← Return to Guidance Needed: Investigating flying to Mayo in Minnesota

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@wisfamily

Mayo Clinic is not the only resource out there, so for certain investigate places closer to home for your particular conditions first.

If you decide to fly to Rochester MN, you will need to get your appointments lined up first.

To do that if you have multiple concerns or an undiagnosed condition, they would usually suggest setting up an appointment with Internal medicine. The physician in that area will then make referrals and coordinate your care to specialists during your stay. You can go online and make a self referral or get your physician at home to call and make the referral.

I will warn you that on May 5th 2018 the clinic is going to go through a big transition moving the electronic records system to EPIC and so expect delays and a tougher time getting appointments from now until they sort it all out, I would expect til maybe August.

You will also need to bring all your records with you and imaging . You should plan on a 7-10 day stay but be prepared to stay longer. That makes flying in and out harder because of a set return flight date.

To save money, I would suggest flying into Minneapolis if possible and renting a car and driving the 1.5 hours down to Rochester.

Choose a hotel that offers the free shuttle service ( most do ) so you can avoid parking at the clinic. IF you choose to park at the Clinic , use the Damon Ramp , get there early and buy the extended parking pass for 40.00 for 10 days making parking 4.00 a day. The pass is good for all the ramps and gives you in and out privileges so if you have to leave and come back you only get charged once for the day.

I also suggest packing food items , non perishable things like cliff bars or other snacks because clinic days get busy and they fill in things with more appts and reasonably priced food isn't readily available always at the clinic.

If mobility is an issue , when you get to the clinic ask for a transporter to take you to wherever you need and they will use a wheel chair to get you to appts.

As far as hotels, there are several attached to the Main Mayo buildings..... The Kahler inn and suites is probably the most reasonable of them all. Not the Grand Kahler , but the Kahler Inn and suites. I would say away from the Holiday Inn. But again, most of the area hotels have free shuttle services .

Youd need to check to see if they can accommodate a scooter though.

Keep in mind if any of your appts are over at Genrose or St Mary's you will have to take the patient shuttle to get there or drive over. Those buildings are not attached to the main clinic.

also while you are there, talk to the social workers . If you meet the guidelines sometimes you can get a Walmart prepaid card or other fin help with food costs or hotel costs etc...

Good Luck!

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Replies to "Mayo Clinic is not the only resource out there, so for certain investigate places closer to..."

@wisfamily, Thanks for sharing your travel tips and suggestionswith us. Most of us have had/or will be experiencing a 1st time trip.
I am amazed at the perfect timing of your entry into this conversation! I was at Mayo Rochester just a week ago (been a patient for 9 years) and I visited the Concierge Service Center. They provide a FREE service to help by providing information and guidance with travel,tourism,and community resources. They are open Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-6 p.m. and via phone - CST 8 a.m.-5 p.m. in person
Location: Mayo Building, Lobby level, International Center
Email: concierge@mayo.edu
Phone: 507-538-8438
They can help you when you are dealing with confusing travel plans, as well as services for handicapped individuals.

I wish you a sunshine kind of day.
Rosemary

Thank you, Rosemary, for sharing this information! I wish you a sunshine kind of day!!

@wisfamily, Hello! Thank you for sharing your thoughts and valuable information. This is so very very helpful for future readers.

For those planning a current trip to Mayo Clinic during transition into the new medical record system (EPIC)- the information provided in the above post is correct in saying that wait times are going to be longer while staff is learning to navigate the new system. Please be patient. All Mayo Clinic employees have been working diligently in providing the best patient care and as always, the needs of the patient come first.

Also, something to note- at Mayo Clinic we have a system for patients traveling from out of town where you can sit on "stand-by or wait as a checker" and get appointments moved to an earlier day. During the transition to EPIC, many departments are talking about not accepting checkers during our transition period. Patients that know this system should be prepared for that. We always try our best to be accommodating to patients traveling from out of town and hope that we can schedule appointments in a timely fashion.