Patient Portal Tips

 If you have a medical emergency, please do NOT call the office or use the Patient Portal. You must call 911 or go directly to the nearest emergency department. 

Telehealth or in-person visits are the best way to handle most medical questions and requests to change the treatment plan.

For simple questions, select a “follow-up” visit type (15 minutes).  For more complex requests, select the “problem” visit type (30 minutes).

For an explanation of appointment types, click/tap on “What reason should I choose?”

Use the “Additional notes” box to inform us if we are to bill any payer other than your health insurance.  For workers’ compensation cases, include the carrier and claim number here.

For refill requests, administrative questions.

To get your most efficient response, please keep your messages “short and to the point,” and provide:

1-2 sentences of background, if necessary

1-2 sentences describing your current situation

1 sentence with your specific question or request, including any preferred/necessary dates, deadlines, doses, locations, etc.

 You may reschedule or cancel your own appointment through the patient portal if necessary. However, please do so as far in advance as possible. Numerous late cancellations are in violation of our attendance policy. 

In case of last minute illness, weather, or transportation problems, you may cancel an in-person visit, and reschedule in the same time slot, selecting the telemedicine version of your same appointment type.

Complete your self-check-in upon receiving your automated appointment reminder, or any time within ten days before any scheduled appointment. Your appointment will not be able to start until this is completed. 

 Downloading the athenaPatient app on your smartphone can be a very convenient way to quickly check for messages, results, and manage appointments.  But, there are some limitations - for example, you cannot manage your personal health or billing information as you can on the full web portal.  When you are in the app, if you want to get to the web portal, you can click on the settings “gear” in the upper left corner, then select “view your patient portals,” and then select “view web portal” under Kinetic Spine and Pain.