GETTING STARTED WITH YOUR FIRST APPOINTMENT

• All of our referrals require a physician to make the referral. Your child's physician will often call or have a staff person call our office to make the referral. If you have not spoken to the physician, please contact his/her office and ask him/her to either mail or fax us a prescription. The prescription should state that your child is to be evaluated and/or treated for fire setting behaviors. After we have obtained this referral, we will call you to schedule the initial appointment. We also recommend that you call us as soon as possible even though we are trying to reach you, because of the important safety concerns for your child and family. You can reach us at our Fire Safety Phone Line (716) 664-8556. If we are still unable to make contact with you by phone, we will write a letter to you asking you to call to schedule the first appointment. Please contact us as soon as possible when you receive this letter.

REGISTERING FOR YOUR 1ST VISIT

Pre-registering can really save you time. You must call to pre-register for our services before the visit occurs. The phone number to call is (716) 664-8617. If you call and get voice mail, please leave the following information for the registrar so that he/she can return your call:

1. Your name.
2. Your Child's name.
3. The phone numbers where you can be reached.
4. The best time to return your call.
5. The date/time of your scheduled Psychology visit.

• You will still need to stop at the Outpatient Registration desk when you come for the first visit, even though you pre-registered, to sign papers consenting to treatment and to give WCA permission to bill your insurance carrier.
• You always need to stop at the registration desk if you have a change in your Insurance, Name Address or Phone Number. Please let us know about these changes as soon as you know they are to occur so that there are no problems in reaching you for appointments or in your coverage for services.
• You will need to stop at the registration desk if your appointment is on or after January 1 of each year and if your appointment on or after July 1 of each year. The purpose is to update your personal information twice a year just in case you forgot to do so when the changes occurred.

WHAT TO EXPECT AT YOUR VISITS

• The number of appointments needed will vary depending on your individual needs.
• Your first appointment will usually be to complete different questionnaires to assess your child and the family risks for firesetting. The questionnaires for adults and children are an important way for us to identify your child's and family's strengths and problem areas.
• The second appointment is usually an interview with the clinician that includes your child and the parents or caretakers of the child. Follow-up appointments are made based on the results of the first two appointments. Please feel free to contact the Psychology Services office by calling our Fire Safety number (716) 664-8556 if you have any questions.