FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
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Croydon Medical Centre has a COVID Safe Plan in action to mitigate risk of infection and protect each and every person that enters our clinic.
Here are some of the things we have in place:
Masks are to be worn by all on-site See our mask policy.
All patients are screened prior to attending the clinic, to keep all people on-site, as safe as possible.
Plenty of hand sanitising stations around the clinic and at entry/exit points
Correct hand hygiene/cough/sneeze etiquette signs around the clinic and in toilets to encourage infection control
Socially distanced chairs in the waiting room
Waiting room and high-touch areas are regularly cleaned throughout the day
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Patients experiencing respiratory symptoms must call the reception to arrange a Telephone consultation prior to booking a face-to-face appointment at the clinic.
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A Standard/Single Consultation is 15 minutes. Some services like pap smears, health assessments, skin checks, care plans or if you have a number of complex concerns to discuss with your GP, often require longer appointments.
Please consider this when booking online or when calling our Centre. If you're unsure, please raise this with reception when booking your appointment. If booking online, it's best to book a long appointment so the doctor has ample time to cover all your concerns.
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Medical Certificates can be provided by your doctor following a consultation, unfortunately they cannot be backdated.
Please try to present early in your illness should you require this service.
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During COVID, Medicare has made an allowance to provide rebates to telehealth appointments. When the government imposes lockdowns/restrictions in movement, Medicare have covered the entire costs of telehealth appointments. Outside of the lockdown, Medicare will pay the rebate amount, not the full fee. If you possess a current Pension/HCC or the appointment is for a child under 16, you will be bulk billed.
For all other private patients, the normal consult fees will be charged, and you will receive the Medicare rebated amount. The Medicare criteria does change, so please speak to reception to see if you qualify for a phone consultation. Click HERE to see our current fee structure.
Outside of COVID and in keeping with our philosophy of best practice, telephone consultations will not be carried out and patients are encouraged to make an appointment to see the doctor. We believe best care is delivered face-to-face.
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Your personal health information is confidential and protecting your privacy is paramount. Personal information will only be used for the purpose of providing medical services and for claims and payments, unless otherwise consented to.
The Practice will not disclose personal information to any third party (other than in the course of providing medical services) without full disclosure to the patient or recipient, the reason for the information transfer and full consent from the patient.
For further information on how we handle your information, visit our Privacy Policy.
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We will have you complete and sign a ‘transfer of medical records’ request at reception, then send to your previous surgery.
If you are attending a different doctor's surgery and require your records sent over from Croydon Medical Centre, please complete a similar form at your new practice and have it set over to us, to release your records. For a full medical history, a fee is required prior to that information being sent see our fees page. Alternatively, a brief health summary can be forwarded at no extra charge.
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Work cover patients will be treated the same as regular patients. These patients must inform their employer before their first consultation and provide an approved claim number and date of accident/incident related to their current case at the time of consultation. This is necessary before consultation invoices can be directed to TAC or insurance companies.
If not supplied, payment for the consultation will be required by the patient on the day and will not attract a Medicare rebate. It is then the responsibility of the patient to seek reimbursement costs from their workcover/employer.
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Specialists typically require a referral letter from a GP. Please make an appointment with one of our GPs to ask about a referral letter.
If you have a specialist in mind, please bring the contact details with you.
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If you have a pathology request form from any Lab, we can help you with onsite pathology collection via Dorevitch who have on site collectors from Monday to Friday from 8.30 am to 2 pm (they have a lunch break from 12.30 to 1 pm), and Saturdays 9 am to 12 pm.
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Providing health care is rewarding but it can prove to be stressful, so we appreciate your compliments and encouragement. If we have failed to meet your expectations at any time and if you have any suggestions on how we can improve our practice or services, we would like to hear from you. Please send reception an email either via the "Contact us" tab on our website or at cmc@croydonmedicalcentre.com.au.
We encourage written feedback so we can best follow up and respond to your comments/concerns promptly.
The Health Complaints Commissioner (1300 582 113 or visit www.hcc.vic.gov.au) can assist with facilitation if you need assistance.
Helpful Information
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Urgent Advice
For URGENT medical assistance, call 000.
Alternatively, outside our opening hours, our after-hours locum service “Doctor Doctor” is available for home visits. They’re contactable on 8341 1200 or 13 26 60.
Although most problems are best dealt with in consultation, our reception team are trained in triage and are here to help; even if you’re unsure, give us a call!A doctor or nurse may also be available during normal surgery hours in helping decide if you require an appointment or a return phone call.
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Upon Arrival
Upon arrival to the medical centre please report to the reception, where one of our reception team will perform the following;
settle your account before your appointment if required
confirm and update your details if required
screen you for cold and flu like symptoms
confirm your appointment type and time
Once you have spoken with the reception team, please take a seat and wait patiently for your appointment.
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New Patients
We are always welcoming new patients at our medical centre. New patients will be required to fill in a new patient registration form before being seen attending your appointment. We offer this form digitally through Hotdoc or manually via our reception team.
Please note that our Doctors DO NOT prescribe Narcotics, Opioids or any Drugs of addiction to New Patients.
Upon arrival to the medical centre, please see our reception team to confirm your details and ensure there isn’t any outstanding information we may need.
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Telehealth
We offer Telehealth consultations to patients that are unable to attend the practice for their usual appointment. If you require a Telehealth consultation, this must be arranged via the reception team prior to your appointment.
Medicare will pay the rebate amount, not the full fee. If you possess a current Pension/HCC or the appointment is for a child under 16, you will be bulk billed.
For all other private patients, the normal consult fees will be charged, and you will receive the Medicare rebated amount. The Medicare criteria does change, so please speak to reception to see if you qualify for a phone consultation. Click HERE to see our current fee structure. -
Test Results
We do not provide test results over the phone without an appointment. All results must be discussed with your doctor.
Please note that some test results may take up to one week to become available. Please ensure that you take this into consideration when booking a follow up appointment. If unsure, please speak with our reception team. -
Medical Certificates / Referrals
To ensure the safety of our patients, we require an appointment to be made when requesting a medical certificate or a referral.
This is to ensure that your medical certificate or referral can be provided in a reasonable amount of time.
If you have COVID like symptoms please ensure you speak with our reception team to book a telehealth consultation. Medical certificates requested via telehealth consultations will be emailed via our reception team, after your appointment.
In regards to referrals, if there is a particular specialist would like to see, please ensure you have their details handy during the appointment, so that the doctor can help you make the appropriate arrangements.
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Prescriptions
We do not provide prescriptions or repeats to patients without an appointment. An appointment is mandatory for prescriptions in order for your doctor to review your symptoms and medication response.
If your medication requires a regular repeat, you can book your repeat appointments in advance with our reception team, to ensure you have a booking before your medication runs out.
We cannot renew or resend your prescription without an appointment.
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Phone Calls
Our receptionists cannot forward calls to our healthcare team. Based on your request our reception team may be able to take note of your query and pass it onto our medical team. However in most cases in order to address your queries in the most confidential and holistic way possible our reception team may ask you to book an appointment in order to speak with our medical team.
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Billing
Payment of private accounts is required at the time of consultation. We accept cash, EFTPOS and most major credit cards with the exception of American Express and Diners Club.
Our practice has a number of options to help you get your Medicare Rebate. With Medicare Easyclaim you can get your rebate instantly if you have an EFTPOS/Debit card linked to a Savings or Cheque account. Alternatively, we can provide you with an invoice of the consultation, so that you can request your rebate from medicate manually. If you have any concerns about the fees please discuss them with your doctor.