Starting October 1st, we are updating our lateness policy in an effort to ensure our level of patient care. Patients arriving more than 5 minutes after their appointment time are considered “late,” and we can no longer guarantee we can see you. 

We know that life happens–and New York happens–and being late is often not entirely under our control. Still, we have decided to make this adjustment in our policy to ensure that we can give all of our patients the level of care we aim for. 

The Issue With Allowing More Time

With our previous 15-minute threshold, we found that it would often result in practitioners needing to see two patients in one appointment slot. Besides the obvious and immediate challenges of doing that, the disruption of late patients would often ripple through the rest of the schedule, impacting patients, practitioners, and admin staff for the rest of the shift. Ultimately, it has become clear that it is not fair to anyone.

Let's Meet On Time

We expect to meet you in reception or with you seated in your chair or ready in your room at your appointment time. If you typically need a few minutes to use the restroom, get some water, or otherwise get settled, please plan on arriving early enough to be ready on time. On time appointments keep everything working as smoothly as possible and allows us to better manage any unforeseen circumstance, including late patients.

If You Are Running Late

If you find yourself running late, please reach out as soon as possible by phone, email, or text. The earlier we know, the better chance we have of being able to accommodate you. As always, we will see you if we can, but this depends on the schedule and will be decided on a case-by-case basis. If it is a busy shift, we will be less able to make it happen. 

For those whose lives are such that being on time is a challenge, we recommend booking the same day when you are better able to ensure you make it on time. We also still have our same-day rescheduling option for any available appointment, so take advantage of that if you can. But if you cannot reschedule and we cannot otherwise accommodate you, you will be considered a “late cancellation” and be charged for the missed appointment. 

Thank You For Your Understanding & Cooperation

We know that paying for a missed appointment can be frustrating–especially when things are out of your control–and it is truly no fun for us, either. But compared to the other options of double booking appointments and the resulting long wait times or just charging more for each visit, we know this updated lateness policy is the best path forward. With all this in mind, we thank you for your understanding and wish us all a timely arrival.

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