Information for Canadian Patients

Andrea, Mayo Clinic Patient: It was around December of 2021 that I noticed I was having some shortness of breath. I had a sense something wasn't quite right. The first doctor we engaged with was our family doctor. They couldn't conclude what it was. And it was only when I had a couple of days later a phone call with my rheumatologist that she said to me, I'll never forget her words, "If you were my sister, I would get moving on this very quickly." I had a CT scan done, and that was when I was told there was something in my lung. I was just terrified. How could something be growing in my body. I didn't know about it.

Gerry, Andrea's husband: I was also terrified, but on the other hand, be very diligent and figure out what we could do to be able to hopefully overcome this.

Andrea: We'd always known about the Mayo Clinic just because of its international reputation. The first meeting we had was with Dr. Anderson who took us through the CT scan and talked to us at length and answered our questions about what he was seeing from the test results we sent him.

Bobby Anderson, APRN, C.N.P., D.N.P.: Andrea and I originally met with her CT scan and the suspicion of a potential cancer in her lung. She elected to proceed down the surgical route. And that's where we work directly with our surgical colleagues. Doctor Reisenauer specifically has been a pioneer of this concept to combine an intraoperative biopsy with surgical resection all during the same operative setting.

Janani Reisenauer, M.D., Chair, Division of Thoracic Surgery, Interventional Pulmonologist: Here, because of the multi-disciplinary integrative care that we offer at Mayo Clinic, we were able to review her case together as a team, Bobby and I on the back end before she even came down, make sure that all of her testing and imaging and everything was up to date and everything was facilitated. Patients that come from outside of the United States have a lot of other barriers that they're trying to work through in addition to just understanding our healthcare system. The International Office serves as that patient navigator to help guide them through the different visits and what the purposes of all these different visits are.

Hua Zhou, International Center Patient Coordinator: We provide the patient the services prior to their arrival, and we offer orientations to our patients to address their needs right before they come.

Andrea: It was just so comforting to know that there was a person at the Mayo Clinic who was looking out for our interests and was there to help us.

Gerry: It was the first time in our entire process of dealing with Andrea's crisis that we actually felt heard that someone was ascribing the same value to Andrea that we as a family see her and in that light. It basically confirmed and set a plan of action for Andrea that we knew we were book ended. We had a date. We had a time. We had a plan that we knew we could execute.

Dr. Reisenauer: To be able to offer that consolidated treatment in coordination with Bobby and his team, I think that was really special for her.

Andrea: We met doctor Reisenauer after our two days of testing, and she just inspired a lot of confidence with her knowledge and her approach to describing the results of the testing to me and to Gerry.

Dr. Reisenauer: And once all of that is done and all of that is orchestrated, we could do the biopsy, prove cancer real time, and then flip the patient over and do Andrea's surgery and treat her for the problem all in the same anesthetic and the same setting, where she can then go home in 24 to 48 hours, diagnosed and treated.

Gerry: And sure enough, it's Dr. Reisenauer herself, who came in post-op. And in the most compassionate heartfelt way briefed us on the outcome of the surgery. She said, as far as I'm concerned and the surgical team is concerned, Andrea is cured.

Andrea: It's really hit me on and off over the past year, just how lucky I was and how fortunate I was that we could go to the Mayo and have such extraordinary care.

Bobby Anderson: This place truly does believe that the needs of each individual patient come first. Others are not prioritized over others. We're all here to meet their needs on both the medically indicated timeline and taking into account what is the rest of their life situation.

Maryel Andison: They gave me a prognosis of a week to 10 days. I had to take the initiative and go to Mayo, and they saved my life. Therein lies why I'm committed to Mayo.

My name is Maryel Andison. I am from Winnipeg, Manitoba in Canada. I was out one Sunday morning watering my flowers when lo and behold I had a stroke. It took a little bit of time to be able to really convince myself that this was a major event. As a matter of fact, it took me a long time. Finally went to the doctor about three days later. She got me to a neurologist, and the neurologist said to me, well, we could get a CT scan in six months, or we could get an MRI in a year. And he said if you went to Mayo Clinic, you could get it done this afternoon, and I said, that's where I'm going to go.

