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We hope the following information will help guide you through some of the steps of being an Emory Spine Center patient as well provide useful information for you.
Pre-Registration
Before your first appointment with a physician from Emory Orthopaedics & Spine Center, you may want to complete the medical history forms below. We also request that you obtain medical records from your other health care providers and bring them with you if possible.
These steps will help us expedite your appointment and assure we have the appropriate information needed to provide the best advice possible during your initial consultation. You may print the form, fill in all the information and bring it with you to your first appointment. We cannot accept the form electronically due to patient confidentiality.
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Your First Visit
You may make an appointment at The Emory Orthopaedics & Spine Center directly (if your insurance plan does not require a referral), or through a referral from your primary care physician.
Your initial visit with The Emory Orthopaedics & Spine Center will include an evaluation based on current symptoms or conditions and a thorough medical history. In addition to a completed registration form, (which can be printed out and filled out in advance from this web site), you will need to have any other pertinent information and your medical history, along with past X-ray films (the actual firms, not just paper reports) or test results. Please ask your referring physician to help you obtain this information.
Feel free to print out the following form, complete it at home, and bring it with you when you come for your appointment: New Patient Information Form.
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Billing
The Emory Orthopaedics & Spine Center accepts most insurance plans. You should bring your insurance card with you to your appointments.
Payment for services is due at the time services are rendered. However, as a courtesy, we will submit a claim for you to any third party insurance carrier with whom Emory Healthcare has a contract. Please call in advance of your appointment to determine if your insurance carrier is contracted with us. You will be responsible for any charges not covered by your carrier. If you prefer to file yourself, we will provide the paperwork necessary for reimbursement and ask for payment by you at the time of the appointment.
We accept payment any of the following payment methods:
- Cash
- Personal Check
- All Major Credit Cards
- Managed Care: If you are covered by managed care, we request co-pays and deductibles at the time of the appointment.
- HMO Plans: almost all HMO insurance plans require a referral from your Primary Care Physician.
- PPO Plans: If your insurance is a PPO plan, a referral is usually not necessary, however, please check to ensure that Emory is included in your plan.
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Surgery and Post-Op Information
Your doctor has recommended surgery. Details of your operation have already been discussed with you. Now we need to give you some general information about the preoperative process.
Prior to your surgery, an appointment will be scheduled for you to attend the preoperative clinic. This clinic is located on the third floor, "D" wing of Emory University Hospital. For some of you, this only includes the routine blood screening, a short visit with the anesthesiologist, and possibly a chest x-ray and an EKG. Others will need a more detailed examination by an Emory Clinic internist. The need for this depends largely on your medical history, the complexity and/or length of your surgery, and your age. We ask that you see an Emory Clinic internist instead of your family doctor, primarily because many of your family doctors are not on staff at Emory Hospital. Should you have a problem after surgery, while still in the hospital, which requires special medical attention, the Emory doctor familiar with your medical history will be summoned to attend to your needs.
Sometimes the preoperative internist will recommend additional testing to ensure the health of your heart, lungs, kidneys, etc. His/her nurse will schedule the test with you. If there is a need to change an appointment, or if you think of questions to ask them, you may contact the nurse at 404-712-7806.
REMEMBER, unless you hear from us, your surgery date and time will remain as planned.
We encourage you to call your nurse anytime you have questions or concerns regarding your surgical procedure. If you have questions regarding appointments (other than those scheduled by the preop nurse), you will need to contact your doctor's secretary.
Take a few minutes to read over the information sheet that will be given to you at the time of discharge from the hospital. We've found that if you familiarize yourself with it before surgery, it is helpful when it actually becomes time to put it to use.
Pre-Surgery Instructions
Post-Surgery Instructions
General Information During Your First 6 Weeks After Surgery
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