Whether you’re seeking answers about common conditions, treatment options, or our patient portal, our FAQ has what you need.
Insurance companies require that we have current (within the last 12 months) information on file. In order for us to do everything we can to help you get your claims paid, we request this information annually.
A photograph helps us ensure the correct patient is receiving services and allows physicians and staff to put a face with a name.
Co-pays are due at the time of your visit; a statement will not be mailed.
No, we do not require a referral unless your insurance requires it. However, if you have been seen by another physician about the same problem we will be seeing you for, we ask that you make sure we get copies of those records prior to your appointment for our doctor to review.
Yes, in emergencies, any of our physicians will see a child; however, we do have two physicians who see pediatric patients regularly, Dr. Don Henslee and Dr. Logan McGuffey.
In the state of Nebraska, the age of majority is 19, so we require all paperwork to be completed and signed by the parent/legal guardian. However, we do offer a form that can be signed by that person, allowing us to see and treat the patient without a parent/legal guardian present for the appointment. We must receive this completed form prior to the appointment. See Patient Forms.
Yes, we do. For your convenience we do have several wheelchairs available, including one over-sized chair.
Yes, we do. We offer the option to have many of our CT scans done in our office. We take the images in our facility, and they are interpreted by the physicians of Radiology Associates, P.C., who will bill you separately for the interpretation.
Yes, we do participate in the Nebraska Medicaid Program. Your plan may require a referral from your primary care physician, which you must have prior to being seen. You will be responsible for any required co-pay.
No. Our practice is for you to see the provider, who will assess your condition and then decide when your surgery will be scheduled.
Yes, just tell the nurse when you arrive.
Call the office to speak to a nurse and allow them to record your signs and symptoms. You may also refer to the UA instruction sheet.
You must have been seen within the last year to have your prescription refilled. You can contact your pharmacy and they will send us a refill request form.
To have your prescription refilled, you must have been seen within the last year. You can call the office, and the prescription will be mailed to your house, as we do not call or fax prescriptions to mail-order pharmacies.
Yes, we require that you have a consultation with the physician who will be performing the surgery. This is how the doctor makes sure you have a complete understanding of the procedure and the expectations for recovery following surgery.
If you haven’t been seen by one of our providers in the past year, then you must call our office to schedule an appointment with one of our providers. If you have been seen by one of our providers in the past year, then you should call our office and leave a message for a nurse. The nurse will return your call and get your symptoms from you; he/she will then schedule you for an appointment time so you can come to our office and leave a urine specimen. You will be instructed by the nurse about when to call back for the results. After speaking with you, if needed, the nurse will send a prescription to your pharmacy. We DO NOT accept walk-in patients for any appointments, so please be sure to call the office and talk to a nurse.
Our office is set up with what we call a Triage Nurse and our nursing staff rotates through this position on different days. The volume of calls we receive limits them to simply responding to messages. Be sure to state your name and date of birth and then leave as much basic information about your issue as possible for them. They will try to address your issue before they call you back. Please be sure to leave a number where they can reach you, to limit the number of calls back and forth.
No. If you haven’t been seen by one of our providers in the past year, then you must call our office to schedule an appointment with one of our providers. If you have been seen by one of our providers in the past year, then you should call our office and leave a message for a nurse. The nurse will return your call and get your symptoms from you; he/she will then schedule you for an appointment time so you can come to our office and leave a urine specimen. You will be instructed by the nurse about when to call back for the results. After speaking with you, if needed, the nurse will send a prescription to your pharmacy. We DO NOT accept walk-in patients for any appointments, so please be sure to call the office and talk to a nurse.
We do accept Medicare patients; however, we do not participate with all Medicare Advantage plans, so be sure to check your provider network.
Please refer to your physician’s postoperative instructions. Please call our office before bringing in your specimen to ensure our lab is accepting specimens at that time.
All of our physicians are surgeons and quite often can be called out of the clinic for surgery. However, our physicians work very closely with their mid-level providers, who have all been specially trained in urology. Our goal is to provide you with excellent care at all times. You can trust that the mid-level providers are completely qualified for your care and are in very close contact with your physician about your healthcare.
Several motels in Lincoln offer discounted rates to all clinic and hospital patients and visitors. We encourage you to take advantage of these options. To get the discounted rate, be sure to identify yourself as being associated with a patient currently receiving service at Nebraska Urology. Click here for the listing of motels offering discounted rates.
