COLD & FLU SYMPTOMS
If you have cold or flu symptoms – including: running nose, sore throat, cough or fever it is a requirement you wear a mask and provide a negative RAT to your appointment. This is for the protection of our staff, and in particular our immunocompromised patients and staff attending the centre.
EMERGENCIES
If you have a life-threatening medical condition, call OOO (triple zero) and request an ambulance.
If you have had a serious accident or suddenly become ill and require urgent medical care, head straight to the Emergency Department (ED) at Rockingham General Hospital.
They are located on Elanora Drive, Cooloongup. ED is open 24-hours a day, 7 days a week. Phone: 9599 4000
Other services available to assist you if you have an urgent medical condition:
Healthdirect Australia (24-hour health advice) – phone 1800 022 222
Mental Health Emergency Response Line (metropolitan area) – phone 1300 555 788
Poisons Information Centre – phone 13 11 26.
AFTER HOURS SERVICES
Dial-A-Doctor operates throughout the Perth including Public Holidays. Call 1300 030 030
Dial-A-Doctor will bulk bill Medicare and DVA card holders. They also direct bill OSHC policy holders.
Their Telehealth service is bulk billed for eligible patients and they’re are able to provide scripts and medical certificates if required.
APPOINTMENT TIMES
Please be aware that our Doctors try their very best to look after everyone on time, unfortunately there are occasions they will run late due to an emergency case they have had to accommodate. Please be patient and we thank you for your understanding. Be assured when you do see the Doctor, your issues will be given the time it deserves.
TELEHEALTH APPOINTMENTS
Teleheath appointments are only available to patients that have attended our practice within the last 12 months. This is a Medicare policy to ensure patients continue to receive quality, ongoing care from a practitioner who knows their medical history and needs.
You may have a maximum of 3 consecutive telehealth, then a face to face (in practice) consultation is required.
We do not offer telehealth consults on Sundays.
Your Doctor will call you for the consultation. As with appointments in the practice, your Doctor might be running behind.
Please make sure you have your device near you and not on silent mode. It is also important to identify a quiet, private place where you can talk to your GP over the phone. Choose somewhere where there is no background noise.
You will receive a link via sms for you to store your card details for the consultation. Payment will be processed after your consultation and your Medicare rebate will be processed for you at the same time. If your consultation is to be bulk billed, there will be no fee charged.
MISSED APPOINTMENTS
We understand that while patients can’t always make it to scheduled appointments, we do request that you inform us of any changes at your earliest convenience.
Please call the practice on 9544 5222 if you are unable to attend your appointment. Your courtesy call will help someone who needs urgent care.
If you are running late, please call to inform our friendly receptionists. They will be able to let you know if the Doctor will still be available for your appointment.
A $30 non-attendance fee will be charged for missed appointments. A $50 non-attendance fee for missed double & Sunday appointments without a minimum of 1 hour of notice. No further appointments with any of our doctors will be made until the fee has been paid.
NEW PATIENTS – PRACTICE POLICY
Please be aware that our doctors will only complete for following for existing patients NOT new patients.
- Insurance forms/reports
- Medical certificates/clearance notes
- Centrelink forms
- Scripts for Schedule 8 medications
We listened to your feedback! As a result, we’re taking active steps to better your patient experience.
At Tuart Family Practice we carried out a patient survey (the Practice Accreditation and Improvement Survey) and asked for your honest options on the service we provide. We listened to your concerns and have taken the following actions in order to make improvements to patient care where you feel it would be most useful:
- Parking – We acknowledge our allocated parking bays do get taken up by our neighbouring business’s customers. We will be updating/renewing our signs for our patient’s designated parking bays.
- Access to more female doctors – Our female doctors are in demand, and we are currently actively looking to welcome a new female doctor to our team.
- More Allied Health – We currently have a Psychologist, a Speech Therapist and an Audiologist at Tuart Family Practice. We have been looking at including a Dietician in the near future.
- Opening Saturday – Our practice is open Monday – Friday and every Sunday to accommodate the Baldivis community. Our Doctors are considering opening 7 days a week once we have some more doctors join our practice.
Some of the positive feedback we received:
- Professional and knowledgeable Doctors – All our Doctors are committed to their continuing professional development (CPD) Patient health issues no matter how big or small will be met with compassion and empathy.
- Short wait time – Our Doctors try their best every day to run on time for their patients. If a Doctor has an emergency and his patient’s appointment time may be delayed, staff are trained to inform the patient of any potential extended wait time.
- Helpful, informative staff members – All staff are fully trained on practice policies and procedures. Any fees that may be associated with an appointment are discussed whilst booking.
We understand it’s our patients voice that plays a crucial role in bettering healthcare.
We use your feedback to improve our care and service experience for all our patients.
Recommendations supplied via reports are implemented within the practice by all Practitioners and staff.