procedures, we can care for your entire family.
We care so much for our fellow human, that we see many high-risk patients who have nowhere else to go for medical care. The nightly news is full of stories about the plight of the uninsured and the underinsured. We do our best to help those with limited resources find health and dignity. Our waiting rooms are always a wonderful cross section of US society. You may see a high-powered business executive who knows quality health care when he sees it. At the same time, you may see a single teenage mother struggling with being a first-time parent, or a refugee from Bosnia trying to make a fresh start in a strange land. This love of life and health in all its forms is what defines family physicians.
Staff
Highland Family Medicine is a practice of family physicians, nurse practitioners, an obstetrician/gynecologist, an osteopath, a dermatology physician assistant, a social worker, family planning personnel, and mental health counselors. The family physicians are either University of Rochester faculty members or resident physicians in the specialty of Family Medicine.
The practice is divided into six suites (300, 400, 500, 600, 700, and 800). Each team consists of family physicians, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, medical assistants, team secretaries, and appointment secretaries. Your primary physician, his/her partner, and the team nurse practitioner are primarily responsible for your family's health care. Nurse practitioners and physician assistants are skilled at history taking and physical examination, diagnosis and treatment of common problems, counseling, and education. They work closely with your physician.
Suite Providers
Suite # |
Provider Names |
Phone # |
300 |
Richard Botelho MD, Steven Eisinger MD, Ronald Epstein MD, Elizabeth Naumburg MD, Anne Nofziger MD, Eric Smith MD Mary Cappaci NP, Carol Thiel NP Family Planning Staff: Dawn Rugelis NP |
(585) 279-4700 |
400 |
Thomas Campbell MD, Scott Clemensen MD, John Dickinson MD, Steven Fine MD, Suzanne Lee MD, Stephen Lurie MD, Stephen Schultz MD, Vincent Silenzio MD, Ingrid Watkins MD Mike Brown PA, Karen Emerson NP |
(585) 279-4600 |
500 |
Deborah Pierce MD, Douglas Stockman MD Mary Ellen Callan NP Residents: Vidush Athyal MD, Jessica Davis MD, Todd Gerwig DO, Peter Hoffman MD, Shazia Janmuhammad MD, Sarah Kent MD, Kirk Scirto MD |
(585) 279-4720 |
600 |
Jeffrey Harp MD Maureen Richardson NP Residents: Nancy Albrecht MD, Patrick Costa MD, Kenya McIntosh MD, Brittany Morse MD, Matthew Wilson MD, Ronald Yearwood MD |
(585) 279-4620 |
700 |
Lois VanTol MD Carolyn Braddock NP Residents: Elizabeth Pooler Brown MD, Atif Chowdhry MD, Mathew Devine DO, Sonya Foster-Merrow MD, LeWanza Harris MD, Kristen Thornton MD, Bradley VanHeukelum MD |
(585) 279-4740 |
800 |
Alan Lorenz MD Marilyn Merritt NP Residents: Miia Lim MD, Edith Lubin MD, Christine Miller MD, Nao Sakurai MD, Kingsley Ugorji MD, Eric Wilcox DO |
(585) 279-4640 |
Occasionally, your provider may be accompanied by a medical or nursing student. We encourage you to allow them to participate in your medical care. However, please feel free to let us know that you wish to be seen without the student, if you find this uncomfortable.
Office Hours
The office is open Monday through Saturday. Check below for the hours. Office visits are by appointment only.
Day |
Daytime hours |
Evening hours |
Monday |
8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. |
6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. |
Tuesday |
8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. |
6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. |
Wednesday |
8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. |
6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. |
Thursday |
8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. |
6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. |
Friday |
8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. |
None |
Saturday |
9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. (noon) |
None |
If the office must be closed due to snow or other emergencies, it will be announced on WHAM (1180) and WXXI (1370). We will, however, have doctors available for emergencies. In such cases, please delay all non-emergency phone calls until the next normal working day.
After Hours Emergencies
One of our doctors is always available for emergencies. If you have an emergency after regular office hours, please call (585) 279-4800 and a taped recording will give you the number of our answering service.
The answering service personnel will ask for information about your medical problem and will take your phone number. Stay by your phone! The doctor on call will contact you within one hour, sooner for serious emergencies.
Appointments
For routine and urgent appointments, please call (585) 279-4800. Appointments for routine care (e.g., annual physical examination, well child care, etc.) are made by the appointment secretaries. Please call at least four weeks in advance for routine visits so that we can schedule these with your provider. Because many of our early morning calls are for illness care, please delay calls for routine care until late morning or afternoon.
Appointments for same day treatment of medical problems (e.g., illness/injury care) are made through our triage nurse from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. In the afternoons, calls for urgent problems are assessed by the team nurse. We try to ensure continuity of care with your doctor. If your doctor isn't available, it may be necessary to schedule urgent visits with another provider on your team.
Prescription Renewals
If you need a refill on your medications before your next appointment, please try to give us at least five days' advance notice. The following instructions will assist you in having the information you will need to renew your prescription.
Please call your pharmacy, not our office. Have your medicine bottle on hand so you can provide the necessary information:
- the name of the medication
- dosage (mg.)
