Patient Consult / Referral Information for Physicians
Routine Inpatient Admissions
Inpatient admissions are arranged through the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center Admitting Department. To schedule an admission or to order admission scheduling forms, please call 513-636-4303 (Fax: 513-636-7307).
Urgent Same-Day Admissions
For urgent same-day admissions, please call Physician Priority Link at 1-888-636-7997. Physician Priority Link staff will page the manager of Patient Services, who will handle your request.
Routine Outpatient Services
Appointments are necessary for all services except for most laboratory tests performed in the Test Referral Center.
For outpatient referrals to any service except the Department of Radiology and Medical Imaging:
- For outpatient referrals, please complete the Specialty Services Referral Form in its entirety and sign it. To obtain Consultation / Referral forms, call the Referral Tracking Unit at 513-636-4358 or fax a request to 513-636-8723.
You must have the free Adobe Acrobat" Reader software installed on your computer to download this form. You can download Adobe Acrobat" Reader at Adobe's web site by selecting the version appropriate for your type of computer. - Call the department / division to which you are referring to set an appointment time. Insert the time into the appropriate blank on the form or note the preferred appointment date and time. Then fax the completed form to the department / division. If you have requested an appointment, you will receive a phone call (within 48 hours) with a confirmed appointment.
Learn more about the physician services and outpatient schedules at Cincinnati Children's. This schdule is updated three times a year.
Physician Schedules for Outpatient Clinics (498 kb) in portable document format (.pdf).
Second Opinions Regarding Cancer Diagnoses
For a second opinion regarding pediatric cancer diagnoses, please contact the appropriate member of the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center Division of Hematology / Oncology.
Hints for Patient Referrals
Referring physicians can play an instrumental role in helping patients' families prepare for appointments at Cincinnati Children's. Here are some helpful hints for physicians to know when helping patients. The well-armed family will bring to the appointment:
- A summary from the referring physician
- Laboratory or other test results
- X-rays
- Growth records
- Immunization records
- A list of questions for the Cincinnati Children's physician
- Required insurance referrals
- Pre-authorization from the insurance company
- Insurance cards
- The child's and parent's social security numbers
- Legal documentation of guardianship
- Enough diapers, bottles and other supplies to last a few hours, if the patient is a youngster
- A stroller if needed
- Snacks and drinks if needed
- Overnight supplies if the family is traveling from out of town
To meet the special needs of patients referred to Cincinnati Children's, we can, upon request:
- Check to see if the patient's insurance plan will cover the visit (call 513-636-2273)
- Assist the family in locating overnight accommodations (call 1-800-344-2462, ext. 6-5009)
- Arrange for an interpreter / translator (call 1-800-344-2462, ext. 6-5009) during regular business hours. For urgent needs after hours when you need an interpreter to talk with a family and connect them with an oncall specialist, please call 1-800-344-2462 and ask to be patched through to Pacific, our contracted telephone interpreter service.
