Due to our limited acceptance of new patient referrals, we are currently unable to support the eConsult program as it was designed. As a result, we have made the decision to temporarily suspend the eConsult program beginning Wednesday, November 20, 2024. We plan to reassess the program, along with our new patient referral acceptance, in early 2025.
As always, we appreciate your understanding and partnership as we navigate our current caseload. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to Veronica Avila at (701) 293-9829 ext. 370.
We are pleased to announce the inauguration of our eConsult program.
ECONSULT PROGRAM
This program is designed to facilitate quick consults for referring physicians who have patients who live far from our office or who face transportation issues.
By sending us a good quality image (OCT or fundus photograph) and a copy of your examination record, we hope to offer direction on whether your patient needs to be seen in our office or can be followed locally by you. Please note that in order to make an informed decision and recommendation, we take into consideration different parts of the patient’s history and examination, so please make sure to send us a summary of their most recent examination, or a copy of your chart note, in addition to sending us the image(s).
To submit a case for eConsult, please send the images and examination record to econsult@fargoretina.com. All replies from our office containing PHI will be encrypted, following HIPAA guidelines. You do not have to include any patient identifying information in the initial email sent to us.
We will aim to review these images within one week of receipt. If you do not receive a response in one week's time, please contact our office directly at 701-293-9829; it is possible that some emails might end up in our spam folder. We may contact you with a request for more information if necessary. If you prefer, you may request a specific Doctor to review the eConsult. Please note that due to MD schedules and availability, if you request a specific Doctor, it might take longer to review the images.
Here are some examples of types of patients who might be ideal candidates for our eConsult program:
Mild macular pucker with good visual acuity. If we do not think the patient is a good surgical candidate or would benefit from surgery, we might recommend local follow-up.
Peripheral pathology picked up on routine Optos. If the image is clear enough, we might be able to reassure the patient of the non-pathological nature of the lesion and continue local follow-up.