We are very pleased that you called Catawba Valley Psychiatric Services. We view psychiatric treatment as a team effort between the doctor and patient. We take pride in our training, knowledge, and capabilities, and we want you to know that we are dedicated to providing you with quality care. However, your level of commitment is just as important in successfully accomplishing the goals set by you and your physician.

Office Hours
Office hours are Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The office is closed for all major holidays. If bad weather requires us to close the office on a day you have an appointment, we will try to reach you by telephone to inform you that the office is closed. When in doubt because of bad weather, please call the office. A message will be on the voice mail letting patients know the status of office hours for that day.

Appointments
We ask that you be on time for your appointments. Your promptness will help us in reducing patient waiting time. However, if you are more than fifteen (15) minutes late for your appointment, your appointment may have to be rescheduled. We also request that you kindly give us 24-hour advance notice if you find it necessary to cancel your appointment. We may charge a reasonable fee for any appointments missed without giving prior notice.

Telephone Calls
Our telephones are answered from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. If you should find it necessary to contact your doctor after regularly scheduled hours, you may leave a message on voice mail and your call will be returned at the earliest possible time. Calls received on weekends will be returned on Monday. The doctor, nurse practitioner, or office staff will make every attempt to return routine phone calls as soon as possible. If your concern is an emergency during non-office hours, you should immediately go to the nearest emergency room for evaluation OR call Catawba Valley Medical Center Psychiatry Services department at (828) 326-3700.

Telephone conversations with your doctor or nurse practitioner are not a satisfactory method of treatment. It is important to discuss treatment issues during an appointment, therefore telephone calls regarding these issues are discouraged. Telephone consultations will be reserved for emergency situations only and there may be a charge depending on the length of the consultation. All phone consultations must be followed up with a regular appointment or, if necessary, hospital admission.

Follow-Up Appointments
Our physicians strive to provide our patients with high quality psychiatric care. Being able to provide this care is only possible through scheduled follow-up appointments. If you do not appear for your appointments, your response to treatment cannot be adequately monitored. If this occurs, our physicians reserve the right to terminate your doctor-patient relationship (to refuse to provide any further psychiatric care to you).

Prescriptions and Refills
It is important to keep all scheduled appointments so that your medications and your response to medication treatment can be appropriately monitored by your clinician here. If you need a refill between appointments, please call our office or have your pharmacy call. Please allow 24 hours to complete the refill. Requests made after 12:00 p.m. on Friday cannot be completed until Monday. Our clinicians are careful to prescribe enough medication to last until your next appointment, so, without any emergency cancellations, refills between appointments should not be necessary. If at any time you experience problems with your medications, please call the office immediately.

All controlled medications are monitored closely, and will not be refilled early or in extra amounts. Controlled medications, like all prescription medications, are to be taken only as prescribed. Our nurse practitioners are only authorized to prescribe a thirty-day supply of controlled medications, so please call prior to running out of your thirty-day supply if you are seeing one of our practitioners. Frequent reports of lost or stolen controlled medications may result in a termination of the doctor-patient relationship. Sample medications are provided if they are available when your clinician starts you on a new medication. CVPS and the manufacturers of the medications provide samples to you as a courtesy. Samples are not to be considered an option for receiving your medications on an on-going basis. Please indicate to your clinician if you feel that you need a less expensive medication as that may be an option in some cases. Most drug manufacturers provide medications at no cost to those living below the poverty level, on fixed incomes, and with no health insurance benefits for medications. We can provide you with information about applying for those programs if you feel you qualify.

Fees and Payment
We try very hard to keep the cost of your care at reasonable levels. Payment is expected at the time of service unless prior arrangements have been made with the office manager. We accept MasterCard, Visa, personal check and cash. A $25.00 charge will be added to your account for any checks returned for insufficient funds or closed accounts. Any questions regarding your bill should be directed to the Business Services department at Catawba Valley Medical Center. They can be reached at (828) 326-3477.