Our office policy is that you must see one of our providers annually if you need prescription refills or if you are looking for any medical instruction or advice. You will need to make an appointment to be seen by your doctor or his mid-level provider (Nurse Practitioner or Physician’s Assistant).
You can bring those forms to our office, and staff at the front desk will assist the physician with completing them. We will collect all of the information from you to complete the forms. There is a minimal fee for completing these forms, which is due at the time we receive them. A HIPAA-compliant authorization is required to complete the form. Please note: Nebraska Urology will not fax these completed forms.
Please request a “Return to work/school” form at the time of your appointment or as soon as you realize you need this form. Please note: Our providers are not in the office every day therefore, this could result in several days delay for completion.
We would recommend simply taking your specimen directly to one of the local labs with an order from the physician who did your surgery. We can do the analysis; however, we would require that you see one of our providers for an office visit as we cannot order labs for a patient whom we have never seen. This may result in more cost to you.
Yes, please click here to access the online bill page.
Your insurance policy defines the benefits of coverage you are entitled to under your policy. While each plan is different, your plan may cover all or some of the cost of your treatment or services, less any deductible and co-insurance amounts, which are your responsibility. Your plan may not cover certain drugs, routine labs, or other services they deem as a noncovered benefit. If questions, contact your insurance.
Our billing department bills for both the physician bill (Nebraska Urology) and also the facility bill (Urology Surgical Center). You will receive separate bills when you have something done in our surgical center. You will also receive a bill from Associated Anesthesiologist PC if you have a procedure in which anesthesia is necessary.
There may be certain lab tests that are necessary in your treatment or care that we don’t perform in our lab and are sent out to Physician’s Laboratory, or to Pathology Medical Services if a pathology test is required.
This is the percentage amount the covered person must pay for covered services, which is determined by your insurance company.
This is the amount covered person must pay each calendar year for covered services BEFORE benefits are payable by the insurance company.
This is a fixed dollar amount for which your insurance company requires that you pay at the time the services are provided. Your co-pay is due prior to services and normally the specialist co-pay is applied at our office. Co-pays often are applied to office visits, but can be applied differently depending on your insurance contract.
In the current computer program that we have if your balance is in an aging process and you are making monthly payments you can only see the balance forward, we realize this is inconvenient and are working on updating this in the near future. If you have questions, please feel free to call and verify that your payment has been received and credited to your account. We will be happy to assist you.
There are many reasons that can apply here, but remember neither Medicare nor other insurances pay for everything; there are exclusions to every plan. We will do our best to contact Medicare and try to help in that determination, please call our billing department for assistance.
Yes. As of 9-1-2010 there is a $25.00 fee if you do not show up for a scheduled appointment. We make every attempt to contact you at least 1 day in advance with a reminder call, so if you have a change of phone number it is important that you update our records so that you will receive this notification. This fee must be paid prior to rescheduling the appointment.
This is done to best serve you and to be able to file the claims to the proper company. Many times, insurance companies change addresses or the in-network claims processor changes. These insurance updates are important to billing as the claim may go to a totally different place. If your employer changes plans from one year to the next, it is imperative that you provide us with the newest card and why you are asked if your employer has changed or if you have retired. Details on insurance cards are very important to correctly filing your claim.
This is a paper mailed to you and also to us that helps explain how your claim was paid. It will tell us if you have a deductible to pay, if there is a co-insurance amount due, or what your responsibility will be. You should get a copy of the same thing is mailed to us. It will also explain if there is a contract adjustment (an amount that we would write off if we have a contract with your insurance).
Yes, we will contact your insurance company and notify them of your surgery; this does NOT mean that we are checking your benefits. Knowing the benefits is your responsibility, and your policy manual should tell what is or is not covered. Please contact your insurance company to find out what your responsibility will be. We will provide you with the necessary codes to inquire with your insurance. If you specifically want to know what your out-of-pocket cost will be, our patient accounts manager will assist you with this process.
Our office policy requires the patient to come in for a consultation with the physician first. That is the initial fee involved. The vasectomy is performed in our outpatient surgical center, so there are charges for both the physician and the outpatient facility. If you would like a fee quote, please call 402-489-8888 opt 4. At the time of your consultation our patient accounts manager will provide you with a cost estimate of the surgery before it is scheduled. Since this is an elective procedure, prepayment of the estimate is required.
