FAQs

We are promoting preventative care and this means asking about your general overall health at any visit. You can ask your provider if you require an annual check up. If you have no health concerns, you may not need to be seen annually if you are seen for other reasons during the year. Prenatal, well baby checks and chronic disease management follow ups will continue to be pre-booked as they occur at regular intervals.

In keeping with the healthcare team philosophy you will be offered the services of another provider. If you prefer to see only your provider you will be scheduled for the next available appointment.

• Ask a question as many times as needed to understand everything about your illness or treatment
• Have a friend or family member with you if language is a problem
• Ask questions if you are unsure of your medications and what they are for
• Use the same pharmacy all the time
• If you have an emergency please go to the nearest E.R.

Not all colds respond to antibiotic treatment. At the Harrow Health Centre we use guidelines to assess the effectiveness of antibiotic use. Your symptoms may suggest an infection caused by a virus not a bacteria. Colds, influenza(flu) and 90% of sore throats are viral infections. Antibiotics can be used for bacterial infections but will not help with viral illness. Using no antibiotic is therefore safer and your infection will get better just as quickly. Some suggestions for treating your symptoms are as follows:

• Rest as much as possible and drink lots of fluids
• Use ice chips, hard candy or gargle with salt water to reduce throat pain (1/4 tsp salt in 1 cup warm water)
• Acetaminophen(Tylenol, Tempra) or Ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil) can reduce aches, pain and fever
• Consult your local pharmacist

TeleHealth Ontario provides free access to a registered nurse 24/7 at 1-866-797-0000. A nurse can provide both health advice on a specific problem or general information. You will still need to see your family physician for follow up.

Your provider must have a relationship with you and know your health history before a drug can be prescribed. Please, do not go to pharmacy when you are on your last dose and expect quick services. A safe system has a lot of checks in place and takes time.

Nurse Practitioner – These professionals can offer many services including:

• Health assessments (physical examinations)
• Diagnosis and treatment
• Primary reproductive care
• Primary mental health care
• Primary palliative care
• Service coordination and referral
• Patient education
• And more…

An acute/episodic appointment is a pattern of medical and nursing care in which services are provided to a person for one particular problem, without an ongoing relationship being established between the patient and health care professionals.