- prescription number
- directions for use
Cancellations
Call the office as soon as possible if you are unable to keep an appointment. Failure to cancel an appointment prevents other patients from being seen and increases the cost of care. If you are more than 15 minutes late, your provider may have to ask you to reschedule your appointment.
General Phone Calls
For prescription refills, please call your pharmacy. For referrals or other general information and requests, please ask the switchboard operator for your team secretary.
The team nurse handles calls regarding general medical, health care, and selected lab results. You may call the team nurse for throat culture, urine culture, and pregnancy test results between the hours of 10:30 a.m. to 12:00 noon and 3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Other test results should be given to you by your health care provider.
Fees
To keep medical costs as reasonable as possible, we ask you to pay at the time of the visit for charges not covered by your insurance. Your prompt payment decreases administrative costs and results in lower charges overall.
If you have financial reasons that prevent you from paying at the time of your visit, please let the billing office know. A representative can meet with you to design an affordable payment schedule. Accounts greater than 90 days overdue may be referred to an outside agency.
Financial assistance is available for qualifying individuals. We encourage patients to inquire about these programs.
Insurance Payment Plans
Highland Family Medicine accepts a range of payment plans that include:
- Blue Cross/Blue Shield Blue Choice
- Blue Choice Option
- Medicaid
- GHI
- Empire Plan
- Strong Care
- WC
- Child Health Plan
- Blue Choice
- Preferred Care Option
- Preferred Care
- Medicare
- Monroe Plan
- MVA
- Hill-Burton
Note: The only insurance plan we do not accept at this time is Via Health.
If your insurance is an HMO (health maintenance organization), you'll be assigned to one of our faculty family physicians for billing purposes. Your primary family physician resident will work with your HMO-assigned physician.
If you have private insurance that reimburses you directly, the copy of your encounter form has all the information you need to be reimbursed by your insurance company. You should attach the encounter form to your insurance form and send it to the insurance company.
If you have a form for insurance, disability, or social services, please bring it with you to your appointment. Please allow a few days for such forms to be completed, and always specify whether you'd like these mailed back to you or if you'll pick them up.
Behavioral Health Services
Highland Family Medicine provides Behavioral Health Services to individuals and couples, as well as family and group counseling to patients and family members. Common problems include anxiety, depression, marital stress, grief, parenting difficulties, and stress-related to health problems. As a satellite office of the Department of Psychiatry’s Strong Behavioral Health Services, our team of marriage and family therapists, psychologists, and psychiatrist accept all health insurance plans from our local community. When meeting with their primary health care practitioners, patients can request a referral to Behavioral Health Services.
Social Work Services
These services are available for financial and personal assistance and organization of community services. Please visit our Community Resource Guide.
Problems or Questions
Highland Family Medicine values the opinions of our patients. We strive to offer responsive health care and welcome your suggestions.
If you are experiencing difficulties with any aspect of your health care and wish to voice a concern, please discuss it with your family physician or team nurse practitioner. If you do not feel comfortable discussing it with them, you can contact the Center's administrative staff (office manager, medical director, or nursing director, as appropriate).
Hospital Care
We use Highland Hospital for adults requiring hospitalization. Children are hospitalized at Rochester General Hospital. Your family physician will maintain contact with you during your hospitalization. In addition, a faculty physician will be involved in your hospital care.
Please note that, if you're admitted to another area hospital, your primary care physician will be unable to care for you during your hospitalization. You'll be followed by a non-Highland Family Medicine staff physician during any non-Highland Hospital admissions for adults and non-RGH admissions for children.
Maternity Care
Our family physicians can provide complete prenatal care and perform deliveries. It's very important to start prenatal care as early in your pregnancy as possible. We recommend monthly visits, then every other week in the 8th month, and weekly in the 9th month.
We use Highland Hospital for all deliveries. The Highland Hospital Birthing Center is completely remodeled. In most cases, you'll remain in the same suite you deliver your child in. There's no moving from room to room. All Highland Hospital obstetric rooms are private to allow you and your family all the comfort of home.
Guidelines for Healthy Adults
Seeing your health care provider on a regular basis is an opportunity to review your 
health concerns
In general, we recommend:
- monitoring your blood pressure and weight
- for women who have had three (3) normal yearly Pap smears, recommendations for repeat Pap smears vary from one to three years
- Mammography (breast x-ray studies) are recommended beginning at age 35 for high-risk patients, and routinely after age 50. Ask your doctor, nurse practitioner, or physician assistant if you are unsure of guidelines.
- All adults should receive a tetanus-diphtheria immunization every ten (10) years.
- Influenza immunization is recommended over age 65 and for people with chronic diseases. Pneumovax is recommended for selected patients and those over age 65.
Guidelines for Children
Regular Checkups & Immunizations
Immunization shots are very important, because they prevent serious infections. Occasionally, these shots cause fever, irritability, or soreness at the injection site. Immunizations carry a very low risk for problems, and the benefits of the immunizations far outweigh the risks. Common screening tests we recommend include those for anemia, lead poisoning, vision, and hearing.