Rancho

Have questions about Alzheimer’s care? Call us today at (562) 385-8130!

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Referral Process

Rancho Los Amigos – USC CADC welcomes referrals from physicians, other healthcare providers, and agencies.

We’re a model, multidisciplinary program specializing in the evaluation of memory problems. With more than 30 years of working together, our clinicians have the expertise for complex and unusual cases. Our team can provide services in English, Chinese and Spanish. We use state-of-the-art methods to distinguish between normal aging, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and dementias, including accurate differentiation of:
  • Alzheimer’s disease
  • Vascular dementia
  • Lewy body disease
  • Fronto temporal lobar degeneration (FTLD)
  • Huntington’s disease
  • Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease

For more information about us, jump to:

How to start the referral process

We can be contacted by:

Phone: (562) 385-8130

FAX: (562) 803-6900

E-Mail: Veronica Mendez for Appointments, v.mendez@usc.edu

Other: Ruby Estrada, ruby.estrada@usc.edu

Information required for your referral:

  • Demographics
  • Patient contact person
  • Current progress notes
  • Reason for referral
  • Related lab results
  • Previous brain imaging, if available
  • Clinic contact information

How long before my patient receives an appointment?

Patient medical insurance approval can take 3-10 business days. There may be up to a two-month (60 days) wait for new patient initial appointments. We ask for your assistance by providing us with copies of the patient’s recent medical records, especially if memory evaluations or assessments were previously completed. Diskettes of head scans (CT, MRI, PET), blood tests done within the prior 6 months, and recent EKG are also helpful.

How long before diagnosis?

Based upon the initial appointment, additional tests (blood, scans and neuropsychological) may be requested. After the completion of these tests, a diagnosis will be made with a follow-up interdisciplinary family conference held to review results, discuss the diagnosis and outline a plan of care. All results will be forwarded to the referring provider.