Please allow approximately 2 ½ hours for your first visit. Prior to your first visit we will send you a new patient packet with a postage paid return envelope. We use electronic medical records and must enter your information prior to any appointment so your electronic chart is ready to view the day of your visit. Please return this completed paperwork as soon as possible, at least one business day before your first appointment. If you haven’t submitted the completed paperwork in advance, you may be rescheduled to a different time the same day or a different day. If you need additional copies of our forms, you can print them from the FORMS page on this website.

At your first visit you will be asked to provide a valid photo ID, such as a driver’s license or passport. The receptionist will also take your photograph which will be a part of your electronic medical record. This will reduce your risk of identity theft.

You are asked to provide your insurance cards which will also be scanned into your electronic medical record. (Please provide us with the new cards any time your insurance changes.)

You will be asked to pay your applicable insurance co-pay, co-insurance, and/or deductible, including Medicaid/Medicare, which is required by law. If you want to know what your portion will be for a particular visit or procedure, please call our billing office in advance.

You will be asked to provide any medication(s) you currently take, in the original bottles. This includes any prescription drugs as well as over-the-counter medication(s), supplements and vitamins. This allows our providers to know what you are taking and help them avoid prescribing a medication, if applicable, that may negatively interfere with your treatment. (On subsequent visits you will only need to bring the medication(s) prescribed by PTA in the correct bottles, even if those bottles are empty.)

Prior to your first visit, your past medical records pertaining to your pain and any imaging we have will be reviewed. If no imaging is available, it may be necessary to order imaging at your first visit.

You will then be seen by our medical technician who will take your vital signs and confirm medical history. Next, you will meet with our nurse practitioner who will review your pain problem, medical history, and order any imaging or testing. Then at your next visit Dr. Tompson will review with you any test or x-ray results and determine a diagnosis. He will then offer a treatment plan based on his assessment.

First Visit FAQ

WILL I GET A SHOT OR HAVE A PROCEDURE?

Initial visits at PTA are evaluation-only visits. (Most procedures are performed at the West Plains Surgery Center and will require that you fast and many require that you not take certain medications prior to the procedure.)

Will I need a driver?

You will not need a driver at your first visit. Any spinal procedure scheduled, whether with sedation or without, will require that you have a driver. Many procedures can cause associated numbness, weakness, and/or loss of position sense, which can make the ability to operate an automobile hazardous.

Will I be given pain pills?

The doctor will evaluate each patient individually and determine the best plan of care which may or may not include medications. Often, medications only result in “taking off the edge” or "masking” your pain, not fixing the cause of the pain, and are therefore prescribed only as medically indicated. In light of how prescription drug abuse has become a national health concern, PTA takes very seriously the prescribing of controlled substances. In this regard, prescriptive patients are held accountable for their prescribed drugs and all patients are screened for possible inappropriate controlled-drug behaviors which includes, but is not limited to, misuse/overuse of medication, illegal diversion of controlled substances, “doctor shopping", and illicit drug abuse. If you are prescribed medications, monthly visits with our clinic may be required to determine medication effectiveness.