Mayo walk in

@skm101 I think what you may be talking about is that when you have tests to do at Mayo, you can wait as standby and possibly get the tests done earlier. For example, I was able to get neurology testing done a day earlier by waiting standby and they had an opening at the end of the day. Patients waiting there already have appointments with specialists who have ordered these tests. Because most patients are traveling to Mayo, it helps patients return home sooner if possible rather than waiting days to get testing done. Mayo has a lot of capacity, but some tests like MRI's take longer to get scheduled and may be a couple days out. To get an appointment with a specialist, you have to make a request, and decisions about scheduling are made based on need and capacity which varies between departments.

@johnbishop may have more information about any walk in clinics in the area. Another suggestion I could make would be a local hospital in the Mayo Clinic Health Network since smaller hospitals may have walk in clinics. The Health Care network does have connections to refer patients to Mayo for testing. Here is their website. https://www.mayoclinichealthsystem.org/

Jennifer

Mayo Clinic Rochester Express Care offers two community walk-in clinics for patients over 18 months old on a first-come, first-served basis with sign-up on arrival. My wife uses them when she needs to get her ears cleaned.
--- Primary Care in Rochester and Kasson: https://communityhealth.mayoclinic.org/express-care-overview

@skm101, are you currently a Mayo Clinic patient? Or are you wishing to get a first appointment at Mayo Clinic? Which location?

I would like to get a second opinion from them and treatment also.

Minnesota I would think

I have had tests here in Mo. Xray, blood, CT, PET and a biopsy on this Thursday.

I've read that when referred, your appointment could ve months out and time is important I feel.

I've heard from a few people that you could go and wait but maybe that's not the case.

skm101 | @skm101

I would strongly advise not to just show up. You will be spending money to travel and doubt you will be seen. There is not even an admission desk in main lobby. Mayo expects people who arrive to already gone through the registration process and have an appointment.

What John mention, Mayo Clinic Rochester Express Care, is for small things like sore throat, not specialist.

I suggest you ask your provider do a referral, then Mayo will evaluated and prioritized. Or you can self- refer and send test results.

See:
http://mayocl.in/1mtmR63
Laurie M

@skm101 I wonder if you are referring to this scenario. Example: I have a scheduled appointment at Mayo Clinic with a provider but that appointment is one month from now. I live 8 hours away by car and I'm already at Mayo Clinic for other appointments. It would be great if I didn't have to return again in one month since I live so far away. The scheduler tells me that I can hang out in the waiting area and be a "floater". If there is an available appointment that comes up from a cancellation they might be able to fit me in. I should check in throughout the day with the reception desk. It's kind of like standby status with the airlines however it's up to me to keep checking on whether I can get in to an appointment that day.

Is this what you are referring to?

@skm101 My husband faced a similar situation when a biopsy from a dermatologist brought a melanoma diagnosis. Melanoma must be caught early before it spreads. He was scheduled for a surgical consult 3 weeks later, and after that appointment, surgery 10 days later. I’m a Mayo patient and because it was cancer, I called Mayo and asked if he could be seen there. He would have had to start with a dermatologist and wait for that appointment and it could have been a couple months. It made more sense to have his surgery where he already had been evaluated. He had been sent to a good cancer surgeon and that has been good. There are followups and scans annually that will go on for 10 years. We were very lucky it had not spread because this bump had been on his hand for close to a year before I took him to the dermatologist. He was lucky and it had not spread. Doing all this closer to home was easier than going to Mayo and his care was good. If we were in a situation of cancer that had spread and needed some advanced treatment not available at home, then going to Mayo would be a choice. You have to evaluate the urgency of your situation and the timeliness of your options at home.

Jennifer

@ skm101 I would not recommend just showing up at Mayo unless you are already there for something else that has been scheduled and wish to be on standby as a floater. It might not even yield an opening. I was waiting for an appointment once where a couple from Michigan who had been seen there before showed up early, and were told they could not be seen until a week or more later. They were faced with traveling home or stay a long time in Rochester. They were very upset, but I think they didn’t check the portal and were confused. It was very sad as they felt it was urgent.