In addition to our comprehensive general medicine consultation our centre provides the following:
Comprehensive family practice
Childhood Immunisations
Preventative Health Checks
Team Based Chronic Disease Management
Skin Checks and Surgery
Men’s Health
Women’s Health and contraception
Iron infusion
Pregnancy & Pre-conception counselling
Pre-employment Health Assessments
Weight Loss
Acute and Emergency Medical Care 24 hours
Mirena, IUD and Implanon Management
Health Check for people aged 45 to 49 year, or 75 years+
Travel Medicine Service (incl.Yellow Fever) – no bulk billing
Wound Management Service
Mental Health
Express Clinic for repeat prescriptions
Qfever testing
Our doctors are committed to the education of the next generation of medical practitioners. From time to time we have medical students attached to our practice.
Your doctor will ask if it is OK for the student to be present during your visit. Some people feel uncomfortable having somebody else in the room. If you do not wish to have the medical student present during your consultation, please let your doctor know.
We provide care for residents of local Aged Care Facilities.
We believe your health is best managed by continuous care from the same practice. We will refer you for specialist opinions, investigations and treatment when necessary.
Health assessments for our 75 year old patients, 45-49 year old patients and diabetes patients are conducted by practice nurse and visiting nurse (Chris Purcell) at the practice then followed by an appointment with your doctor who discusses the assessment. The nurse visit is part of our service. If necessary 75 year old assessments can be conducted in the patient’s home.
75 Year Health Assessments
Our aim at Bardon Rainworth Medical Centre is to work with you to keep you as well as you get older. As we age our overall risk of illness rises. (You would be aware for example that in Australia we recommend a influenza vaccination every year for people 65 years and over). An effective way of identifying risks or threats to your health as you get older is through a comprehensive health assessment. The Australian Government funds a yearly health assessment for all Australians aged 75 years and older; our doctors recommend you take advantage of this health assessment. This health assessment provides a structured way of identifying health issues and intervening before they become major concerns which can reduce your quality of life. This free health check also provides you with the opportunity to raise any concerns that you may not usually have time to discuss with your doctor in a standard consultation.
What is involved in a health assessment?
It is important to note that these assessments are provided free of charge.
The initial assessment is conducted in our practice or in your own home by one of our practice nurses. You may wish to book an appointment with a particular nurse on our nurse team. You may choose to book an appointment with Dr Chris Purcell, who is a nurse specialist at our practice. Our nurses are all very professional and committed to providing quality patient- centred care. The usual length of time for this initial assessment is 45 minutes to 1 hour. This allows you to talk about all factors that are related to your overall health. The nurse will check your blood pressure, pulse, height and weight. You will also be asked a number of questions designed to ensure your doctor has a comprehensive report on the many factors which may influence your overall health. You will have time to discuss any concerns with the nurse and to ask any questions about maintaining your health as you age.
Following this initial assessment, the report will prepared for your doctor; this provides your doctor with an accurate and comprehensive picture of your current health status. You will be required to have a follow-up appointment with your doctor to discuss the results of your health assessment; this is very important as it ensures any risk factors are identified and followed-up to maintain your overall quality of life. There is no charge for a follow-up.
We hope to have provided you with an understanding of the benefits of a yearly health assessment, but if you have any further questions, we would be happy to answer them. Please feel free to phone the practice on 3369 0551 to make an appointment with one of our nurses, or alternatively ask our reception staff to book a health assessment after your next visit. If we do not hear from you, we will make contact with you on a yearly basis to invite you to have an assessment.
New Patients are asked to check in 10 minutes before your appointment time to allow for your personal data to be recorded.
You can assist with this process by downloading and completing the New Patient Form.
We look forward to welcoming you to the Clinic.
Our practice is a mixed billing practice however Doctors can choose to bulk bill Commonwealth Seniors Health Card holders, Pension Concession Card holders, immunisations, and children 5 & under. You must present your current concession card at the time of your appointment in order to be bulk billed.
