eConsults now available at stjohns.com

St. John’s recently launched a new and unique way for the public to access services provided at St. John’s Spine Center. The eConsult made its debut on stjohns.com in March. This service provides any person with Web access the opportunity to obtain an online medical opinion from a St. John’s spine physician regarding the diagnosis and treatment options for their spine-related symptoms.

Individuals wishing to use the eConsult may log on to St. John’s Web site and click on the eConsult link on the left side of the page. This will take them through a series of instructions and a request to provide information about their condition, such as the location and severity of pain, duration of their symptoms, prior treatments and medications. 

User-friendly interfaces allow the individual to describe these symptoms with body drawings of where the pain is located and sliding scales to represent the severity of their pain.  Next, the individual provides information about their past medical and surgical history, family history, social history, and review of systems. Finally if the individual has had any imaging studies of the spine, they are asked to send a copy of those studies to the St. John’s Spine Center. Individuals who have not had imaging studies may still obtain an eConsult however the eConsult will be less conclusive about the diagnosis and treatment options.

Once the individual’s eConsult information and any images have been received by Spine Center staff, the information will be reviewed by a St. John’s spine physician. Based on the information provided, an eConsult will be emailed back to the individual outlining the possible diagnosis, treatment options, reasons leading to those findings, and a recommendation that they come to the Spine Center or see their local physician to further discuss their care. 

Each eConsult is also accompanied by a disclaimer noting that a physical exam was not done by the physician performing the eConsult and thus the findings cannot be considered to be the equivalent of an in-person clinic appointment with their physician.  The cost of the eConsult is $150 and is payable by credit card at the time the individual transmits their eConsult information to St. John’s.

eConsults may be appropriate for several different types of individuals. It may be helpful for those seeking a second opinion regarding their spine condition or for people who find it difficult to take time away from work or family commitments to schedule clinic appointments. In addition, the eConsult may also add efficiency and peace of mind for individuals that are not found to have symptoms or abnormalities on imaging studies that warrant more aggressive intervention. For these patients the time saved in obtaining a referral from a primary care physician in addition to a clinic appointment with a spine specialist may improve the timeliness of the care they receive.

If you know individuals who may benefit from the eConsult, please direct them to St. John’s Web site. If you have comments or questions about the eConsult, please feel free to contact Dr. Alan Scarrow at at 417-820-5150 or e-mail him at ascarrow@sprg.mercy.net.

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