Welcome to Chicken Soup Chinese Medicine!

At Chicken Soup Chinese Medicine, we specialize in working with patients with complex health issues that require a high degree of sophistication and integrated knowledge on the part of our practitioners. We also see many patients with less complicated or less severe health concerns such as pain from sitting at a desk, or tennis elbow. The initial visit, or consultation, provides time to diagnose and prescribe a treatment plan for ongoing care.

In order to schedule your initial consultation and to provide you with the best possible care, every patient must do the following prior to scheduling:

☯ Review Our Practice Consulting Process

☯ Review Our Practice Consultation Procedures

☯ Complete New Patient Forms

☯ Provide a Health Narrative

☯ Submit Labs & Pertinent Medical Records

If you have any questions about completing or submitting any of this information, please contact our office. Once you complete these steps, please call our office to schedule your initial consultation.

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BASIC CONSULTATION PROCESS

To begin the consultation process, you must complete the New Patient Forms online or by request via email.

• If you have any medical reports or lab results that relate to your health concerns, please send them to us, or have them sent to us from your medical provider(s).

• Upon receipt of your materials, we will contact you to schedule a consultation. We will schedule you for an appropriate amount of time based on the complexity of your health concerns.

• We will ask you for adeposit in order to reserve space in the schedule for your consultation. We require seven days (7) notice if you need to cancel or reschedule for this initial visit.

• We will meet with you and conduct a consultation. (See above for more information.)

• Once the visit is completed, your card will be charged the full amount. Your deposit can be applied to the total cost. Let us know in advance if you prefer another form of payment, like an HSA or FSA card. We are happy to accommodate.

FEES AND PAYMENT

Consultation fees are dependent on complexity. Many insurance contracts and third-party payers do not cover consultation procedure codes or diagnosis codes; however we are happy to bill these codes to your insurance company or managed care as a courtesy.

For follow-up acupuncture visits, we are happy to bill your insurance if your diagnosis is covered by your insurer. If you do not have health insurance that will cover your acupuncture, we offer a same day fee schedule as a courtesy to our patients who pay in full at the time of the visit.

CASE MANAGEMENT/FOLLOW-UP CONSULTATION

The following situations may call for ongoing case management or periodic follow-up consultations:

• Patients who live at a distance from Chicken Soup and do not come in for regular visits

• Patients who are going through a period of particularly close monitoring by their western and Chinese medicine physicians for some reason, where strategic decisions must be made more quickly and/or frequently than can be accomplished by regular acupuncture visits

• Patients who have been on a stable regimen, but for whom a significant life or health status change requires new strategic direction

We are happy to schedule additional time via phone or in-person to consult over lab work, suggest changes to herbal regimens, or provide other consultative guidance that requires more than what can be accomplished in a quick e-mail or during an acupuncture session. The process for scheduling such a service is much the same as our usual consultation procedure. Please ask for more information from our office manager.

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At Chicken Soup Chinese Medicine, we specialize in working with patients with complex health issues that require a high degree of sophistication and integrated knowledge on the part of your practitioner. We also see many patients with less complicated or less severe health concerns such as pain from sitting at a desk, or tennis elbow. The initial visit, or consultation, provides time to diagnose and prescribe a treatment plan for ongoing care. A deposit secures your time in our schedule.

COMPREHENSIVE/COMPLEX CONSULTATION

Chronic disease, Cancer support, Complex health conditions

Your consultation time varies and includes both in-person and office time dependent on complexity:

• Preview of your relevant western medical records

• Preview of an additional health narrative, written by you, describing your situation

• Consultation to discuss your health condition, answer your questions, and arrive at a Chinese medical diagnosis for you

• Optional development of a treatment plan to include recommendations for acupuncture, herbs, diet, exercise, and any other appropriate recommendations or referrals - this would be an additional fee.

STANDARD CONSULTATION

General health issues, Herbal support, Fertility, Menstrual support

Your consultation will include both in-person and office time:

• Preview of your relevant western medical records

• Preview of an additional health narrative written by you describing your situation

• Consultation to discuss your health condition, answer your questions, and arrive at a Chinese medical diagnosis for you

• Optional development of a treatment plan to include recommendations for acupuncture, herbs, diet, exercise, and any other appropriate recommendations or referrals - this would be an additional fee.

FOCUSED CONSULTATION

Pain management, Acute symptoms

Your consultation will include acupuncture:

• An initial evaluation of your current health status, focused specifically on your chief complaint

• Initial acupuncture

• Herbal and supplement recommendations when necessary

*Note that all the services are approximated based on information collected during initial contact. Levels of care may change based on practitioner review of lab work and health history. Any changes in care are dependent on patient approval and participation.

*Deposits are required to finalize an appointment time. For Comprehensive and Standard Consultations, $295 is required. A Focused Consultation requires a deposit of $185.

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In order to best serve your healthcare needs, patients must complete all New Patient Forms prior to scheduling an appointment. To provide convenience and safety to all our patients, you may now complete all your forms securely on our website using the links below (a direct link to all patient forms are included in the navigation bar at the top of our website under “patient forms”). Or you may request PDF copies of our New Patient Forms to be emailed to you; you may then print, scan and fax your completed forms to our office at 415-644-0614.

The New Patient Forms include:

• Patient Identification Form

• Policies and Consent to Treat Form

• HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices

• Authorization for Release of Records

If you have any questions, please contact our office.

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Along with your intake forms, please also provide a narrative about your chief health concern. If you have additional concerns, please let us know in your narrative. List all current medications, herbs, supplements, including the exact dosage, time of day your normally take them. Write down any specific questions you would like to address in your consultation. Please email or fax your Health Narrative to our office.

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Please be sure to have your pertinent medical records sent to our office as soon as possible or at least a week prior to your appointment.

Chicken Soup Chinese Medicine is located at 2300 Sutter Street, Suite 203, San Francisco, CA 94115. The building is on the corner of Sutter and Scott. The entrance/elevator is on Scott Street.

Public transportation

For arrival via public transportation, please use the following:

24 Divisadero, 38 Geary, 1 California, 49 Van Ness, 31 Balboa

PARKING OPTIONS

·      Street parking in 2 hour zones around the building

·      Metered parking

·      The building has a paid parking garage at $3 per half hour

If you have any questions or concerns, please call 415-861-1101 or email us at chickensoupchinesemedicine@docmisha.com.

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