For planning only. A licensed clinician decides diagnosis and treatment. If symptoms may be urgent, use emergency services. Hospital access, fees, and insurance decisions come from the relevant organizations.
Describe the problem before opening the scan
Begin with the body region, right or left side, date of injury or onset, diagnosis already recorded, and the question for the specialist. For a spine case, use the level or region stated in the medical record. For a limb or joint, keep the side consistent in the summary, filenames, and image manifest.
Add function in concrete terms: walking distance, stairs, sleep, work, sport, use of a brace or mobility aid, and changes since the last assessment. Record what the patient can and cannot do without using those observations to diagnose the cause. A dated functional account helps the clinician place the imaging in context.
International services differ in specialty scope, language, campus, and emergency availability. Verify the exact clinic named in the appointment. A scheduled orthopedic consultation is not a substitute for urgent assessment after a new serious injury or sudden deterioration.
Sources[1]American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons: Your Visit With an Orthopaedic Surgeon[4]Beijing Municipal Government: VIP Clinic & International Medical Service Department of Beijing Jishuitan Hospital
Send the study and the report as a pair
The radiology report and the source images serve different purposes. Keep both. For CT or MRI, request the original DICOM export from the imaging facility and preserve its folder structure. Screenshots, selected slices, and photographs of films rarely represent the complete examination.
Check the manifest against the files before upload. A study labelled only “knee” or “spine” is easy to confuse when records cover several years or both sides of the body. Open one study on a second device before sending it; successful upload does not prove the series is complete or readable.
Swipe horizontally to see all columns.
| Field | What to enter | Quality check |
|---|---|---|
| Date | Study date shown in the source record | Matches the radiology report and the clinical timeline |
| Region and side | Exact body region and right, left, or bilateral designation | Consistent across summary, report, and folder name |
| Modality | X-ray, CT, MRI, ultrasound, or other recorded study | No patient interpretation added to the label |
| Facility | Hospital or imaging center that produced the study | Contact retained in case a corrected export is needed |
| Source files | DICOM export or original digital format supplied by the facility | Opens as a complete study rather than a set of screenshots |
| Report | Signed original report and separate translation when prepared | Patient, date, region, and side match the source images |
| Comparison | Earlier study named in the latest report or requested for review | Both dates appear clearly in the manifest |
Sources[1]American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons: Your Visit With an Orthopaedic Surgeon[3]DICOM Standards Committee / NEMA: DICOM current edition
Make prior treatment visible without judging it
Write a dated list of care already received: activity modification, rehabilitation or physical therapy, brace or assistive device, injections, pain-management procedures, and operations. Use the terms in the source records. Add the patient's recorded response and reason for stopping only when that information is documented or clearly identified as the patient's account.
After surgery, include the operative note, discharge summary, implant record or device card, postoperative imaging, pathology if relevant, and rehabilitation summary. The name “back surgery” or “knee operation” does not tell another specialist which level, side, approach, or implant was involved.
- Latest orthopedic, spine, rehabilitation, or pain-clinic note
- Operative report rather than discharge summary alone
- Implant name, model, side, and device card when available
- Before-and-after imaging identified by date
- Rehabilitation plan and dated progress record
- Current medicines, allergies, and adverse reactions
- Present mobility aid and practical assistance needs
Sources[1]American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons: Your Visit With an Orthopaedic Surgeon[2]American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons: Patient Safety
Keep consultation separate from surgery planning
A record review or first appointment establishes what the specialist has examined and what remains unresolved. It does not by itself reserve an operation, establish final cost, or show that a patient is ready for anesthesia or travel. Physical examination, updated imaging, laboratory work, or input from another specialty might still be required.
Ask the clinician to state the working assessment, options discussed, evidence still needed, expected benefit and risk as explained in the consultation, and the consequences of waiting. If an operation is discussed, obtain the proposed procedure name, side and level, admission plan, implant information available at that stage, rehabilitation expectations, and the clinician responsible for follow-up. These details come from the treating team, not from comparisons assembled independently by the patient.
Sources[2]American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons: Patient Safety[4]Beijing Municipal Government: VIP Clinic & International Medical Service Department of Beijing Jishuitan Hospital
Plan movement and follow-up as part of the visit
Tell the hospital about mobility aids, transfer assistance, wheelchair access, inability to stand in a registration queue, or help needed to reach imaging and consultation areas. Record the entrance and campus that suit those needs. For international travel, ask the treating team about fitness to travel and any restrictions tied to the patient's condition or planned procedure.
Before departure, collect new image files and reports, the consultation note, prescriptions, rehabilitation instructions issued by the clinician, and the follow-up contact. Name the clinician who will manage care after the patient returns home. If a wound, implant, or rehabilitation program needs monitoring, the handoff record needs the responsible service and timing rather than a general instruction to seek follow-up.
Sources[2]American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons: Patient Safety