Within our first few minutes of our appointment with Dr. Petit, he said, you know what? We know what you have. We just need to spend some time to prove ourselves. We went through all sorts of tests — imaging tests, everything. And then finally, I arrive at this one test where they shoot a camera down your throat. Obviously, they put me out. And then the next thing I know, there is this masked man was leaning over me, and he said, we have a problem. We have called an ambulance, and you're going to have open heart surgery.

I realized I was in the best place I could possibly be. I was at Mayo Clinic. And if anybody was going to take care of me, they were going to take care of me. You really have to be your number one advocate for your own health care.

Bob Thompson: My name is Bob Thompson and I'm a chartered accountant living in Canada. I was a partner with an international accounting firm and left there in the early '80s to go into business for myself.

As a businessman, I appreciate the value of time. In the busy world I live, there never seems to be enough of it and I'm always looking to find a little bit more time to accomplish the things that I've set out to do, not just in business, but more importantly enjoying life itself. And what's most important — my family.

I've been a runner all my life. And in about 2008/2009, I started to notice my right leg was becoming weaker and my foot was turning in and out. My leg continued to progress to the point where I really couldn't run anymore and I was never without back pain.

So we started the process in Canada of going through all kinds of neurological testing. Over the course of two years, I had various diagnosis, anywhere from ALS to, I think it's Lou Gehrig's disease, Parkinson's. But they never could get to really what the definite diagnosis was, so we kind of moved from one diagnosis to the other.

In the interim, my daughter — she said the Mayo probably have the best neurologists in the world. Why don't we explore that?

Steven W. Ressler, M.D., Division Chair, General Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic Arizona: So we got to work right away. We did some diagnostic tests. And in short order had determined that this really didn't fit a picture for Lou Gehrig's or ALS, which was a great relief to him obviously.

And one of the things that happened during this — and sometimes they say invention favors the prepared mind, I suppose. We found a growth on his spine. And in short course it became clear that while his problem in his right leg was a more minor disorder that's treatable, what we found in his spine turned out to be a very serious problem.

Bob Thompson: Someone had spotted on one of my MRIs that I had done in Canada in 2009 a spot on my back. And when they had re-looked at tests that they had just did, they said it doesn't seem to have grown, but it's probably something we should have a look at because it's unusual that it would be there. And they had asked me if anybody had ever commented on it before, and I said, no. That was the first I had heard of it.

So they had booked the surgery to do that. And when I woke up, they said we have very bad news for you. It's cancer.

Dr. Ressler: Now once we confirmed that diagnosis for him, he had a couple of options here. Now in this situation, Bob decided to go home to pursue radiation therapy for this. And so that's something that we're really able to facilitate. In this situation, we were able to get a diagnosis, something that if it were not treated could've left him paralyzed. But instead, he was able to head home and over the next few months was able to receive definitive radiation therapy at home.

Bob Thompson: So we did the radiation treatment in Canada. But, coincidentally, while they were looking at that, they spotted another thing in my thyroid, and it turned out I had thyroid cancer as well. And I couldn't get a timely surgery in Canada because they rank the types of cancer that you have by priority. And thyroid cancer is not one that they think is an aggressive cancer. So they were not able to do the surgery for at least three to four months. And I mean, mentally, it's almost impossible to imagine for three or four months waiting to have that done.

So I phoned back down to Dr. Ressler and he said, well, we can do it at the Mayo. And 10 days later I had that surgery done.

Dr. Ressler: So here, by having this unhurried approach, taking time, not rushing through our initial visit, not having to rush through our follow-up visit, and having radiologists and other members of the team that also have time to be very intentional, we picked up a very subtle issue again. And we were able to avoid a lot of headaches down the road for him.

Bob Thompson: For whatever reason, I always felt I was going to be OK. Still difficult to talk about.

The Mayo Clinic has given me a new lease on life. I think the future is that I get to participate with my grandkids, my daughters, my son in the community. And just the thought of being able to continue to do that for another 20 years or 30 years is just an experience that I can't imagine not being able to be part of.

Narrator: Mayo Clinic is the oldest and largest physician-led group practice of medicine supported by research and education. And we remain a model for health care around the world.

