Coordinating MyChart access NJH - NYU LANGONE

I strongly recommend going to NYU. Seven years ago, while attending an in-person support group, I learned practically everyone in the group was going there. I also see Dr Doreen Addrizzo Harris. She is an international expert. If you have any specific questions, feel free to reach out to me.

Enjoy the day,
Linda Esposito

@dispatchpat I am in the same boat. I agree that the communication about medical records is vague. I pushed the issue and was told the best thing to do was to physically bring my records with me on disc. Cannot be flash drive, only disc. I don’t even own computer parts that will burn or read discs anymore but I spoke with my local doctor and he explained their records department can burn to disc, there is something security related that prohibits flash drives. Honestly my medical records the past 7 months are DEEP, and I have my doubts that anyone but me would weed through all that. I got a list from NJH of the general list of foundational testing they do (depending on results, additional tests may be ordered). I have had most of that testing in the past 7 months, so I plan to pull out and organize my past results for those tests specifically so they are easy/quick to refer to. I will add that I was told that NJH wanted testing to be done within 2 months of visit, and given the wait time most of my test results will be older than that. For me, I don’t mind repeating blood work from four months ago, but I am not going to repeat a barium swallow test from three months ago that was normal. I don’t need any more radiation than absolutely necessary at this point. So that’s one thing to be aware of and to give thought to (the timing element), what tests are you willing to repeat and what tests are you comfortable relying on past results. There is certainly a balance there, I understand NJH wanting up to date information for the best sense of where the patient is in that moment, but certainly some tests are one and done (e.g. cystic fibrosis testing) and others present risk (bronchoscopy, imaging) so I think it will depend on one’s own circumstances whether it makes sense to repeat testing that was done recently but more than two months ago. With that said, even where testing will be repeated, to me, it’s important to see trends over time, so past records remain relevant, particularly CT’s and PFT’s. But if you want to be certain that they have past records, I recommend following the suggestion I was given and bring them with you, especially imaging. If you find a better/easier way, I would love to know!

@kathyjjb I will be going to NJH shortly after you. My understanding is the first day you start with financial services (to make sure everyone is on same page re insurance, costs, etc.) and then you have first meeting with doctor who will go through history and work up list of testing for the visit. It’s my understanding that certain foundational testing is planned as a matter of course but may change once one meets with the doctor depending on history and patient circumstances. For instance, if one hasn’t been tested for cystic fibrosis, they will likely test for it but it is a one-and-done test so if you have already been tested elsewhere for CF NJH won’t repeat that test. Based on one’s circumstances additional testing may be ordered at the initial intake appointment or as test results come in over the course of your stay. Your ambassador should explain all this to you, but as I understand it a schedule will be prepared for each day, and it is subject to change based on testing, etc. I have had a lot of the testing already done locally and I was told that based on my initial appointment and how much additional testing we decide to do, I may be released early. But otherwise, I need to plan to be there for the full time. My sense is that we meet with the doctor day one and establish a plan for testing, a lot of testing then gets done, we meet with respiratory therapist, maybe nutritionist (if necessary) then we meet with doctor final day to discuss testing, etc. So, the schedule is somewhat fluid, again based on patient needs. I have heard others mention multiple meetings throughout visit with doctors, but again, I think it depends on circumstances. For example, I don’t believe surgery is an option for me, so I don’t expect to see a thoracic surgeon while at NJH, though that has been part of others’ visits. My one concern from your post is that you don’t have your initial doctor appt scheduled yet for day one. I would check with your ambassador as that is the appt that sets all the testing in motion for the visit and given wait times to get into NJH you certainly don’t want to get closer to the visit dates only to find you were never actually put on the doctor’s schedule and need to be rescheduled. Obviously you are in the system so hopefully that would never happen but the last several months have been a real initiation by fire for me with regard to how messy medical systems can be and how important it is to double check anything that seems not-quite-right (and then some). If you can’t get clarity from your ambassador call the scheduler that initially set your dates. I have found my scheduler to be extremely helpful. Also, you can always speak to NJH’s financial services, you don’t need to wait for your visit. So if you have coverage or cost concerns call them directly. My understanding is they run insurance approvals before they will even schedule your visit, so while they don’t yet have a complete list of what your visit will involve, so they can’t give a precise answer, they should be able to confirm coverage approvals and identify any copays, etc. Of course, I would also recommend you review same directly with your insurance carrier. I was told by my pulmonary rehab program I had no copay, only to be billed for one by my insurance several months later.

- From your NYU MyChart menu scroll down to the 'Request/Share Records' section
- Select 'Link Accounts'.
- On the next screen, there is a field that says 'Discover accounts to link'.
- Enter the specific organization you're looking for which is 'National Jewish' you will see it come up in the menu.
- Click 'Link Account'
- You'll be redirected out to NJH login page and once you confirm your login credentials the accounts should be linked. You may need to do this from the NJH MyChart as well but it's likely once they're linked you'd see your records in both places.

@kdiago1564 thanks for this but I will add that NJH can “see” my records and I was still directed to bring anything I want the doctor to review burned on disc, especially images. There are numerous stories of patients getting to NJH and the doctors telling them they don’t have their images. I don’t know what the issue is but when you try to get clarification on what records NJH “has” and what records they “need” the conversation gets fuzzy. I don’t want to travel all that way to learn there is a single piece of information they are missing, particularly my past CTs and PFTs. Belts and suspenders.

Thank you for the detailed response. I really appreciate it! I will call NJH tomorrow and see what they say. My doctor's appointment is 10 days after the first and only appointment scheduled. Coming from Arizona, that would be difficult. Good luck to you! Kathy

I had to take my numerous images on DVD's to NJH 2 years ago from my hospital also on Colorado