Before you arrive
Your visit really starts before you walk in the door. Dr. Rodriguez and the team review your chart ahead of time to understand your medical and surgical history, and look over any imaging you've already had. To make your first visit as efficient as possible, we may call you beforehand and ask you to bring your imaging (CT scans, ultrasounds, or MRIs) with you. Not every condition needs imaging, and in some cases Dr. Rodriguez may decide more imaging is needed to build your treatment plan.
What happens during your visit
After you check in, Christine Jones, MA, will bring you back to an exam room. She'll take your vitals, review your medical history, confirm your current medications, and ask more about what's brought you in.
You'll typically meet Jessica Rodriguez, PA-C, before you see Dr. Rodriguez. Jessica will take a thorough history, perform an exam, and review your imaging with you if it's available. She'll walk you through the surgical options that might apply to your situation. You'll see her again on the day of surgery, since she assists in the operating room, and again afterward at your post-op visit.
Since this is a teaching hospital, you may also meet a surgical resident or medical student during your visit.
Dr. Rodriguez will spend as much time with you as you need. He'll review your history, ask follow-up questions, examine you, and talk through your options. Bring your questions — write them down if that helps. You should leave with a clear plan: that might mean scheduled surgery, more imaging, watching the condition over time, or a decision that surgery isn't needed at all.
After your visit
Dr. Rodriguez puts together a worklist for Christine, who manages scheduling. She handles ordering any imaging, requesting pre-op clearance from other specialists if needed (cardiac, pulmonary, etc.), and getting your case on the calendar. No matter what day your visit falls on, you should hear from an imaging center by the following Wednesday if imaging was ordered. Questions in the meantime? Call (817) 250-7030 and ask for Christine.
A note on imaging from other facilities
We can pull up imaging done within our hospital system directly. If your imaging was done somewhere outside that system, it would help a lot if you bring a CD with your images so we can upload them — the day of your appointment is perfectly fine.