Today Medicare rebates do not cover the full cost of providing you with a safe and high quality service. This is because the rate at which successive governments have indexed the Medicare Schedule fees has been substantially lower than increases in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and average weekly earnings.
The fees charged by this practice have to cover all of our practice costs including employing receptionists and practice nurses, and meeting our operating expenses such as rent, medical equipment, electricity, computers and insurance.
Unfortunately it is not possible for this practice to meet our running costs each year without increasing our fees.
Concessional fees apply to students and Health Care Card Holders.
All other patients are treated as private patients by our Doctors. Private billing examples are as follow
| AMA Recommended | Private Fee | Concession Fee | Medicare Rebate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short consultation ITEM 23 | $80.00 | $80.00 | $60.00 | $37.60 |
| Long consultation ITEM 36 | $142.00 | $125.00 | $100.00 | $72.80 |
| Extended consultation ITEM 44 | $220.00 | $160.00 | $126.00 | $107.15 |
| Urgent After Hour home Consultation (11pm-7am) | 450.00 | $250.00 | $153.00 | $153.00 |
As a standard guide, consultation gaps are around $40.00 but do not exceed $100.00. Information on fees is available on request.
| Dressing Fees | Small | $5.00 |
| Large | $10.00 | |
| Iron Infusion | $50.00 | |
| Vaccinations – Will vary depending on type | product price |
Payment Methods
We accept payment by cash, cheque, Eftpos and Mastercard or Visa, not Amex, over the phone. All accounts are to be finalized after appointment.
For your convenience, we have the facilities to lodge your Medicare claim online. Please note that this service is only available to accounts paid on the day.
Home visits and After Hours Care
Home visits are only available if you are a regular patient of our practice and are too sick to come to the surgery. Every effort will be made to accommodate your choice of doctor however this will depend on the availability of doctors at the time of your request.
Dr Greg Thompson is our primary after hours care facilitator. This is only provided for patients should they need urgent treatment after our consulting hours, on the weekends or on public holidays. Patients can obtain a contact number from receptions, when deemed appropriate.
Prescriptions
As we are committed to your care it is recommended for patients to make appointments in order to have prescriptions written. A request for script will be forwarded to your doctor who will either prepare a script within 3 days ($10 fee applies) or contact you for an appointment. Please feel free to discuss this policy with the doctor if you have any concerns.
Specialist referrals
A consultation is required for all specialist referrals without prejudice. This enables the doctor to provide the specialist with the current details of your medical condition. The referral is a legal document, which enables you to claim benefits from Medicare. Please ensure that you obtain this before your specialist appointment, as it is illegal to backdate referrals or to write one without having had a consultation with the patient.
Medical certificates
Patients must see the Doctor to get a medical certificate. If you require a medical certificate please ask the Doctor at the time of consultation. Doctors are not permitted to backdate medical certificates in any circumstances.
Management of Investigations
Your doctor may make a request for further investigations such as pathology tests or X-Rays. You are required to make a follow up appointment with your doctor to discuss these test results and your future management. Managing your investigation results this way enables us to support you in maintaining and coordinating your long term health. For normal results, you may contact our practice nurse 7 days after your test. If your Pap smear result is not completely normal your doctor or staff will arrange a follow-up appointment. Your co-operation in managing these results is greatly appreciated.
Cancellation Policy
When you make an appointment with us, we commit to reserving this time only for you. We strive not to make any changes and understand your time is valuable, so we always try to run as close to time as possible. We also understand things come up, and should you need to change your appointment we ask you to provide as much notice as possible to allow another person to fill that time slot. Please note our practice has a cancellation policy that requires a 2hr notice of any change before your appointment time. This enables us to offer your appointment to another patient who could use that time.
We are committed to providing continuous high quality care to all our community. We will seek improvements to enhance the delivery of care in a friendly and inclusive manner. We see our patients as individuals requiring specific solutions. Our strength is the warmth of our relationship between our patients, doctors, nurses, general staff and total health community which we will aim to maintain.
Copyright © Bardon Rainworth Medical Centre 2019