Our current system applies the preloaded messages regardless of your payments. If necessary, you must contact our office and make payment arrangements; otherwise, payment is due 30 days from your statement date.
There are 15 different levels of visits depending on many factors, so determining this prior to your visit would be very difficult to do, so we do not quote office visits for that reason.
A patient portal is a personalized, secure website that enables you to manage healthcare interactions and communicate with your healthcare providers at any time. This convenient online connection puts you in control of your healthcare from any web-enabled device.
A patient portal offers several benefits. You can bypass your practice’s call center to manage appointments, request prescriptions, or directly communicate with your healthcare team. You can also view your health records and access visit summaries and other documentation. If your practice offers online bill pay, you will be able to manage bills through your portal as well.
You’ll have access to lab and test results, visit summaries, visit attachments, immunization records, medications, appointment history, practice bills, and any other information your care team has made available for you to view.
You can easily review, download, or share your health records with other providers.
Do it in 3 easy steps:
Once you have enrolled, you can access the patient portal from your practice’s website. The portal is also accessible from your practice’s email notifications.
You can invite trusted representatives to access your patient portal in your “Profile.” If they do not have a patient portal account, they will be prompted to create one. From there, they can toggle between their own account and any accounts that have been shared with them.
Your practice will send a parent/guardian invitation to view and manage your child’s account.
More than one parent can have access to their child’s information. Divorced parents, for example, will have their own access to view their child’s portal account.
You can easily message a member of your care team through the “Messages” tab. While in your message inbox, you can send a new message, attach images, and view your care team’s replies.
Log in to your patient portal account and click the “Health Forms” tab to view and complete your forms.
To reset your username and/or password, click “I forgot my username and/or password” located beneath the portal sign-in button. You will then be prompted to answer your security question and reset your password at that time.
If you forgot your username and/or password and don’t know the answer to your security question, please reach out to your practice to reset it.
Please reach out to your practice to resend an invitation to enroll.
Yes. Your patient portal is HIPAA-compliant, which means your information is securely stored and encrypted.
Reach out to your practice when you have questions.
Click here.
Approximately two days prior to your surgery, you will receive a phone call from a staff member who will review your preoperative instructions with you and will provide you with your arrival time. It is important that you follow your preoperative instructions carefully.
If you have not received a call by 2:00 PM on the day prior to your surgery, please call (402) 421-8899.
In general, you should allow approximately an hour for a cystoscopy, prostate biopsy, or vasectomy.
Procedures requiring anesthesia may require up to a four-hour stay. However, this is really variable based on your procedure type and how you, individually recover from the effects of anesthesia.
You will be greeted in the surgery center reception area. Our receptionist will verify your information (demographic and insurance) and will alert the nursing staff of your arrival.
You will be assisted to change into a hospital gown, robe, and slipper socks. Your vital signs; including your blood pressure, temperature, and heart rate will be checked by one of our nurses prior to your procedure. Our team will ensure you are educated about your procedure and the plan for your care and your consent for treatment will be obtained. We will review your medications and health history with you. Your provider may order additional testing (i.e. labwork or X-ray) to be done at this time as well. Depending on your procedure, your surgeon may “mark” your operative site as an additional safety measure.
If you are having anesthesia, we will start an I.V. and you will meet with an Anesthesia provider prior to your procedure to discuss your anesthesia plan of care. Most pediatric patients IV’s will be started after the patient is asleep as long as it is safe to do so.
You will be assisted to one of our operating rooms where our qualified surgical team will care for you during your procedure. Prior to starting your procedure, our team will conduct a “Timeout” to verify the correct patient, planned procedure, and to discuss any important items for your care. Depending on your planned procedure, you may have a physician, an advanced practice provider, Registered Nurses, Surgical Technologists, Radiology Technicians, and/or other pertinent personnel present during your surgery. Urology Surgical Center does value education and serves as a training site for students in the medical field. We will first ask you for your permission if there are students present who would like to observe your procedure.
Depending on your surgery and type of anesthesia you received, you may remain in bed for a short time, move directly to a recliner, or change clothes and be dismissed. Family members are generally allowed in the recovery areas, however patient safety is our priority, so visitors are at the discretion of the nurse and care team.
