Please be aware that occasionally the appointment scheduled may be disrupted by our needs to attend to a seriously ill patient or emergency surgery. Your understanding in these situations is appreciated.
Walk Ins:
Unfortunately, after the changes in medicine stemming from the covid pandemic, we can no longer accomodate walk-ins. Call our appointment desk to arrange to see one of our specialists.
We also require that you have previous imaging of your affected region of concern.
HMO Patients:
You need to make sure you have the referral send to our office in advance of the appointment. If you do not have the referral, then you will need to obtain this from the referring physician (your primary care doctor or referring specialist). Please also fill out the “New Patient Packet” information and submit it (by email, fax, or in-person) to our office.
PPO and/or Medicare Patients:
You do not need a referral to be seen by one of the neurosurgeons. You may want to check with your particular insurance to ensure that our neurosurgeons are providers for your PPO plan. Please fill out the “New Patient Packet” information and submit it (by email, fax, or in-person) to our office.
Workman’s Compensation:
The neurosurgeons need to review information about your case prior to setting up an appointment. It is important to bring your films and any written information you may have regarding your particular case. Once this information is reviewed, our neurosurgeons will determine if they would be able to get involved with your Workman’s Compensation claim.
Non-contracted Insurance Groups:
We are happy to schedule appointments for you. However, your out of plan insurance group will not cover the expenses for a consultation with the Inland Neurosurgery Institute (INI). Therefore, you would be required to pay in cash or a credit card for these appointments. If you are willing to do this, you may fill out the New Patient Packet and forward the packet along with your films for review to our office.
MISSED Consultations:
If you miss a consultation without cancelling within 24 hours, you will be billed $50. If you know you cannot make the consultation time and date, then contact us as soon as possible so we can change or cancel your consultation time and refund your deposit.
MRI’s, CT’s, XR’s, and other scans:
We require that you personally obtained the CD’s with your imaging on them and bring them to our office. The facilities where these films were done will not mail them, or if they do, it will take a long time to receive them and we may not receive the films in time for your consultation.
Reminder calls:
One of our staff will make a reminder call for your appointment within 24 hours of the appointment. If you cannot make this appointment, please kindly let us know as soon as possible. If we do not get confirmation of your intent to show up for the first consultation, then your consultation time may be given away as we generally will set aside 60 minutes for a consultation. We would appreciate it if you confirm with our office at least 24 hours prior to your consultation time. This can be done via the website or by phone.
Questions: If you have any questions about your insurance coverage, our surgeons, our office locations, or other matters, feel free to contact our office staff.
Refill Requests:
Requests for prescription refills are processed during normal office hours (9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday). We do not refill prescriptions on weekends.
Second Opinions:
You may have seen a neurosurgeon or orthopedic surgeon and were told you needed surgery. Although this may be true, in many instances the type of surgical procedure may vary widely from one surgeon to the next. The recommended surgical procedure may be what Surgeon “A” feels you should have, but Surgeon “B” recommends a different surgical procedure and Surgeon “C” has recommended conservative (non-surgical treatment). Why the difference of opinions? Even surgeons in the same surgical group may recommend something completely different. That is why they are called “opinions.” Even if you have a specific diagnosis (such as a herniated disc at the L5/S1 level causing a S1 root compression) you may be a candidate for an operation, but that does not mean that an operation needs to be done. In some individuals a conservative approach may be indicated particularly if the symptoms are relatively recent in onset and at least tolerable for the time being. If surgery is felt warranted, one surgeon may recommend a simple lumbar discectomy whereas someone else may recommend a fusion procedure. It is the physician’s job to discuss your alternatives. Ultimately, you have to decide if what you are being told makes sense to you. If so, then by all means take the advice. If not, then seek another opinion. We are happy to see you for a second opinions, regardless of your insurance. If we do not have a contract with your particular insurance then for a consultation fee you can see us for an independent consultation and our opinion. Getting complete information regarding your condition is the most important step towards making the best informed decision and knowing what your alternatives may be.
