Family Clinician

Dr. Tom C. RichardM.D., C.C.F.P.,

Graduated from University of Western Ontario in 1987. Dr. Richard completed his family medicine residency in London, ON in 1989 and subsequently set up a family practice in Gananoque, Ontario. Dr. Richard practiced there until 2003 when he decided to relocate to The Medical Centre here in Peterborough. Tom is associated with Queen’s University and presently his practice is a teaching site for Family Medicine Residents.

Other individuals you are likely to encounter at our office include Cathy, receptionist, Kelly, practice nurse and Sara Crough (RN (EC) Nurse Practitioner, as well as family medicine residents from Queen’s University.

Availability & Accessibility

Urgent visits requested by telephone will be evaluated and given an appointment the same day, if possible. If no appointments are available that day, you are welcome to register for the Extended Hours Clinic, otherwise if your concern is of a more urgent nature, you should proceed to the local Emergency Dept at PRHC. Patients are also encouraged to contact TeleHealth Ontario, 1-866-553-7205 if concern is not of an emergent nature.

Appointment Scheduling

All requests for an appointments will be triaged (prioritized) by the receptionist and documented for chief complaint. Patients will be asked to provide specific information about their concern(s) and reason for their visit. This is necessary to appoint the appropriate scheduling and allotted time. Please arrive on time. We will do everything we can to ensure that the office runs efficiently and on time. We reserve the right to rebook patients who are late for appointments.

Missed Appointment Policy

24 hours cancellation notice is required or patient will be charged for missed visit.

Prescribing Policies

Prescriptions will not be routinely renewed over the phone unless previously agreed. It is the patient’s responsibility, as an active partner in their health care, to monitor their prescriptions and make appointments/requests at least 2 weeks prior to prescriptions expiring. We will do our best to review medication lists at each visit and therefore maintain an up-to-date list of prescriptions on a regular basis.

Referrals to Specialists

Dr. Richard recognizes the scope of family practice and the need for occasional referral to specialty services. This will be at Dr. Richard's discretion. Dr. Richard will use evidence-based guidelines to direct these decisions. Before any referral is arranged, patients must see the family doctor for pre-consultation information gathering and investigations to facilitate a faster and more effective consultation.

What to Bring to Each Visit

1. All current medications in their bottles (if not practical, a list with name, dose & frequency)
2. Health Card (without Health card, you will not be seen)

Uninsured Services

Not all services provided are covered by OHIP. As such, you will be asked to pay for certain services. A list of these services will be posted in our office. Non-payment, within a reasonable time frame, will result in a letter of warning. Non-payment twice will result in a discontinuation of uninsured services for that particular patient and may result in this patient no longer being a member of Dr. Richard’s family practice. That said, we realize and will always take into consideration that some patients may not be able to pay for these services. Please do not hesitate to inform us if these charges pose a financial hardship to you. Alternative arrangements can be made and this will not result in any penalty.