Frequently Asked Questions

Our office is open Monday through Friday. Our usual office hours are Monday 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM, Tuesday thru Thursday 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM, and Friday 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM. However, as our daily schedule is subject to change, please call to confirm office hours.  If you have an emergency need, feel free to call, and we will make every effort to make an appointment as soon as possible.
 

Yes, we welcome new patients.

Advocare participates with most major insurance plans. As participation varies by region, specialty, and physician, we recommend that you contact either our office or your insurance company representative to verify that your insurance plan is accepted.

Many insurance providers will only cover specialist visits with a prior referral from your primary care physician. Please check with your insurance company to determine whether a referral is required.  If a referral is required, please bring a copy with you.

Our medical providers are available 24 hours a day. Call the office at 908-852-7482 and the emergency contact number for the evening will be given on the answering machine. Please be aware that after-hours calls are intended for urgent medical issues that cannot wait until the next business day. Calls to the emergency number are typically returned within 15 minutes. Please call back if you have not received a timely response.

IN THE EVENT OF A LIFE THREATENING EMERGENCY, CALL 911.

Visit schedules will vary depending on your individual characteristics and your specific medical condition. You will be told at the time of your visit when your next follow-up appointment should be, depending on your specific need.

Our policy is to give results face-to-face at the follow-up appointment that will have been scheduled at the time that you are given any physician's order for testing. As a general warning for all patients, we do not believe the saying, "The doctor would have called if . . ."  If you have not received your results, or have not made your appointment to review them, please call us.

Please check with our office, but generally it is your responsibility to ask your referring physician to fax outside results to our office so that we can best care for you. If you are coming for an abnormal mammogram which has been performed outside of Hackettstown Medical Center, please bring your mammogram disc with you.

One who practices the specialty of General Surgery. This specialty begins with abdominal surgeries. It most commonly includes gallbladder, bowel (small and large intestine), hernias, appendices, hemorrhoids/anal pathology, as well as disorders of the spleen/liver/pancreas. It also includes expertise in all aspects of laparoscopic surgery. Outside of the abdominal cavity it includes any diseases of the breast, "lumps and bumps" most anywhere on the body, lacerations, trauma, and skin cancer or benign lesions. Wound care also falls commonly to the general surgeon. Also commonly included are diseases of the thyroid/parathyroid.

A general surgeon who has completed a two-year surgical oncology fellowship, following a general surgery residency, in an SSO (Society of Surgical Oncology) approved fellowship program. This allows the surgeon to take care of the entire cancer patient. With this additional training, the surgeon has learned the most advanced treatments for cancers of the GI tract, breast, skin and thyroid, so there is no better trained surgeon. They are truly a "breast specialist."  In addition, they can do as well, if not better, than any dermatologist in treating skin cancers. Lastly, they take what all general surgeons do within the abdominal cavity and take it to a higher level.