A Solution for Patients of Dr. Ramos in Savannah

An Interview with Savannah Integrative Pediatrics –

A Solution for Patients of Dr. Ramos in Savannah

On February 19, 2021, we lost a uniquely caring pediatrician with the passing of the much beloved Dr. Ramos in Savannah. Parents throughout the Savannah area have desperately been seeking the same quality of care and natural approach to pediatrics and patient care for their children. Dr. Ramos cannot be replaced and will continue to be missed.

Parents are thrilled to hear of a new practice opening this Fall by 2 caring Nurse Practitioners who worked with Dr. Ramos at his offices in Savannah & Pooler. Charmaine & Sommer were so kind as to answer a few questions in a brief interview to help navigate the opening of their new practice.

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• What is the name of your new practice and where will it be located?

Savannah Integrative Pediatrics is located in Savannah off Stephenson Avenue. Will will give the exact address when we are completely moved into the building. 

• How do you differ from other pediatric offices in your integrative care approach?

To our knowledge, there is not another integrative pediatric office in our area. We believe in treating the whole child – including their physical, mental, and emotional well-being in every stage of development – in good health or in times of illness. We also place tremendous value on parent education, communication and input. We certainly believe in informed decision making. 

• We are obviously still deeply saddened by the loss of Dr. Ramos. How long had both of you worked with him before his tragic passing? 

The providers have worked a combined 26 years for Dr. Ramos. 7 of those years as Nurse Practitioners in his office. 

• What made you decide to open your own practice this Fall?

There was a huge void left in our community with the loss of Dr. Ramos and the closing of his practice. We know we will never fill those shoes but we strongly desire to give our patients and our own children a medical home with like minded care. 

• Since there is no acting physician in the practice, what limitation will patients see of the services you are able to offer? (Newborn first visits, prescriptions, urgent/hospital care visits, etc.)

We will not have hospital privileges. At this moment, pediatricians no longer admit and follow patients in the hospital. The hospitalist service admits and assumes all care for the patient. Because we do not have hospital privileges, this would be the same for newborns. The hospitalist would assume care at birth and then we would, once discharged from the hospital. With regards to other limitations, we have a collaborating physician who will be able to coordinate patient care with us so we can have certain tasks completed such as ADHD medication prescriptions, therapy forms, etc.

We want our patients to be aware of these particular limitations but, rest assured, we are putting a system in place to ensure our patients’ needs are met.

• What insurance will you be accepting and will this be right away?

We have applied for all major insurance companies, this includes private and Medicaid (Amerigroup, Peachstate, Wellcare, etc.). We are told it can take up to six months for them to approve. We are hoping this is not going to be the case but until we are approved we will offer services on a self pay basis. 

• If there is a wait time for insurance, how can families make sure they don’t lose their spot as a new patient if unable to afford self pay during the transition period?

We will make announcements as each insurance is approved. Once their insurance is approved, they can call the office and schedule an appointment. Appointments will be scheduled in the order the phone call is received, however we will consider age, medical needs, and the length of time since the last time the patient was evaluated. We will be updating our Facebook page and website (which we will share soon) as we have information. We also will send email updates to try and keep everyone informed. It will take some time to get everyone scheduled but we will do our best to get everyone in as soon as possible.

• For patients who have already had a well visit, will they have another with your office or will it just be a new patient appointment?

This is a difficult question to answer. We suggest that they call their insurance to check with their rules. Every insurance company is different. Some may say it shouldn’t be a problem at all as the initial visit will be billed as a “New patient visit” but some insurance may have specific rules on how this would count if the patient had a recent well visit already billed. Please check with your insurance as we wouldn’t want you to be stuck with a surprise bill that you will be responsible for paying. 

• Will you be offering in-house lab testing?

This is the plan; availability will depend on how quickly we can get the lab and other vendors registered and approved.

• We all loved the vitamins, probiotics and other items for sale. Will you be offering the same type of items for sale in the office?

Yes, eventually. We loved having these available to our patients.

Thank you so much to Savannah Integrative Pediatrics for taking the time to chat with me! As a parent in the Savannah area, I hope you found this informative and helpful as you consider transitioning to this new and exciting practice.

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