Communication

Each patient should have ONE primary caregiver for us to communicate with for providing patients updates or answer questions. Communication via this one point person allows important information regarding your pet to be more clear and concise. Our goal is to avoid any confusion during treatment.

The oncology department is available Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from 8am – 6pm. Every effort will be made to return phone and e-mail messages the same day they are received. The department answers/returns calls between patients. Any messages left after business hours will be returned on the department’s next business day. If you have an urgent concern during off hours, please contact your primary veterinarian or visit your local emergency hospital as they are available 24/7.

Updates

After each treatment visit we e-mail an oncology update to you and your veterinarian. Please read these updates as they contain important information relative to medications, prognosis and recheck appointments.

Estimates

We are happy to provide written estimates for any medical oncology treatment or procedure, feel free to ask at any time. The oncology department cannot provide surgical estimates as they are generated by any doctor performing surgery on your pet.

Prescriptions

Medication refill requests are addressed during normal business hours. Please allow at least 24 hours for refills to be completed. Medications can be picked up at the front desk at any time after they are filled.

For outside pharmacy prescriptions and refills, we are happy to provide you with a written prescription which you can pick up and have filled at the pharmacy of your choice. We are not able to price shop or fax prescriptions.

Blood Work

Some chemotherapy protocols require blood work after treatment. We recommend this blood work be done with our department, as this allows us to address blood work changes immediately. If you elect to have post-chemotherapy blood work checked via your primary veterinarian, they must review these results with you. Post-chemotherapy blood work should always be done in-house (not sent to the lab) so results can be addressed immediately.

Recheck blood work is done on a very specific schedule, as outlined in your discharge/update; deviation from this schedule could compromise the health of your pet. If your veterinarian has blood work concerns they should contact Dr. Hamilton directly.