partners in health
All of the physicians provide longitudinal family medicine at our clinic. That means we work proactively to ensure that our patients preventative health screening (such as cancer screenings, diabetes screening, high blood pressure screening, immunizations, etc.) are all up to date. We work hard to stay accessible with same-day appointment availability.
In return, we ask that you list us as your family physician when you visit any other healthcare setting such as the hospital, urgent/primary care centre, or walk-in clinics. We also ask that you check with the clinic first for appointments before proceeding to walk-in clinics. Patients who routinely use walk-in clinics in lieu of seeing their regular family physician may be asked to leave the family practice.
Appointment etiquette
If you notice that our waiting room is often empty, that’s because we strive to stay on schedule! This is beneficial for you because no one wants to waste hours and hours waiting for their physician. This is beneficial for us because we want to leave on time at the end of the day to join our families and because our staff don’t want to work overtime!
Sometimes we run behind—family medicine is not always predictable and a patient may require more time than expected. One day, that patient who needs extra time may be you or a family member so we appreciate your patience. If you have another commitment and you cannot wait, please speak to a staff member, and they will be happy to re-schedule you on another day.
In order to make the most of our appointment time and stay on schedule we ask the following:
- list all the reasons for your visit when you book the appointment: this allows staff to prepare things in advance or let you know a different appointment type is needed and allows your physician to budget your time together and see what can be covered and prioritized during the visit
- arrive at least 15 minutes in advance for to allow extra time for measurements:
- well child/newborn and well adult exams (complete physicals, Driver’s medicals, pre-operative exams, Paps)
- pregnancy visits
- call us as soon as possible if you are running late—we can often see patients out of order to keep clinic flow going
Staff Harassment/IDEA
Inclusion-Diversity-Equity-Accessibility
We understand that health issues are stressful. Delays in the system are now common place and frustrating to us all. But that is never an excuse to be rude or disrespectful to staff or physicians. Any inappropriate behavior is grounds for immediate removal as a clinic patient.
Our physicians come from different backgrounds. Their communication style may not fit your needs. Some of us may have accents. Inappropriate requests re: physician selection based on ethnicity or gender will not be honored.
We strive to make the clinic as accessible as possible in all ways—whether that is minimizing time in the exam room or keeping the exam room open for those who feel uncomfortable in tight spaces or using our oversized exam room with an electric exam table for those with mobility issues. Please let us know if there is anything we can do to make your visit more comfortable.
Environmental Commitment
The health sector contributes 4.6% of all greenhouse gas emssions in Canada. This stems from packaging, tests, and medications. Since our clinic’s inception, Dr. Ali prioritizes sustainable practices in the clinic. We minimize single use products: for example, we use cotton balls and an alcohol dispenser vs. individually packaged alcohol swabs. We recycle as much material as possible (plastic wrap, paper, cardboard); we compost food waste in our staff room; we use fabric gowns and drapes; and we do not use paper exam table since tables are sanitized after each visit. If you have any questions about our commitment to minimal waste or any ideas, please let us know.
Switching physicians in the clinic
We understand that sometimes the patient-physician relationship is not ideal and that you would like to switch to another family physician. It is our clinic policy to not allow switching amongst different physicians in the clinic since we have shared coverage and you may still see your previous physician in an urgent situation.
Hours of operation
Monday: 9am-5pm | Tuesday: 9am – 5pm | Wednesday: 9am – 5pm | Thursday: 9:30am – 5pm | Friday: 9am – 5pm | Saturday & Sunday: Closed |
Lunch is taken daily from 1-2pm
When your physician has planned time away from the clinic, every effort is made to get a locum (substitute) physician to work in place of him or her. If no locum is available, please see one of the other clinic physicians for any urgent issues. Routine care such as well adult checks, well child checks and immunizations will not be booked with alternate physicians since it is best for those visits to be provided by your regular physician.
Travel medicine
Travel medicine—advice about immunizations, prescriptions, etc—related to upcoming trips is not a MSP-eligible service. Travel advice is constantly changing, and we want to ensure that you are safe and protected with the most up-to-date information, so please seek care from a local travel clinic. The recommended immunizations are usually included in their fees.