Insurance - CATAWBA VALLEY PSYCHIATRY SERVICES ACCEPTS THESE HEALTH PLANS
If you have insurance coverage, please understand that this is an agreement between you and your insurance company. You will be responsible for the payment of your account, regardless of your insurance carrier's amount of payment. Insurance companies base their payments on what they call "usual and customary charges". These amounts are different for each company and can vary widely, even in the same geographic area. Also, most carriers pay for mental health outpatient treatment at a different rate than regular medical treatment. Please contact your provider before your first appointment so you will be aware of your benefits and any limitations on payment. It is also your responsibility to verify that your physician or other clinician here is a contracted provider with your insurance company. In addition, the office staff will contact your insurance carrier to verify benefits and determine the amount of your co-pay. If you must meet a deductible before payment begins, we will verify with your carrier that the deductible has been satisfied for the calendar year.

If your physician is not a contracted provider with your carrier, you will be responsible for payment of your account and for filing an insurance claim. If you disagree with your carrier's reimbursement amount, contact your carrier directly.

The best care is based on a friendly, mutual understanding among doctor, therapist, staff and client. If any problems or questions arise, please bring them to our attention immediately. Please keep this letter of policies and procedures for future reference. If you have any questions that have not been addressed, please call the office or speak with the office staff during your visit. Again, our thanks to you for contacting our office. We are looking forward to getting to know you.

Thank You.

Isabelle H. Eustice, MD Dr. Eustice earned her degree from Tulane Medical School in New Orleans, Louisiana where she was raised. She did her psychiatry residency at Alton Ochsner Medical Foundation and then the University of South Florida in Tampa. After finishing a fellowship in geriatric psychiatry, she moved to her current position here at CVPS. She is board certified in adult psychiatry.

Charles B. Davis, MD Dr. Davis received both his undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He completed his psychiatry residency at Eisenhower Army Medical Center, and then served as division psychiatrist for the 3rd Infantry Division in Fort Stewart, Georgia. He has practiced at CVPS since 2000, treating adult psychiatric disorders. He is board certified in general psychiatry.

W. Grant Harbison, MD Dr. Harbison earned his BA with highest honors in chemistry from Williams College, and his MD from the University of Washington School of Medicine. He completed residency training in general adult psychiatry at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City, where he eventually served as chief resident. Dr. Harbison was a staff psychiatrist at the World Trade Center Mental Health Intervention Program and trained residents at Mount Sinai Hospital's outpatient intake clinic for a year before accepting his current position at CVPS.

Lizette S. Villacorte, MD Dr. Villacorte earned her medical degree from the University of Santo Tomas, Philippines. She completed her general psychiatry training at St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital, a university hospital of Columbia University. She obtainer her subspecialty training in geriatric psychiatry from the Cornell Institute of Geriatric Psychiatry. She specializes in adult and geriatric psychiatry.

Linda Scott, MSN, FNP Ms. Scott has a twenty-three year history in nursing. Most recently, she graduated from UNC Charlotte in 2001 with her Master of Science in Nursing and is a board certified family nurse practitioner. She is a member of Phi Kappa Phi, as well as the nursing honor society of Sigma Theta Tau. She works with the psychiatrists, performing history and physicals for hospitalized patients and assists with medical management and office evaluations at CVPS.

Debra Engelmann, LCSW Ms. Engelmann is a licensed clinical social worker. She did her undergraduate work at Oneonta College, specializing in fashion and obtainer her masters of social work at Adelphi University in New York. She moved to Hickory in 1995 and began working at Catawba Valley Medical Center as a discharge planner, mainly for psychiatry services. Later, she worked on the same unit providing individual, group and marital therapy. CVMC opened a partial hospitalization program in 1999 where she continued to offer group, individual and family therapy until the program closed in 2004. At the present, she is providing individual and family therapy at CVPS and Fairgrove Primary Health. In addition, she has recently began facilitating support groups at the weight management center and through the gastric bypass program. She has been employed by CVMC for 10 years.

Tyler Shely, LCSW Mr. Shely was born in Kentucky and grew up in Southwest Florida. He completed his undergraduate work at Stetson University and then received his masters of social work in 1990 from the Carver School of Social Work, at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky. Tyler lives in Hickory with his wife and two children. Other activities include his children’s soccer, church activities and scouts.

Cathleen LaFave, Ph.D. Psychologist Dr LaFave received her PhD in Counseling Psychology from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. She completed her clinical Internship at the Syracuse VAMC. She has been a licensed clinical psychologist in North Carolina since July of 1997. She practiced previously at United Samaritans Medical Center in Danville Illinois. She is a Level II EMDR trained therapist and currently serves on the a member of Catawba Valley Behavioral Healthcare Patients Rights Committee.