My Main Clinic Times & Availability

Main Clinic Times

I try to keep to the following set of times. However, as a neonatologist too, sometimes my times have to be amended due to deliveries and urgent hospital patients.

Monday to Friday:

0900 – 1300 Morning Clinic
(last morning appointment is 1230)

1400 – 1700 Afternoon Clinic
(last afternoon appointment is 1630)

Alternate Saturdays:

0900 – 1300
(last clinic appointment is 1230)

For appointments, or to confirm I am available, please contact (345) 745 7450 and reception will happily book you in.

You can text me personally to (345) 326 7827 but I may not be able to respond immediately if I am with patients & parents.

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Walk-in Availability

There is frequently availability to see me if you just turn up and I am always delighted to do my best to accommodate. Obviously booked appointments are seen at their booked time and so walk-in patients might need to be a teeny bit patient.

The beauty of my new Grand Pavilion location is that I am now joined by Dr Jasmina Marinova and so it is far more likely that at least one of us can see you if you walk in.

Well-child, Developmental Checks & Immunisations

There are certain types of appointment that we have to prepare for too. Consequently, we ask that you schedule all well-child appointments, developmental checks and immunisations in advance so that we can give you and your child the best possible service and make sure we have everything you need ready for when you turn up e.g. the immunisation itself!

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Out-of-hours Access

I live permanently on island and only 15 minutes from the clinic. Whilst on island, I am permanently on call for deliveries and neonatal patients, 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.

However, I am generally available for urgent matters, by phone (345) 326 7827, at all times and I know this is something my parents really value, especially new parents when everything seems a bit scary when it happens for the first time.

Fees & Insurance

My Rates are STANDARD!

It’s a common misperception that most doctors set their own rates and vary them for all sorts of reasons. In Cayman, the insurance companies set a ‘standard’ reimbursement rate for episodes of care. Those rates are adjusted (by the insurance companies) depending on the nature/complexity of the consultation and occasionally by time of day for more emergency-type care.

I may be a very senior person but my rates are the standard ones!

So, what do you pay?

The fee we charge (not that you pay – see below) is made up of the following:

The consultation fee for the episode
The cost of specific items used or consumed

It actually works remarkably similarly to having your car serviced – where you pay for labour and parts – just that the insurance company sets the rates!

Your insurance company, depending on your insurer, generally pays 80% of the bill (for which we submit the claim on your behalf) and you are responsible for 20% called co-pay. The co-pay element is charged to you directly on completion of the consultation and we reclaim the remainder from the insurance company directly.

How does it work?

Generally, the following would be how it worked for a new patient (the only difference for existing is you are already registered):

At reception, you’ll be asked to complete a brief registration form including your contact details, your child’s details and your insurance information (provider, card number etc)
(existing patients are asked to confirm nothing has changed)
Reception will then verify your insurance cover, to ensure we charge you correctly on completion
You’ll have your consultation, during which your records are updated
This information is used to produce your co-pay bill and the insurance claim
You settle the co-pay bill and the rest is up to us

On occasions, insurance companies have queries and we may have to contact you afterwards. It’s not that frequent but it does happen (and it out of our hands). Generally, most people simply see our work appear on their periodic health insurance statement.

Insurance Cover for Babies

It is important that you have organized the insurance for your new baby before they are born. All newborn babies are covered via their mother’s policy for the first 30 days of life. The only exception to this is where a mother is herself on her mother’s policy in which case the new ‘grandchild’ will need separate insurance organising before birth, or the family will potentially be responsible for all costs.

There are two sets of fees payable for a newborn baby – the hospital fees and the Paediatrician fees. These are completely separate. If you decide to have your baby cared for by a government Paediatrician, the Paediatrician fees still apply, are still the same but will be paid directly to the hospital.

Neonatal Intensive Care

Because of the high costs involved in neonatal care, parents are often very scared, specially when they see ‘limits’ getting close. However, in the vast majority of cases, parents are very adequately covered and once they reach certain limits they stop paying the co-pay element too (that doesn’t mean cover stops).

However, there are variations by insurance companies and so we are always very happy to confirm EXACTLY what you can expect, so there are no nasty surprises (beyond the obvious shock of needing neonatal care to start with).

Again, my rates, despite my seniority, are absolutely standard and the same as you would pay for an HSA paediatrician.

UNDERSTANDING CHARGES FOR NEONATAL CARE

If your baby is admitted to the neonatal (special care baby) unit there will again be two sets of costs. The first is to the hospital for the care provided by the neonatal nurses, the cost of laboratory tests, disposable items, equipment etc. The second cost is for the Neonatologist or Paediatrician. Again, if a mother decides to move to the government these two different costs remain the same, it’s just they are both paid to the hospital. Dr Watkin charges the same amount as the government paediatricians for care on the neonatal unit.

All insurance policies will cover for in-patient neonatal care, although you will almost certainly have a co-pay. It is important to refer to your maximum in-patient co-pay per year, so that you get an idea of what the maximum you are likely to be charged is, rather than worrying about being charged x percent of all the costs ad infinitum. I find it helpful for parents, once they have got over the initial worries and anxieties of a baby on the neonatal unit, to meet with both the hospital billing team and The Medical Clinical billing team to help them better understand the actual parental financial responsibilities and liabilities. This usually reduces parent’s worry and anxieties!

Please talk to us early if you are worried about the cost of neonatal care and we will do everything to help you understand your costs better and the various limits.