"Dear patient, please contact our clinic for a follow up appointment to discuss your test results!"

Please consider reading this website notice as your routine recall for all your test results.

We would like to streamline our phone system and front desk receptionist time so we can better serve you. As such, our clinic policy is that our physicians do NOT routinely call you back to let you know when a test result is in. Do not expect us to call you back regarding your results; we have too many results to call back every single person. We routinely ask you to make it a habit to return for a followup appointment to discuss your test results by default. All test results need to be discussed in person with a doctor, by default. We do not say, "if you don't hear from us, it means everything is okay."

What if we never received an important result because it was never sent? We have no way of tracking all the results and important test results can fall through the cracks. In order to protect you, we ask that you hold us accountable by checking in on us to see if you results have come in, and to discuss the results in person with your doctor.

From our experience, most lab and imaging results come back in one (1) week. Consult notes from specialist can take one (1) month. Public Health lab tests can take 1-2 month. PAP tests can take 2-3 weeks. If they don't come back by these times, then your visit to us will help use trigger action to chase down the result for you.

Followup visits are also not a waste of you time, because your doctor will want to see how you are doing after recommending some treatment. If you are not better, then your doctor may need to do more tests or change your treatment course, or consider a referral. Your doctor also may not have enough time to handle all your issues in one visit, and so the followup visit allows your doctor to continue to thoroughly assess and treat you.

Even if you can get a copy of you own test results from the lab, we recommend you come in to discuss the results with your doctor, because the results need to be interpreted for your specific unique situation. For example, lab tests usual come back with some items in red (or outside the normal range) for most people. Instead of getting worried by Googling, it would better if you can speak with your doctor to find out if it is anything relevant and important at all for your health.

Also read why our Policy is: "We Don't Call You for Test Results".