Power wheelchair / scooter rental: pros, cons?

If I can get to the Gonda Building they can shuttle me to one of my appointments at St Marys or would it be better to call a cab?

How about getting to St Marys

dazesaday @dazesaday, Welcome. This is an excellent question. And I am sorry that you were not satisfied with the 2 ladies you chatted with. Your concerns about navigating during your visit are a priority that needs to be addressed. I want to share some additional information with you.
Mayo Clinic provides a free concierge service for all 3 Mayo Campuses. Recently the concierge service has added Live Chat as an exciting new way to help people. Now you can chat with a live person about your visit.
Here is the link to the live chat service in the online Visitor's Guide https://www.mayoclinic.org/patient-visitor-guide

I send you my thoughts for a safe and satisfactory visit. I wish you good health.

All I wanted to do was pre plan and make sure I knew what was available to me to make sure I got to my appointments on time. Now I feel almost like a 'nut case' because of the frustration I may have caused. People who have never been there, including myself, have no clue what to expect. Thank you for your understanding and thank you for the info! : )

@dazesaday, I strongly encourage you to call or chat with the Concierge Service at Mayo Clinic.

Ways to Contact Mayo Concierge Services
* Phone: 507-538-8438
* Live Chat: https://www.mayoclinic.org/patient-visitor-guide
* Email: concierge@mayo.edu
* Web form: https://www.mayoclinic.org/patient-visitor-guide/minnesota/becoming-a-patient/concierge-travel-services

I know you had an unpleasant encounter with someone on the phone at the hotel, but I encourage you to try again with the concierge service. They are super nice and can answer all your questions. (And you are asking VERY good questions.) I'm confident that knowing the answers to your questions will help reduce the anxiety that comes from the unknown.

Please keep asking questions here. It will help you draw a mental picture of what you can expect and how much time to allow for moving between appointments etc.

Here are some other discussions in the Visiting Mayo Clinic group that may answer some questions.
- First visit to Mayo and traveling alone: Winter advice? https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/first-visit-to-mayo-and-traveling-alone-winter-advice/
- Tips for first dr visit and tests/appt schedules https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/tips-for-first-dr-visit-and-testsappt-schedules/
- First Time and Terrified https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/first-time-and-terrified/

@dazesaday

I found these videos helpful to me to get the feel of Mayo before I went there as a patient. You can see the subway levels. I had to pick a hotel without ever being there my first time and I picked one close enough for me to walk (but not the nicest hotel). Some of the closer ones cost more than the ones farther away with shuttle service. Last time I stayed at the Hampton Inn, and they have their own shuttle service to the Gonda building and St Mary's Hospital. They run early and you can make a reservation for the shuttle ahead of time to guarantee a space.

The Gonda and Mayo buildings are connected on every floor, but pay attention to the sign for the elevators because some stop on the top half floors of the building and the other set stops on the lower half of the building's floors only. The waiting areas are beautiful with lots of artwork, and computers you can use. Make sure you see the Chihuly glass chandeliers over a staircase in the Gonda building (near the information desk) . They are spectacular.

You might be able to get through your appointments earlier, because you can be a "checker" or standby, and if they have an earlier opening for testing, they can take you. You may not need to stay all week if you don't have appointments, sometimes they can reschedule those too. It just depends on what they are. In the atrium of the Gonda building is a piano, and it's nice to listen to people playing it.

I'm sorry that the hotel staff were not very courteous, but don't let them take away your enjoyment of Mayo. I think you will love it there. I suggest when you arrive if it is early enough, go tour the buildings and get the feel of it. It's a beautiful place and I've enjoyed talking with other patients there, and all of my medical providers were very nice. They are so efficient too. I've never experienced that level of excellent care anywhere else. I had surgery at St. Mary's and wanted to know what the hospital looked like ahead of time, but couldn't find much before I went. If you want to see my pictures of St. Mary's, I can send you a link to my facebook page. There is also the recent Ken Burns documentary about Mayo that covers all the 3 campuses. If you have time, the historic Plummer building is right across from the Gonda/Mayo buildings and you can see the original offices of the Mayo brothers who were the sons of the founder that are on the 2nd floor and historic things like old surgical gowns and a microscope, and the Nobel prize for the discovery of cortizone.

I was out helping my mom today who is in a wheelchair and driving her to her doctors appointment, so I understand your needs. You've got a lot of spirit to go by yourself, and you'll be fine. I went by myself last time which was very special as I had a delivery for my surgeon. Go ahead and check that out (and you'll see a picture of pretty stain glass at St. Mary's) on the Jan 9th blog at sharing.mayoclinic.org

Let me know if I can answer any more questions.

@dazesaday There are frequent shuttles between the Gonda building and St. Mary's. They are about a mile apart. Some hotels have their own shuttles too. I stayed at the Hampton, and they have their own shuttle that goes both places. Check your patient schedule that you can print out from the Patient Online Services on the Mayo website. Once you set up a user there , you can access your information and records. they will also print this for you at Mayo and reprint it if they make changes to your schedule or add appointments. Check that your appointments are not too close together if you have to travel between Gonda and St. Mary's.

Sorry one of your first experience with Rochester was a rude women, for most part you will find people in Rochester "MN nice".

There are General Service employees at main entrances to help and information desks at multiple locations in subway. Plus, there are Mayo volunteers located around campus. They wear blue vests and can answer any questions you have about navigating around Mayo campus.

At the information desk in subway level of Gonda building you can check your coat free of charge.

If all else fails and you are lost, ask any Mayo employee (the all wear a badge) and they will help.

Laurie