A Letter to our Patients: Coronavirus Response

Dear Patients and Families,

Please be aware that our practice is making changes to the way in which we provide services in order to:

• continue to provide you and your families with sustainable healthcare,
• reduce the risk of exposure to the virus, and
• keep our doctors, nurses and support staff safe.

Please be aware that moving forward all initial appointments will be telehealth/via phone until further notice.

When you call the practice, the reception staff will ask you the following questions:

1. Do you have any cold or flu like symptoms?
2. Have you returned from overseas travel in the last 14 days?

It is critical that you answer these questions honestly in order to us to assess your needs regarding appropriate screening and any required treatment. This will also protect doctors, staff and other patients.

If you answer “Yes” to either of the above questions, you will be transferred to the nursing staff for further screening before your phone appointment with the doctor is made.

The doctor will call you at your appointment time for the phone consultation. Your consultation may be a home consultation on the phone, a car park consultation or in the surgery on the discretion of the doctor.

You will be asked to call the practice on your arrival not more 10 minutes before your scheduled appointment time. You will then call the practice to let the reception know you have arrived.

If you are required for a consultation within the surgery, you will be required to remain in your car until the practice calls you to present at the doors of the practice where your temperature will be screened. If your temperature is over 37.5 degrees Celsius you will be asked to return to your car and the doctor will call you /make arrangements to attend to you in your vehicle.

The Australian Government has implemented bulk billing for telehealth/phone consultations for those people who meet the following criteria:

• people isolating themselves at home on the advice of a medical practitioner, in accordance with home isolation guidance issued by the AHPPC, and people who meet the current national triage protocol criteria for suspected COVID-19 infection after consultation with either the national COVID-19 hotline, state COVID-19 hotlines, registered medical or nursing practitioner or COVID-19 trained health clinic triage staff,
• people aged over 70,
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged over 50,
• people with chronic health conditions or who are immunocompromised,
• parents with new babies and people who are pregnant.

Patients who do not meet the above criteria will be charged a private out of pocket fee of $49.90 for a standard appointment (up to 20 minutes). The full detail of fees is provided on our website.

*****We recognise that there are some ‘routine’ appointments that will require an ‘in surgery’ appointment. We will book these patients in with their doctors as usual – however, these patients will be screened at each presentation.******