- Extended hours with drop in service is available. The doctors would like you to avoid attending “walk-in clinics”, and instead drop in at Aquarius Medical Clinic so your medical information stays here. We have locum doctors who can treat you when your family physician is unavailable and we encourage you to see them.
- Clinic hours are 9am-9pm weekdays (Monday-Thursday) and 9am-6pm Friday. The weekend hours typically are 10am- 4pm Sat/Sun. Exact times are on our phone message.
- One hour of parking is reimbursed ($4.00). Please present your ticket stub.
- Please try to focus on your main problem. We care about all of your problems. Please tell your doctor about all of your symptoms and difficulties. Our doctors do their best to handle all your medical concerns efficiently. However, certain complaints require follow up appointments. Please be prepared to return for follow up appointments at your doctor’s medical discretion. Your doctor will focus on your main problem today, and if necessary, discuss plans for any other medical issues.
- This is an academic facility. UBC Faculty of Medicine trains medical students and resident doctors at this clinic. Medical students are trained to take medical histories and perform certain physical examinations. The supervising doctor makes the diagnosis and decides on management with the medical student. Resident doctors see patients with less direct supervision (as they have graduated medical school). A resident doctor can diagnose and treat your condition, and will have a supervisor readily available. The supervising doctor is responsible to ensure that your problems are accurately addressed. You may be asked to see a medical student or resident doctor and we encourage you to allow them to facilitate us with your care. If you have a very personal issue that day, and do not want to see a student or resident doctor, please inform the staff or the student/resident and we will do our best to accommodate your request for that visit.
- Complete physicals are not for everyone. Every new patient qualifies for one full (head-to-toe) examination for a baseline. Please ask your doctor what annual follow up is thereafter required. For example, a young healthy woman typically only requires an annual pap test. If a breast exam is required, this is done typically in a separate visit (so that if a mass is discovered there can be adequate time to deal with its management). A head-to-toe complete physical takes 20-30 minutes, and is recommended for patients with serious health conditions or who are elderly. The physical is often used to help triage/sort out problems, and often bloodwork or a follow-up visit is required after the complete physical.
- This is a full service facility. Doctors at the clinic perform minor surgery at the office, including excision of moles and lumps, IUD insertion, endometrial biopsy, polyp removal, abscess drainage, hemorrhoid enucleation, and suturing wounds. The doctors may also perform injections of joints, aspiration of ganglions, and cauterize nosebleeds. There is a lab (BC Biomedical) conveniently located across the street for blood tests and pharmacies nearby. One pharmacy is located downstairs at Urban Fare grocery store, the Pharmasave is ½ block away on Pacific Blvd, and Shopper’s Drug Mart is located on Nelson St. at Homer Street. All childhood vaccines, flu shots, and most travel vaccines are available.
- Referrals are at the discretion of the doctor. Patients often assume that it is simple for doctors to make a letter of referral. However, the system requires the doctor to complete a full history and physical, send the patient for investigations, and have a provisional diagnosis BEFORE referral is made. Our doctors will refer your appropriately and expeditiously once they have determined that you need a specialist.
- MSP doesn’t cover all services. For example, forms and sick notes require payment. All forms must be presented at the reception desk and paid for before the office visit. Transfer of records is not an insured service. The cost is $40 to send all materials via confidential secure mail to their new doctor. Healthy people don’t typically need their entire chart transferred, but people with serious illness should at least have a summary sent to their new doctor.
- Doctors do not take patient phone calls. Doctors cannot be expected to diagnose or treat problems over the telephone, as this is an unsafe practice. In addition, phone calls are often disruptive to appointments. To be fair to all, this clinic does not accept patient phone calls. Please come by in person. We have urgent appointments available every day in order for you to be better served.
- Please do not call for your test results. When you are sent for a test, ask your doctor if you need to come back to review results. Typically, you are expected to return if your symptoms remain or if you worsen, even if the doctor doesn’t call you back. Doctors always call patients with significant results that need follow up. If in doubt, please just come back to the office to discuss things in person.
- After hours services are very limited. The clinic is open extended hours in order to deal with most urgent problems in a convenient manner. If an emergency occurs outside of these times you must go to the emergency room (call 911 for ambulance). Nuisance problems will have to wait until the morning. House calls are not typically provided (only in rare circumstances, such as palliative home care which was pre-arranged by your doctor). Phone advice is NOT covered by MSP, and no diagnosis or prescriptions will be given over the phone. To ask for phone advice after hours, the cost is $100 for up to 15 minutes, and the pager number is 604-601-7772.
- There are charges for missed appointments. You must phone to cancel an appointment so that an urgent drop in can have your appointment time.
- Pregnancy. Prenatal care, including delivery, can be provided by our maternity doctors, Dr. Renee Hall (BC Women’s Hospital), Dr. Shana Johnston (BC Women’s Hospital), Dr Lana Lipkowitz (St. Paul’s Hospital) and Dr. Sheena Goldie (BC Women’s Hospital).Your baby is considered a clinic patient, and all newborn care including vaccines can be done here by your family doctor.
- Confidentiality. Expect the highest level of confidentiality from your doctor. You must provide written, witnessed authorization in order to release your medical information to anyone (even a parent, a counselor, or a spouse), unless you are with the person at the time of disclosure.
- Termination of the doctor-patient relationship can be done at any time and can be initiated by either party. If a patient feels that the relationship is not working out, they can seek a new doctor. A doctor can equally decide if the relationship is not therapeutic, and if necessary, will notify the patient.
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