Referring a Patient to Mayo Clinic in Minnesota

Telephone

Call 800-533-1564 (toll-free), 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Calls will be answered by the Referring Physicians Service during regular business hours, and by the Mayo Clinic operator at other times.

Fax

Fax: 800-321-1368 (toll-free). Requests received before noon will be responded to the same working day. Requests received after noon will be responded to by noon of the next business day.

Referral Form

Download a physician referral form. Fill it in on your computer, print it out and fax it back.

The Mayo Clinic Referring Physicians Service is your primary contact for making patient appointments and arranging telephone consultations with Mayo staff members. In addition, the Referring Physicians Service will help answer your questions and work to resolve any concerns you may have about Mayo services.

Mayo Clinic's goal is to provide physicians with prompt service and communication of complete results for the patients you refer to us. We will preserve the integrity of your relationship with your patient.

Scheduling an Appointment

To schedule patient appointments, please call the Mayo Clinic Referring Physicians Service at 800-533-1564 (toll-free). This toll-free number is for the exclusive use of referring physicians and their staff.

Referring Physician office hours are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday-Thursday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Fridays. The clinic is closed Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. However, physicians representing all medical and surgical subspecialties are available for telephone consultation or referral after hours.

Telephone Consultation with a Mayo Physician

You are always welcome to contact one of our staff physicians to discuss a specific patient or problem. Call 800-533-1564 (toll-free), 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Appointment Availability

Patients with urgent medical or surgical problems are given priority in the Mayo appointment system. Appointments for nonurgent medical problems are scheduled several days to several weeks in advance. General medical exam appointments are more readily available during the winter months, November through March. Appointments for patients under age 18 are available with little delay in the Department of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine. Mayo Clinic will, to the fullest extent of its resources, accept emergency cases on the same day.

Inpatient/Emergent Transfers

For patients requiring hospitalization, please call the triage nursing staff at 507-255-5591 prior to sending the patient to Saint Marys Hospital Emergency Room.

To Schedule an Appointment

Please be prepared to give the following information when you call:

• Patient's name
• Address
• Phone number
• Date of birth
• Mayo Clinic registration number, if a previous patient
• Type of insurance (i.e., HMO, Workers' Compensation, Medical Assistance)
• Nature of the medical problem
• Referring physician's UPIN
• Services you would like Mayo to provide

After an appointment has been secured, Mayo Clinic will work with the referring physician to identify the records needed to provide the best possible service to your patient. Typically, the following types of records should be provided via mail and/or fax:

• Summary of pertinent clinical notes and test results relating to the primary clinical question.
• Actual radiologic films, CDs, DVDs, videos and reports related to the clinical question.
• Actual pathology slides from relevant biopsies.

HMO Referral Office

If your patient's health care costs are covered by a health maintenance organization or similar prepaid agreement, please contact Mayo's HMO Referral Office at 800-843-0416 (toll-free). This office will help get all necessary authorizations before the patient arrives.

Medicaid

Mayo Clinic participates with the state Medicaid programs of Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana and Nebraska. If your patient is from a state that has out-of-state prior authorization restrictions, the patient should contact the appropriate people to complete these requirements. Except in emergency situations, Mayo Clinic will not provide care to Medicaid patients from other states unless arrangements are made in advance to fully pay billed charges for both the clinic and hospital services.

Patient Follow-up

Mayo Clinic physicians will forward a summary of diagnostic reports, treatments and follow-up care to referring physicians. Please contact Mayo physicians through the Referring Physicians Service to discuss matters of patient care.

Services for Patients

Many special services are available for patients. See Medical Specialties for a more detailed description of services, doctors and specialty-specific appointment information.

Questions? Concerns?

Call 800-533-1564 (toll-free).