Pain Management Services

     Pain is one of the most disabling conditions affecting millions of Americans every day.  Northwest Diagnostic Clinic has recently brought a pain management doctor on board to provide targeted relief for patients with certain treatable problems.  Naveen Ramineni, MD is double-boarded in pain management and physical medicine and rehabilitation and an appointment may be requested by clicking here.

Dermatology Services

     Dermatology is the medical specialty devoted to diseases of the skin, including skin cancers.  Dr. Tri Nguyen joined Northwest Diagnostic Clinic in October, 2009, specializing both in general dermatology, as well as being Fellowship trained in Mohs' micrographic surgery.  Physicians who are trained in Mohs' surgery use the technique to remove potential skin cancers in a manner that leaves as much healthy tissue in the surrounding areas as possible.  Dr. Nguyen is also trained in phlebology, medicine involving the venous system, particularly in the legs.

     Melissa Chiang, MD and Neil Farnsworth, MD joined NWDC in 2010, and Dr. Chiang brings Fellowship training in dermatopathology to our growing dermatology department.  They will practice out of our new Cypress Station location, scheduled to open in August, 2010, but are accepting appointments now.

      As with our rheumatologists, many patients will ask their primary care physician for a referral to one of our dermatologists, but, depending on their insurance plan, they may be able to refer themselves for an evaluation appointment for any lesion that causes them concern.  For more information about the kinds of lesions that may be a problem, visit the Skin Cancer Foundation web site at http://www.skincancer.org/.

     Request an appointment with any of our dermatologists by clicking here.

Rheumatology Services

      Rheumatology is a medical specialty devoted to the treatment of certain autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis.  Dr. Carmen Perez-Masuelli joined Northwest Diagnostic Clinic in 2001, and has built a tremendous practice through her diagnostic skills and compassionate treatment of her patients.  She was joined in 2006 by Dr. Leslie Wilson, another board-certified rheumatologist, who is working at our Cypress Station office on a part-time basis. 

     In November, 2009, Tamar Brionez, MD joined Drs. Perez-Masuelli and Wilson, as Northwest Diagnostic Clinic expanded its rheumatologic disease and osteoporosis "Center of Excellence." 

     Many patients will ask for referrals from their primary care physician before seeing one of our rheumatologists, but others can refer themselves.  Check with your particular insurance plan to be sure, then request an appointment by clicking here.  Our rheumatologists work closely with physician assistant Karen Tipton-Faust, PA-C, who provides their patients with interim or acute access between their visits with their physician, while also fulfilling her role as a primary care physician assistant for the clinic.

     For more information about our rheumatology department, click here.

Appointment Scheduling

     Our offices operate by appointment only.  In some cases, patients can be seen the same day, so if you are interested in a same-day appointment, please call our schedulers at (281) 440-5300, option 2, or toll free at (866) 333-6932, option 2.

     If you wish to be seen for routine care or for a periodic check-up, please use our on-line appointment request form.  This is for non-urgent care only, allow one business day for processing.   One of our schedulers will contact you to confirm or discuss your request.  

     For bone density appointment scheduling, click here.

     To complete our abbreviated registration form on-line, click here.

  Imaging Services

     In keeping with its tradition of providing the best and most convenient care for its patients, Northwest Diagnostic Clinic has opened a comprehensive outpatient diagnostic imaging center on Cypress Station Drive, just north of FM 1960 and west of I-45.  The imaging center is equipped with magnetic resonance imaging/magnetic resonance angiography (MRI/MRA) equipment, computed tomography (CT), nuclear medicine, ultrasound and plain film radiography (XRAY).  When an imaging study is required, the NWDC physician will direct the patient to the center, where they will receive superior care in a comfortable setting.

     Special note:  MR, CT, nuclear medicine and ultrasound are all accredited by the ACR.  This indicates that these modalities meet stringent requirements for quality as established by the American College of Radiology.  For more information about accreditation and what it means, visit the ACR web site at www.acr.org.

     Continuing our emphasis on the bone health of our patients, Northwest Diagnostic Clinic continues to offer GE/Lunar Prodigy bone densitometers at our Cypress Station and Woodlands offices.  This low-emission imaging system provides excellent reporting of the health of a patient's bones, helping our physicians to diagnose and treat osteoporosis and osteopenia, and to monitor the "bone health" of patients on certain long-term medications.  This service is generally covered by most insurance plans and Medicare provides for biannual screening exams for patients meeting certain clinical criteria. 

     Many of our physicians are certified in clinical densitometry by the International Society of Clinical Densitometry, indicating that they have advanced training in the interpretation of these tests.  Those with "CCD" after their names have achieved such designation.

