Adult Consultation Clinic

We offer a one-time evaluation for patients suffering from depression or bipolar illness.

The evaluation consists of a clinical interview lasting from one and one-half to three hours. One of our experienced consultation clinic psychiatrists will clarify your diagnosis and make recommendations regarding treatment. This information will be included in a report sent to your treating doctor.

TREATMENTS OFFERED

We offer treatment recommendations. We do not prescribe any medications for the patient.

FOLLOW-UP SERVICES AVAILABLE

The Consultation Service does not offer ongoing treatment. However, If the patient desires a follow-up visit with the consult doctor, it can be scheduled six months to a year after the initial consultation. This consultation is one-and-a-half hours to two hours long and the fee is $500.00 to be collected at the time of service. All current records must be received before scheduling the follow-up consultation.

MAKING AN APPOINTMENT

Before we can set up an appointment, we will need records summarizing your current and past psychiatric treatment. This can be a time-consuming and frustrating task. If you are feeling overwhelmed, ask a friend or family member to help you. The quality of the consultation will be greatly enhanced by having a complete set of your psychiatric records.

Click here for a copy of the Adult Mood Disorder Consultation Clinic Letter and send it to your psychiatrist or hospital to clarify the type of records needed.

Have your treating psychiatrist and/or psychotherapist send a typed summary (no handwritten progress notes please) of your treatment, including details of medications used and responses to medications. Please do not have your doctor send notes from individual sessions. Also, we would be interested in a summary from any psychiatrist or psychotherapist who has treated you. Doctors and psychotherapists will need at least your verbal permission and, in most cases, your written permission in order to release a summary to us. Click here for a RELEASE FORM.
If you have ever been a patient in a psychiatric hospital, have copies of the physician admission and discharge summary faxed to us. Please ask that the Medical Records Department not send daily progress notes. We generally request records for the past 10 years. Hospitals need your written consent to release records. Contact the records department of the hospital to find out whether you need to sign one of their release forms or if a written note from you will suffice.
In order to describe to your insurance company the service we provide it is important to be specific about who is referring you to this office (your psychiatrist, your internist, your psychotherapist, yourself, etc.). If a clinician is referring you we must send a copy of your evaluation back to that individual and you will be asked to sign a release of information for to accomplish this task. Please bring the clinician's mailing address with you.
Hopkins mail can be slow. Please have your records faxed, if at all possible to 410-955-0152.
INFORMATION FOR FAMILY MEMBERS: We strongly encourage patients to bring a family member or close friend who can offer his or her perspective on the patient's condition. The family members provide important insight into the patient's history that the patient might not be able to recount on his/her own. It is common for ill patients to have difficulty with memory during bouts of the illness and the family members can help fill in the blanks. Through involvement in the clinic, family members will better understand the patient's illness and can become and integral part of the treatment plans.
SCHEDULING AN APPOINTMENT: Please call 410.955.5212 to speak with a member of our staff:
            Stacey King, Clinic Coordinator
            Lizza Gonzales, Clinic Staff
            Barbara Andrion, Receptionist
INTERNATIONAL PATIENTS: Please contact the Johns Hopkins Medicine International Office: 410.955.8032
ASSISTANCE WITH TRAVEL ACCOMODATIONS: Please contact the Hopkins Travel Office: 800.225.2201

Appointments can be made without a referral from your psychiatrist, your internist, or your psychotherapist, but we will need information from your treatment team. Please read Making An Appointment above for more information on the need for written correspondence.

APPROXIMATE WAITING PERIOD FOR AN APPOINTMENT

On average, 4-6 weeks.

FEES AND PAYMENT

The fee for the one-time consultation visit is $975.00, payable at the time of consultation. We accept exact cash, personal check, and credit cards (VISA, Mastercard, American Express).

INSURANCE

You are responsible for contacting your insurance company in order to obtain any necessary authorization for this appointment. Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences contracts with contracts with different insurance companies, therefore you should personally verify your mental health benefits, in particular, a one-time outpatient psychiatry visit. For persons with types of insurance different from those with which we are contracted, we require payment in full at the time of visit.

Click here for additional billing information.

CANCELLATION POLICY

Because there is such a long waiting list, we require at least two working days notice for rescheduling. For example, if your appointment is on Friday, we require that you notify us on Tuesday to allow Wednesday and Thursday for that appointment to be filled. If adequate notice is not given, a fee of $150 will be charged. If you do not give any notice for a cancellation, a fee of $250 will be billed directly to you.