Strong4Life Clinic FAQs

To schedule an appointment with the Strong4Life Clinic, we need the following:

1. A referral from the child's physician
2. A new patient packet filled out by the caregiver (available in English and Spanish)

Fill out the new patient packet (also available via QR code below).

Referral from your child's doctor
Please ask your child's doctor to fax your referral to 404-785-9111. It should include:

• Most recent clinic notes
• Most recent lab work results
• Growth charts
• Demographics
• Contact information

For general questions related to the Strong4Life Clinic, call 404-785-5437 or email Strong4LifeClinic@choa.org.

Yes, all patients need a referral to start the program, even if your insurance provider doesn't require one.

No. We can order lab work as needed. Your child does not need to fast prior to their appointment.

1. Participate. Participating means the whole family is committed. Sometimes, a child makes a goal that requires a parent to change his or her lifestyle. Parents who model healthy behaviors are more likely to have a child who develops healthy habits. Plan to get the whole family on board. Most children have multiple caretakers, so it is important to make sure all caretakers understand the importance of consistent behaviors, too.
2. Use your team. We are available every day via phone and email, and we’re happy to answer questions from you or your child about nutrition or exercise plans.
3. Be honest. Change is never easy. Our clinic is meant to be a place of acceptance and openness, with no judgment. In order to determine if this is the right time for your family to join the Strong4Life Clinic, consider the following questions:
   • Is your family ready to make dietary changes such as eating more vegetables or reducing the number of sodas you drink?
   • Are there medical reasons for making a change now?
   • Is there a strong history of diabetes or cardiovascular disease in your family? Does your child take any medications for these problems already?
   • Are you willing to consider adjusting your schedule, changing your diet or exercising more yourself if that would help your child?
   • Is your child expressing an interest in eating better or feeling better?

In order for the Strong4Life Clinic to be successful, we need full participation from you and your child. Make sure you both come ready to be fully engaged in the program. Your child can be dressed in normal attire for their appointment; exercise clothing is not required.

In order to serve you, your child and all the children in our clinic in the most efficient way possible, we adhere to a strict late policy. If you arrive after your scheduled appointment time, your child may need to reschedule. Make sure to allow yourself extra time for traffic and parking.

We recommend contacting your insurance provider regarding your coverage prior to your appointments. When you call, you can let them know that the Strong4Life Clinic will be billed as a "hospital outpatient" visit.

You or your insurance company will receive, at minimum, 2 bills. One bill will be for hospital services rendered as part of your visit (including facility charge, labs, radiology and therapies), and the others will be for each doctor your child sees at the visit.

Depending on your individual arrangement with your insurance company, you may be responsible for separate copayments or deductibles for each bill. If your child sees multiple doctors at your visit, you could be required to pay copayments for each doctor seen.

If you have questions or object to any of the information above, please contact us (404-785-5437 or Strong4LifeClinic@choa.org) before your child’s visit to the clinic.

Fill out the new patient packet online or print a new patient packet and submit to the Strong4Life Clinic by:

• By email: Strong4LifeClinic@choa.org
• By fax: 404-785-1511
• By mail: Strong4Life Clinic, 1400 Tullie Road NE, 6th Floor, Atlanta, GA 30329

As a reminder, in addition to the completed new patient packet, we need a referral from your child’s doctor before we can contact you to schedule an appointment for the Strong4Life Clinic. Please have your doctor fax the referral along with labs, notes, growth charts and demographics to 404-785-9111.

The Strong4Life Clinic offers a bariatric surgery program for overweight teens who meet eligibility requirements. Surgical candidates are required to complete our full behavior intervention programs before and after surgery.

Our current potential treatment plan—the vertical sleeve gastrectomy procedure—may be offered for teens who meet these requirements:

• BMI (Body Mass Index) greater than 35 with weight-related health problems or have a BMI greater than 40
• Minimum of 6 consecutive monthly visits to the Strong4Life Clinic

Once these steps are completed, the request will be sent to your insurance company for approval. After surgery is performed, we'll require your teen to return for follow-up visits.

Contact our office at 404-785-3512 for more information about this portion of the program.