Christina Dilaveri, M.D., Executive and International Medicine: For essentially any condition under the sun, if the patient comes here, we can get them evaluated for it. We can get them treated for it. And it not just the best care, but it's compassionate care.

David McFadden, M.D., Executive and International Medicine: It is a medical center that provides comprehensive evaluation and care and a very, very efficient protocol.

Christina Dilaveri, M.D.: From the person who greets you to the time the physician walks in and shakes your hand, we're going to take good care of you.

Narrator: At Mayo Clinic, your care begins in the International Center. This is the hub for all the services you might need during your stay with us.

International Finance Representative: When a patient comes from another country and they don't speak English, they can expect a level of service of the highest order. Dedicated international finance personnel will assist you with registration and answer any questions you might have about billing and insurance.

Ammar Abdalla, International Finance Representative: If they have questions about certain procedures and how much they're going to cost, we give them the estimates.

Narrator: At registration, you can also create a free online patient account for safe and simple access to your medical information. It's secure, convenient, and gives patients access to test results, clinical notes, and upcoming appointments. It also allows patients to securely send and receive messages from his or her care team.

Ammar Abdalla: Upon registration, patients are provided with the appointment yet that lays the week plan, the time of the appointment, the floor, and where to go.

Narrator: Our concierge services team is here to help by providing information and guidance with travel, tourism, and community resources.

Chelsea Lockrem, Concierge: We help with lodging, transportation, things to do, restaurants. People should expect concierge services to really help them bridge the gap between the Rochester community and how Mayo Clinic operates.

Narrator: Concierge is here to make your Mayo Clinic visit as worry free and enjoyable as possible.

International patient coordinators are also available to assist during the visit. Coordinators partner with physicians and other care team members to help meet the unique needs of our international patients.

Yue (Susan) Xu, International Patient Coordinator: Even before a patient comes, Mayo's care team is already trying to take care of them, trying to see what kind of method can we offer to treat the patient. When they arrive here, whatever problem they have, they come to us, and we solve them.

Narrator: At Mayo Clinic, we help patients feel at ease. Information desks, wayfinding maps, and signage are located throughout the hospital campuses to help answer your questions and assist with directions.

Linda Peterson, Registered Nurse: My philosophy has always been, whether I was at the hospital or whether I'm here at the clinic, when I see a patient for the first time, I want to think to myself what I can do for that patient to make their day a little bit better than what it would have been if I hadn't met them.

Maria Porraz, In-Person Interpreter: My role is to facilitate communication between the provider and the patient. I feel it's very important for them to be able to tell their story and for the physician, or the health care provider, to learn and understand what the patient is coming from.

Narrator: Here in Rochester, there are two main campuses, the downtown campus and St. Mary's Hospital. The downtown campus includes the patient care areas with most of the doctor's offices and examination rooms as well as some testing areas. The downtown campus buildings are connected by climate-controlled, pedestrian walkways allowing convenient and quick access, especially during times of rain or snow, to the clinic's downtown buildings as well as hotels and shopping areas.

Mayo Clinic patients who need hospital care are seen at one of two Mayo Clinic hospitals. St. Mary's campus is located five minutes away from the downtown campus. A free, wheelchair-accessible patient and visitor shuttle runs continuously between the downtown campus and St. Mary's for your convenience.

At Mayo Clinic, the needs of the patient come first. We provide world-class health care and accommodation every day.

Chelsea Lockrem, Concierge: Everyone here Mayo, whether it's your doctor or us in concierge, we are all working together to make this a seamless experience for you.

Christina Dilaveri, M.D.: You have providers here who are the world experts in identifying some of these really rare conditions. This is the place to come to get that figured out.

David McFadden, M.D.: There's a lot of innovation, a new treatment, a lot of exciting opportunities for patients who may come to Mayo Clinic to have many of their complex problems evaluated and often resolved.

Amit K. Ghosh, M.D., General Internal Medicine: But let me tell you, we will listen to you. We will listen to whatever you have to say. And we'll do everything possible in our power to help you. That's the guarantee we give you.

Various Mayo Clinic staff: At Mayo Clinic, the needs of the patient come first.

Narrator: Now is the time to let us serve you.