Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, we promote breastfeeding. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends breastfeeding babies for the first six to twelve months. Breastfeeding helps defend children against infections, prevents allergies, and protects against a number of chronic conditions. While experts believe that breast milk is the best nutritional choice for infants, breastfeeding may not be possible for all women.

Some women have specific medical considerations that impede breastfeeding; others choose to feed by formula because of discomfort, work schedule, or lifestyle choices. In these cases, an iron-fortified, milk-based infant formula is a good alternative. We will gladly discuss your diet and feeding concerns at your child's well care visit, or please call during office hours to speak with our experienced nursing staff.

Please call our office and follow the prompts for our prescription refill line. Allow one business day for all routine prescription refills. For prescriptions that require prior authorization from your insurance company, please plan ahead to allow at least three to five days for refill approval. Prescription refills for controlled substances such as pain medications are refilled Monday through Friday only.

Our routine health maintenance visit schedule follows the American Academy of Pediatrics vaccine guideline for children.

We recommend that your newborn be seen in our office 1-2 days after discharge from the hospital. Our staff understands the importance of this first visit and will make every effort to schedule this visit promptly.

Every effort is made to arrange your child's well care and follow up visits with the physician of your choice. When your child is ill, he or she may see any one of our physicians.

For non-urgent referrals: when one of our doctors refers you to a specialist, please schedule your appointment with the specialist, then call our office within five business days of your appointment. Your referral will be available within 72 hours. Most referrals are completed electronically and submitted directly to the specialist's office. Please check with our office staff to determine if your insurance plan processes referrals electronically.

For urgent referrals: when one of our doctors determines that you need an urgent referral, your referral will be initiated immediately. Please remain in our office while your referral is processed, then proceed to your specialist.

To help protect your child from many serious infectious diseases, we follow the immunization schedule recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Please discuss your immunization questions and concerns with any of our pediatricians.

As all children are different, we advise following several appropriate steps to advance your child's diet based on age and development. Please discuss these steps with our providers at your well care visit.

You will receive a call quickly with any lab results that require urgent attention. Other abnormal lab results will be addressed promptly by the provider that ordered the labs or tests. Normal values are reviewed and addressed by the physician that ordered them.

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. See our insurance page for more information.

Our medical providers are available 24 hours a day. Call our Blackwood office at (856) 228-1061 or our Mullica Hill office at (856) 343-3910 and our answering service will be glad to assist you in reaching triage or a physician. Please be aware that after-hours calls are intended for urgent medical issues that cannot wait until the next business day. Referral and appointment requests will not be addressed via pager. Pages 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.

Our office is open Monday through Friday. As our daily schedule is subject to change, please call to confirm office hours.