Sports Physical Therapy

Refer a Patient

How to Refer a Patient

To inquire about the status of a referral, please call Clinical Intake Coordinators at 206-987-2080, option 1.

Submit a referral

Appointment availability

Updated June 2021

A referral is required for patients to start in Sports Physical Therapy. If a referral is coming from a provider outside of Seattle Children’s, this may take a few days to process. Once your referral is in our system, you should expect a call from our Patient Access Center.

Typically, when we receive a referral, a patient is scheduled for one initial evaluation appointment with a Physical Therapist. These initial evaluation appointments are more common during the morning and early afternoon; late afternoon (after school hours) and Saturday evaluation appointments can occur, but those times are in high demand and not as readily available.

After your initial appointment, our Physical Therapists will assess and discuss a plan of care with patients and families, which will include frequency of physical therapy. At that time, you will be able to schedule additional appointments.

Please include:

  • Reason for referral: what is the clinical question for the specialist?
  • If the referral is urgent (see within 4 weeks) or routine (next available)
  • ICD-10 Diagnosis – required
  • Visit type:
    • New patient consult, transfer of care, second opinion, or return visit/ongoing care
  • ALL relevant clinical documents
    • Clinic notes
    • Medication history
    • Growth charts/curves 
    • Lab reports
    • Imaging and diagnostic reports
    • Previous specialty evaluations
  • Patient’s full name (legal name and chosen name, if different), DOB, sex, address, guardian contact information and insurance
  • Referring provider’s name, phone, fax and the referral coordinator’s email address so that we may contact you if additional information is needed
  • Preferred clinic location, if applicable
  • If an interpreter is needed
  • Any known barriers to performing a successful telehealth (video) visit with the family

Referral requirements

Please submit a referral that is complete. This helps us schedule your patient’s appointment in a timely manner and ensure their first visit is smooth and productive.    

We may not schedule patients until a complete referral is received.

Please include:

  • Reason for referral: what is the clinical question for the specialist?
  • If the referral is urgent (see within 4 weeks) or routine (next available)
  • ICD-10 Diagnosis – required
  • Visit type:
    • New patient consult, transfer of care, second opinion, or return visit/ongoing care
  • ALL relevant clinical documents
    • Clinic notes
    • Medication history
    • Growth charts/curves 
    • Lab reports
    • Imaging and diagnostic reports
    • Previous specialty evaluations
  • Patient’s full name (legal name and chosen name, if different), DOB, sex, address, guardian contact information and insurance
  • Referring provider’s name, phone, fax and the referral coordinator’s email address so that we may contact you if additional information is needed
  • Preferred clinic location, if applicable
  • If an interpreter is needed
  • Any known barriers to performing a successful telehealth (video) visit with the family

We’re committed to partnering with you

  • Diagnosis and treatment options: call 206-987-7777 (Provider-to-Provider Line).
  • Referring or transporting a patient to our Emergency Department or Urgent Care: call 206-987-8899 or, toll-free, 866-987-8899 (Emergency Department Communications Center).

Learn more about managing your patients at Seattle Children’s, including viewing your patient’s records.