Outpatient Specialty Visits

Before your child’s outpatient specialty visit, you will receive a packet of information in the mail. Please review these materials, complete any forms, and bring them with you to the visit.

Always bring the following:

• current insurance card
• completed forms from mailed information packet
• picture ID
• referral, if required by insurance

Please plan to arrive with your child 15 minutes prior to the scheduled appointment time. If you are unsure about where you need to go, ask the person at the main desk in the lobby. He or she can give you directions to the correct area.

Once you arrive at the doctor’s office or module, sign in. A patient service representative will check your child in. She or he will also verify the information collected during pre-registration, including:

• your child’s name
• address
• date of birth
• insurance coverage
• phone numbers (home and cell)
• pharmacy preference

A copy of your insurance card will also be made. If your insurance information has changed since the time the appointment was made, the new information will be collected and verified. 

You will be asked to sign two forms: 1) consent for treatment, which allows us to treat your child, and 2) a HIPAA privacy form. You will also be asked for your referral (if your insurance company requires one) and for the completed packet of information sent by the doctor’s office. If you did not receive the packet or did not fill it out, you will need to complete it while waiting for your appointment.

Your co-pay (if there is one, according to your insurance plan) will be collected as well.

As soon as the check-in process is complete, the medical assistant (MA) or nurse will take your child’s vital signs. These include temperature, heart rate, blood pressure, and respiratory (breathing) rate. He or she will also ask questions about allergies, the reason for the visit, medications that your child is taking, and any cultural issues that may affect your child’s exam or treatment. 

If a room is ready, your child will be taken directly back to be seen by the doctor. If not, your child may have to return to the waiting area until one becomes available.

Your child will be seen by a resident (a doctor who has graduated from medical school and is training in a specialty area, like pediatrics or surgery) or a nurse practitioner (a nurse with advanced training), or a physician assistant (a health care provider with special training) and then by the attending physician (the doctor who has completed medical school and all of the required training and is in charge of your child’s care). Together, they will discuss your child’s case, devise a treatment plan, and then go over it with you. You will be given a printed summary of your child’s visit and, if necessary, prescriptions for medications.

Once your child’s appointment is over, you will need to check out. Return to the front desk where you checked in, and the representative will hand you an after-visit summary. If necessary, a follow-up appointment will be made. The patient service representative can also help coordinate any additional testing that may be indicated. For example, if a blood test is needed, she or he may be able to schedule a same-day appointment in our blood-drawing lab. Not only is this option convenient, it may also minimize the stress for your child, since our phlebotomists are experts in pediatric blood drawing.

If an X-ray is required, this can also typically be done in our Radiology Department on the same day, without an appointment. The patient service representative will check whether your insurance covers such diagnostic testing at our hospital. If they don’t, then you will have to have these tests performed at another lab or X-ray center and have the results reported back to the Nemours doctor who ordered them.

Your child’s primary care doctor will receive a full report about your child’s subspecialty visit.

At the Nemours Children’s Clinic, Wilmington, located on the Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children’s campus, we offer many conveniences for our outpatient visitors, including:

• Free valet parking – With our complimentary valet service, there’s no need to waste time looking for a parking spot. Valet services are located at the outpatient entrance (near the playground), Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Outpatient pharmacy – The hospital maintains an outpatient pharmacy that fills prescriptions and stocks basic over-the-counter products such as acetaminophen (Tylenol), ibuprofen (Advil or Motrin), and diphenhydramine (Benadryl). To use this service, you’ll need to present the doctor’s written or electronic prescription along with your prescription plan card. The pharmacy is open Monday through Friday, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. 
• Cafeteria – The cafeteria offers a variety of hot meals, sandwiches, salads, and snacks daily from 5:30 a.m. to 7:15 p.m.
• Jazzman Café – This café provides light meals and snacks in the outpatient lobby, Monday through Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
• Vending machines, which can be found on most units.
• Pediatric friendly waiting areas equipped with computers and other activities
• Conveniently placed automatic hand sanitizer dispensers