Patients will be monitored to ensure they are safe to discharge from the facility. Recovery time can vary from patient to patient. For your safety, after receiving sedating medication or anesthesia, you MUST have someone you home and to be with you for the first 24 hours following your procedure.
You can still come for your appointment. You may be asked to remove tampons prior to your procedure.
Your provider will review your specific testing and the anticipated wait time for results with you. In general, a plan of care can be established following a cystoscopy. However, there are times when the results of additional testing (i.e. labs or bladder biopsy) may affect this. In some cases, results are provided over the phone, and in other cases, a follow-up appointment is needed. In general, if you haven’t received results within 14 days, please call our office at 402-489-8888.
For patients receiving anesthesia, it is very important that you follow the instructions provided to you by our nurse regarding eating and drinking. If you have food or liquid in your stomach at the time you receive anesthesia, there is an increased risk of vomiting with the potential for aspirating stomach contents back into your lungs. Failure to follow your instructions for eating and drinking may result in the cancellation and rescheduling of your procedure.
After your procedure, specific instructions for eating and drinking will be provided to you. During your recovery period, you will be offered light snacks and something to drink. In general, you may resume eating as you feel up to it. We recommend starting with light, non-greasy foods, such as toast, applesauce, or soup, to prevent nausea and/or vomiting in the hours following anesthesia.
If your procedure is scheduled without anesthesia, medications will be topically applied or used to numb your surgical area and minimize the discomfort of the procedure. In some situations, your provider may also prescribe oral medications to help you relax prior to the procedure. If you receive an oral sedating medication, you will be required to have someone drive you home and stay with you for 24 hours following your procedure.
If you receive moderate or IV sedation, your anesthesia provider will be at your side adjusting medication to keep you safe and comfortable throughout the procedure.
General anesthesia patients are completely sedated and monitored by an anesthesia provider to prevent them from feeling or hearing anything during the procedure.
During your procedure, your surgeon may use equipment that uses electricity. If you have jewelry on, there is a risk that the electricity could be drawn to your jewelry and could cause a burn. For this reason, we ask that you leave all jewelry at home.
Depending on your procedure and overall health, you may need pre-operative testing and/or an appointment with a primary provider to ensure that you are healthy and safe to undergo a procedure. This will be determined by your surgery and anesthesiologist prior to surgery.
We do advise that you have someone available to drive you in some cases. If you are receiving general or moderate/IV anesthesia or if you take sedating medication, you must have a driver for your safety. For procedures that are scheduled without anesthesia (i.e. cystoscopy, prostate biopsy, vasectomy, etc.) you may drive yourself as long as you feel comfortable doing so.
Minor/pediatric patients are required to have a responsible adult in the center with them at all times.
We do request that, whenever possible, your escort remain at the center until you are ready to leave. It is acceptable if they have a short errand to make and will return immediately prior to you being ready for discharge. If your driver leaves the center, we must have a phone number to reach them.
Your ability to return to work will be determined by your surgeon. You are encouraged to discuss them with him/her at your appointment. If needed, a release can be provided to you for the day of the procedure and FMLA/disability forms can be completed by clinic personnel. There is a nominal fee, and it may take up to 1 week for completion.
In general, we believe that it is important for family members to be able to be present as much as possible in the preop and recovery phases of care. Patient safety, visitor safety, patient privacy and confidentiality are also important, so we entrust this to the discretion of our nursing staff. In general, we ask that no more than two family members/visitors be present to accompany a patient.
Please call our preadmission nurse at 402-421-8899 to discuss your procedure and current illness or symptoms. Our nurse will work closely with your surgeon to determine if there is a need to reschedule.
You may call 402-421-8899 if your questions are related to your planned procedure, procedure instructions, postoperative care, etc. This will connect you with our surgery preadmission nurse. If your questions is more general or related to your clinic appointment or if you are calling for procedure results, please call 402-489-8888 to speak with a clinic nurse.
If you are having general anesthesia, we will request that you remove your dentures just prior to going into the operating room. They will be given back to you as soon as you are awake. This is due to the possibility of bending or breaking during your procedure when you will not be able to protect the dentures. If you are having only topical anesthesia, you may keep your dentures intact.
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