Information for Referring Veterinarians Directing Patients to Upstate Veterinary Specialties
New! Electronic Medical Records Patient Portal Live
On Tuesday, December 6th, Upstate Veterinary Specialties transitioned to Instinct EMR. With this change, we adopted their EMR portal, Shareville. We understand this is a significant change, but we are confident this will improve the efficiency of our communications and allow you to stay informed regarding your patient’s health and care with our hospital.
To learn more, download our Instinct Shareville User Guide, which covers the requirements to access patient information, instructions for account setup and using your dashboard, and contact information for technical assistance.
Thank you for your support and trust in our practice. We value our collaboration with primary veterinarians, and it is our role to serve as an extension of your practice by offering veterinary specialty expertise and 24/7 emergency care.
We want to ensure that working with us best suits your and your patient’s needs. Please find the below information on sending referrals, making appointments, and more. For questions, please don’t hesitate to call and speak to one of our Client Relations Representatives at 518-783-3198.
Appointments with a Specialty Service:
Veterinarians and clients are welcome to call us any time to set up an appointment with a specialist. Before the appointment, we require a summary of the case, the previous 12 months of medical records, and our patient referral form. The patient referral form asks for pertinent information regarding the referral and provides the opportunity to upload the patient’s complete medical history. Please include lab work and radiographs when available. Following your client’s appointment, our specialists strive to follow up with a referral report and/or phone call within 24 hours.
Transferring Appointments to Emergency:
Emergency and critical care visits are available at all times, seven days a week, with or without an appointment. We appreciate a phone call for direct transfer and hospitalization cases before sending to discuss the case and your patient’s needs. Following the phone conversation, please submit our emergency and critical care direct transfer form. The emergency and critical care direct transfer form asks for pertinent information regarding the referral, provides the opportunity to upload the patient’s complete medical history, and asks your preference for follow up. Please include lab work and radiographs when available.
Please note that specialty services and advanced imaging and diagnostics are not available 24/7. If you feel your patient needs this level of care, please call and speak with one of our emergency doctors before referring your case.
Making Appointments for Outpatient Ultrasound:
Kristina Wilson, DVM, DACVR has limited availability for outpatient ultrasounds at UVS on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Our schedule is currently booking out 4-6 weeks.
*subject to change based on current caseloads and holidays.
Outpatient Ultrasound Referral Process:
- Please complete an outpatient referral form and include a summary of the case.
- Please provide any medical records and/or diagnostic imaging pertinent to the current medical concern.
- If a client calls before a referral is received, we will direct the client to contact your office to complete a referral form before scheduling their appointment.Once our team has received the referral, we will contact the client to schedule their appointment. We will discuss what to expect and an estimated cost for service with them.
- If a patient has been referred for an outpatient ultrasound by an emergency facility, we still request a referral from the patient’s primary care veterinarian. This will allow our radiologist to communicate the results and any recommendations effectively.
- After the ultrasound exam, our radiologist will discuss their findings and recommendations directly with the client. Our radiologist will provide a full ultrasound report and a copy of their client communication within 24 hours to the email provided on the referral form.
Fear Free Practice:
Our team follows guidelines set forth for Fear Free Practice. When scheduling the appointment, a member of our radiology department will speak to your client about Fear Free Practice and the benefits of oral sedation for anxious, fearful, or aggressive pets. We look to you to prescribe medication ahead of time as you’re most familiar with the patient’s behavior and medical history. We generally recommend Gabapentin for cats and Trazadone for dogs, given their wide margin of safety and lack of interactions with other medications. Our radiologist will determine if additional intravenous sedation is necessary.
Telemedicine Consults:
Veterinarians are welcome to submit telemedicine consults with any of our specialists. If you would like a telemedicine consult, please fill out our telemedicine consult form. A specialist from the requested department will contact you within 72 hours.
