FAQ FOR DR. LENHARD
I have called the WellStar phone number multiple times, but I am still having trouble getting an appointment.
Wellstar is working very hard with a group of highly trained employees to answer voice mails for appointments. Dr. Lenhard expresses his sincere appreciation for your dedication to him and for your patience with the scheduling process! Please phone (470)267-0720 Mon. through Friday from 8:00AM to 4:30PM to schedule your appointment.
What insurance plans will Dr. Lenhard be taking?
Dr. Lenhard will be on most major insurance plans. The lists that you may find online may not be complete as this information is changing and updating. Please call the office for the current and most up to date list of insurance plans.
How do I know if I need a physical or follow up visit with Dr. Lenhard?
Most insurance companies allow a “physical” or “wellness” exam once yearly (at least 366 days from the prior physical). Some offer it every calendar year (Ok to be less than 366 days from the prior physical). His advice is to look on MyChart list of prior appointments. Choose the “Visits” button. Then choose “Appointments and Visits”. Then look at the prior visits and view the After Visit Summary (AVS) documents. The AVS should state what the visit was for and when and why he wants you to return to the clinic. Please use this as a guide to answer the staff member’s question as to why you are coming in to see me. Regardless, Dr. Lenhard will assess your needs at each and every office visit and review your Health Maintenance.
Can I get blood work prior to my visit with Dr. Lenhard?
Dr. Lenhard personally chooses and orders each lab test that is needed. Furthermore, he must input these orders himself into EPIC. To do this for every single patient prior to their office visit is virtually impossible. This will have to be handled on a case-by-case basis. Please feel free to ask Dr. Lenhard via MyChart.
I need prescription refills. Can Dr. Lenhard refill them for me?
Yes. Please call the office for prescription refill requests or via MyChart.
I am trying to refill my medicines, but they are not listed in MyChart.
Dr. Lenhard can only refill medications if he is the original prescriber. So, if you need refills but another physician prescribed them previously, then simply just list the medications you need in MyChart.
What is the Cures Act and how does that affect me?
The Cures Act is an act of Congress that authorizes the Office of Health Information technology to set guidelines on the release of patient information to you. Specifically, these include but are not limited to, labs, pathology, radiology and office notes. But for the majority of Dr. Lenhard’s patients, this affects lab reporting procedures. When this goes into effect, the patient may get the labs results prior to Dr. Lenhard reviewing them. Furthermore, your lab results may be completed in a “piecemeal” fashion. Dr. Lenhard will review your labs when all the results are complete. So, Dr. Lenhard and the staff asks for your patience regarding lab, radiology and other tests that are released to you. If Dr. Lenhard ordered the test, then he will result and deliver his comments to you as soon as possible.
Dr. Lenhard and many of his colleagues agree that the Cures Act has many benefits. The problem arises when a result that has significant consequences is released to the patient prior to Dr. Lenhard (or any other physician) has a chance to review the labs and instruct the staff on what to do. For example, a lab test comes back showing leukemia or a pathology specimen comes back showing cancer. Because of the Cures Act, these labs could end up in your possession before Dr. Lenhard can review the labs and set up a plan for you. Thus, despite the angst of an abnormal lab result, Dr. Lenhard asks patience from everyone as we work through the details of the Cures Act.
What is Dr. Lenhard’s lab and radiology resulting procedure?
Dr. Lenhard personally reviews every lab result as they come in. Dr. Lenhard will review the labs when all the labs are complete. For example, Dr. Lenhard may order 7 lab tests and 5 come back in one day. He will wait until the remaining 2 tests are complete before reviewing the results as a whole. In general, lab results come in 3 categories: completely or essentially normal, some abnormalities are present and/or action is needed, and severely abnormal labs.
If the labs are completely or essentially normal, then you most likely you will not receive a phone call from the office. Dr. Lenhard will send your labs to you directly via MyChart with his comments.
If the labs have some abnormalities and/or action is needed, then you will receive a phone call from the office and you will get your labs sent to you via MyChart directly from Dr. Lenhard. Please wait for the phone call from the office before emailing Dr. Lenhard about your questions regarding your labs.
If your labs are severely abnormal, then you will get a phone call from our office to discuss these labs prior to them being released to MyChart (if possible).
Why are my labs referring to me as “patient” or in the 3rd person?
Dr. Lenhard uses a computer based dictation software. The results of the labs are not only meant for the patient, but also for the staff—especially when action is needed. So, please do not take offence that the labs are not dictated as a personal letter to you. It is simply Dr. Lenhard’s method of dictating the labs in order to assure that all parties (the patient, the staff, and all other clinicians in Wellstar that may view the labs) understand Dr. Lenhard’s thought process regarding the labs.