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Practice PoliciesChicago Dizziness and Hearing is principally the clinical practice of Timothy C. Hain, M.D. (Board certified in Neurology), and Janet Helminski, P.T., Ph.D. (Ph.D. in Neuroscience, specialization in Vestibular Rehabilitation). We generally see patients who have not been diagnosed or effectively treated by their general physicians, otolaryngologists or neurologists. We evaluate all types of dizziness and imbalance -- whether they be deriving from the inner ear (such as Meniere's disease), neurological problems (such as stroke or TIA), general medical disturbances (such as low blood pressure), or psychiatric problems such as anxiety and phobic vertigo syndromes. We emphasize physical therapy based treatments when they are available, but there is a tight link and communication between the medical and physical therapy sides of the practice. We are sophisticated in the use of medications for dizziness and Dr. Hain has published several review articles on that subject (see references below). Most patients have a thorough initial evaluation, followed by return visits as needed to assess the effects of treatment until the patient is well or we have exhausted all reasonable treatments. Most visits will include some testing related to dizziness. We use VNG equipment to quantify involuntary eye movements (nystagmus), as this greatly assists us in proper diagnosis. Appointment timing:New appointments are presently available in about 6 weeks. Return appointments can generally be obtained within two weeks. We can be reached most easily by email at cdb@dizziness-and-balance.com. At the time that the appointment is made, we will ask for contact information and billing information. Our scheduler will coordinate testing, labs and treatment visits. Less trips downtown can often be accomplished by scheduling tests and appointments on the same day. While there may be a wait for the first appointment, after we have seen you once we will make every effort to see you within a few days should a sudden illness arise. This often results in the situation that a patient with an intermittent problem comes in when they are feeling well, and is seen a second time when their illness recurrs. For patients from out-of-town, it is often helpful to coordinate your appointment and preschedule testing, as well as appointments with other specialty physicians that might be helpful in evaluation of the situation. How much time to allocate:New patient visits typically take two to three hours. About one hour is overhead, one hour is an initial visit with Dr. Hain or an associate, and about 1 hour is for testing using more sophisticated equipment than is generally available. We are located on the Magnificent mile of Chicago, and accompanying persons are encouraged to enjoy the local sights while the patient is being evaluated. What to bring to the appointmentPlease bring with you all available relevant medical records, especially MRI scans of the head or neck, results of ear testing (hearing and ENG), blood test results when available. If you bring your kids or spouse, please remember that new appointments typically consume about 3 hours. They may want to visit the local sights, or just get a cup of coffee. There is a lot of stuff to do in our area. Parking and TransportationWe are located at:
MapMost of our patients park in one of two Northwestern Memorial Hospital parking lots. One lot is located in downtown Chicago at the intersection of Huron and St. Clair, with an entrance on Huron as well as Superior. The other lot is on the corner of Fairbanks and Erie. We provide stickers for this lot. These stickers cover 4 hours of parking. The train is an excellent option as we are only about a mile from Union station and taxi's are plentiful. There are also several hotels that are adjacent to the office including the Wyndham and a Fairfield Inn. The Fairfield Inn offers a discount to persons traveling to see a doctor at Northwestern. BillingThe insurance companies that we are contracted with are listed here. We are contracted with many third-party insurances through Northwestern Healthcare Corporation. We accept Medicare patients. For those that are uninsured, we will ask for payment at the time of service. We refund overpayments. Note that our practice offers physician services, subspecialty physical therapy, and some laboratory testing. It is a good idea to check your health insurance material to see what is covered. Prescription refillsMost prescription refills are accomplished by calling or faxing our practice, indicating what needs to be refilled, and leaving your name, a contact number for you, and a pharmacy number. If you have a common name (like Smith), please leave us something else to help with identification - -birth date or telephone # works best. Our paper fax # (best for rx) is 312-274-0198. We will generally refill medications for as long as 2 years from the last appointment. Most prescriptions are written with 3 to 6 months of refills. Communication:We will attempt, whenever possible and safe, to handle questions or medication questions over the telephone or email (see below). Most phone-calls are answered by a staff member within 24 hours. After hours, the telephones are transferred to a paging service. Dr. Hain does not always return calls within 24 hours, but depending on the urgency of the situation, it may take a few days or even longer. We encourage use of email (medassist@dizziness-and-balance.com) as it is more efficient than telephone. Our fax # is 312-274-0198 (also 312-376-8707 for large amounts of material). You may wish to fax us results of tests. If you have a fax #, we will use it to communicate with you if want us to. Fax or email is much faster and also generally more reliable than regular mail. We will routinely send copies of our notes to the physicians that our patients designate. We will also routinely send copies of all lab reports to our patients. We will, on request, send copies of our notes to you too. We respect your privacy and will not give data about you to others without your permission, other than the specific cases outlined in our privacy policy (pdf format). We can be reached by email at: reception@dizziness-and-balance.com. Note that like most email systems, this is not secure -- we advise against using email to transmit information that you would not want to be public. We use secure computer systems, but the internet in general is not a secure environment. We are happy to use email to facilitate appointments, prescription refills, and when necessary, to obtain followup information. Selected articles of Dr. Hain relevant to dizziness:
Dr. Hain is Professor of Neurology, Otolaryngology and Physical Therapy at Northwestern University, in Chicago Illinois, USA Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Phillippians 4:8
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