     If you are already a patient, contact your physician's nurse to arrange a referral for this test.  If not, you can request an appointment with one of our physicians by clicking here.

     For more information about NWDC Diagnostic Imaging, click here.

 

Laboratory Services

 

     Northwest Diagnostic Clinic is pleased to offer many laboratory tests in house for the convenience of our patients in our CLIA-certified laboratory. In some cases, we will either collect your specimen in our office and send it to a reference laboratory, or it may be necessary for you to go to a laboratory drawing station located apart from our practice. Your insurance plan will determine which arrangement will be provided for you.  It is the patient's responsibility to notify us if the reference lab we use, Quest Diagnostics (except for UnitedHealthcare beneficiaries, whose specimens go to LabCorp), is NOT an approved laboratory on their insurance plan.  Otherwise the patient will be financially responsible for any out-of-network services rendered by the reference laboratory.

     Our laboratory is open to collect specimens beginning at 7:30 a.m. (Cypress Station) and 8:00 a.m. (Woodlands).  If you would like to request an appointment to have your blood drawn, you may call our scheduling line or click here to use our on-line appointment request form. 

Infusion Services

   In our continuing quest to provide the highest quality and convenient care to our patients, our Infusion Center is staffed with trained infusion nurses and assistants who will make the infusion experience as pleasant as possible.  Under the direction of rheumatologist Carmen Perez-Masuelli, MD, FACP, the Infusion Center operates Monday through Friday at Cypress Station, and Tuesday and Wednesday at our Woodlands location.

After Hours Care

 

     Should you need to contact our office after hours, simply call our main office number at (281) 440-5300, where you can leave a message for your doctor’s nurse, or reach the answering service by following the instructions given. Please remember that calls to our answering service after hours should be reserved for truly urgent situations, rather than those that can wait until the next business day. Our staff is limited in what it can do for you outside of the office setting. If you experience an emergency situation, you should proceed immediately to the nearest emergency room for evaluation and care.

Hospital Care

     Several years ago, the physicians of Northwest Diagnostic Clinic made changes to our practice that we feel have allowed us to serve our patients in the best way possible.  In the past, our doctors made rounds at the hospital individually, significantly limiting office time and availability to our patients.   Over the last few years, the hospital care of our patients has been handled by a group of "hospitalists," physicians who specialize in hospital-based medicine.  Although not a part of NWDC, these doctors would provide seamless care to our patients and then refer them back to our physicians upon discharge from the hospital.

     In cases where a patient is seen by one of these non-NWDC physicians, financial arrangements will be coordinated with their offices as well.  All of these doctors are on numerous managed care plans, but please be aware that charges for services rendered by them will be billed by their respective offices, not by Northwest Diagnostic Clinic, P.A.  We hope this will not cause any confusion for our patients.

 

Medication Refills

 

     We are happy to assist you in refilling your prescription medications.  Due to the overwhelming volume of these calls, however, we must ask that you refill all of your medications at the time you see the doctor in the office.  Calls that are made for refills after your office visit delay our staff in caring for sick patients, so please make it a point to remind your doctor to refill your medications before you leave the office.

     For refills between office visits, please plan ahead and call your pharmacy at least three  business days before you run out of medicine. When the pharmacy calls us, we will review your chart and determine whether your medications can be refilled or if you need to be seen for an office visit.  In the event that you are going to run out of medication before your scheduled office visit, our staff will work with you to make sure you don't run out before you can be seen.

     Our doctors write prescriptions for the the medications that they feel their patients need.  Pharmacy benefit companies that request substitution of one medication over another one will find those requests denied by our staff.

     To read our refill policy notice, click here. (Requires Acrobat Reader).

 

Office Hours

 

     We are open Monday through Thursday from 7:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Privacy Policy      We may occasionally send e-mails to our patients, updating them on things happening in the practice, or to pass along non-sensitive medical information.   If you ever wish to have your name removed from this distribution list, simply reply to one of the messages with that instruction.  If you have any comments about our privacy policy, feel free to forward those comments to our administrator, John Watson.  His contact information can be found on the "To Reach Us" page of this site.  For a copy of our Notice of Patient Privacy, click here.
 

For general patient information, click here

Disclaimer: Northwest Diagnostic Clinic, P.A. offers and maintains this Web site to provide information of a general nature about the practice, and may include information about medical conditions requiring the services of our physicians.  The information is provided with the understanding that Northwest Diagnostic Clinic, P.A. is not engaged in rendering medical advice or recommendations.  Any information gleaned from this Web site should not be considered a substitute for consultation with a licensed physician to address individual medical needs.  Individual facts and circumstances will determine the treatment that is most appropriate.  This information is meant for residents of the state of Texas and any others who read it do so at their own risk.