Patient Information
Welcome to The Regenerative Orthopedics Institute!
We’re excited to have you as a New Patient at Regenerative Orthopedics Institute where you will be seen by our Medical Director, Dr. Renee Smith at every visit.
How to Schedule an Appointment
If you are a self-referred patient, please give us a call at 805.542.9678 to schedule an appointment.
If you have been referred by your primary care provider, you will be contacted directly by our office after we have received and reviewed your insurance demographics and medical records from your primary care physician. If you have not heard from us, you are welcome to give us a call at 805.542.9678.
What to Expect at your First Appointment
Upon arriving at your first appointment at The Regenerative Orthopedics Institute you will be given the New Patient Forms to fill out, or we will request the forms you downloaded and filled out. We will also request your Photo ID and Insurance Cards for our records. Once the doctor is ready to see you, we will take you into one of our clean and comfortable Patient Rooms. The doctors assistant will discuss your health history and demographics and review your paperwork with you. Then, the doctor will visit with you, diagnose your ailment and prescribe treatment for your condition.
Please bring medical records from previous treating providers, including surgical reports, x-rays, MRIs, CT scans, bone scans, nerve testing studies and any other records of previous treatment, if applicable.
What to Think About Before Your First Appointment
Please help Dr. Smith diagnose and treat your condition by being prepared to answer the following questions:
What are your main symptoms?
How long have you had your symptoms?
What were you doing when your symptoms started?
Have you had this problem in the past?
What was the diagnosis?
How was it treated?
How and when did an injury occur? How was it treated?
Have you had any injuries in the past to the same area? Do you have any continuing problems because of the previous injury?
Have you ever had surgery in that area?
What activities, related to sports, work, or your lifestyle, make your symptoms better or worse?
Do you think that any activities related to your job or hobbies caused your symptoms?
What previous treatment measures have you tried? Did they help?
What medications have you taken? Did they help?
In order to become a valued patient of our practice, please download and fill out our New Patient Forms using the link above. You can download and fill out these forms at home prior to your visit. This will expedite your first visit with us.
What We Treat
Sports Injuries
Tendonitis and Bursitis
Sprains and Strains
Overuse Syndromes
Arthritis
Fractures
Insurances We Accept
Blue Cross
Blue Shield
United Health Care
Aetna
Cigna
TriCare
Medicare
CCPN
Coastal Healthcare
X-Rays
Upon scheduling your first appointment with us we may arrange for you to have X-Rays taken of your injury prior to your first visit.
Cancellation and “No-Show” Policy
If you are unable to attend your scheduled office visit, you must notify us as soon as possible, and must contact us at least 24 hours prior to your scheduled arrival time by telephone, 805.542.9678. If you fail to provide us with 24 hours prior notice you may at our sole discretion be charged for a full office visit of $95.
We recognize that there are instances in which inclement weather or other unexpected issues may arise which may limit providing your office with 24 hours prior notice. However, if you fail to cancel or fail to show for a scheduled appointment more than once due to non-weather related issues or there unforeseen circumstances, our practice reserves the right to terminate our relationship with you due to patient non-compliance.
We maintain a waiting list for patients who are available to be seen if there is a same or next day cancellation. It is costly to our practice and inconsiderate if you fail to show for your appointment without 24 hours notice to reschedule another patient in your time slot.
Insurance will not cover any charges for Cancellation or No-Show fees, and you are personally responsible for payment which must be made prior to your next visit.
Medical Records
Under no circumstances will your records be released to any other party, for any reason, without a signed release of medical records on file, including attorneys, disability claims administrators, or other agencies, in accordance with state and federal guidelines.
If you would like to request a detailed report of your medical records, please call our office. There is a $25 fee for gathering your medical records.
Billing and Patient Account Inquiries
It is your responsibility as a patient to determine whether or not our practice is considered an in network or out of network provider with your insurance plan and how this may affect your insurance company which sets the fees we have agreed to accept for providing you with treatment as a participating provider, or in some instances, an out of network provider. While these amounts do vary between insurance plans, and are typically lower than the usual and customary fees which we charge, the contractual reduction between our charges and the allowable fee is not in any manner related to the quality or type of care provided or a comment on the amount we charge as our usual or customary fees.
When you enroll in an insurance plan, you have entered into a contractual agreement with your own insurance company regarding your obligation to be financially responsible for a portion of the cost of your medical care as a subscriber.
If you have questions regarding how much your insurance plan requires you to pay in copay, coinsurance, or annual deductible costs, please contact your insurance company directly, using the toll free number on the back of your insurance card.
Our billing company, Kareo Medical Billing processes your insurance claim and makes every effort to resolve any issues with your insurance company before sending out your billing statement, but unfortunately not all claims are paid correctly or in a timely manner, which requires us to bill you directly for any outstanding charges which your insurance company has failed to pay.
You can contact our billing company, Kareo Medical Billing by calling their toll free number 1.800.984.1935.