Appointments

Consultation Fee Schedules (In Clinic, Telephone, Telehealth and Vaccination)

Effective 1st July 2021

Monday – Friday (8am-6pm)

Saturday (or After 6pm Weekdays)

Sunday (or Weekdays Before 8am & After 8pm)

We value your time and make all efforts to run on time. However, we are a medical clinic and sometimes emergencies do present that need our immediate attention which may mean a delay. If this happens, and you are unable to wait please ask our receptionists if they can transfer you to another doctor. To help us run on time we also request that you are mindful of booking adequate time for your appointment. Our standard appointments are 15 minutes long. A standard appointment allows us the time to help you with one medical issue, for example, a respiratory infection, a musculoskeletal injury, abdominal pain or discuss your results. Please book a long appointment if you need help with a more complex issue such as a mental health problem, or if you need to discuss a new pregnancy, travel vaccination, have a well women’s check or if you have more than one medical issue. If you have more than 2 issues we suggest you book an extended appointment. If you are unsure as to what length of appointment you need to book please ask our receptionists. Some doctors require longer (30 min appointments) for new patients to allow them the time to take a full medical history.

Please note there are additional costs for private vaccines (those outside the Qld Immunisation Schedule) to cover the cost of the vaccines as well as the consultation fee, dressings, procedures and tests (Spirometry, ECG, pregnancy test, etc). Please ask our receptionist for details of these fees.

COVID vaccine rollout

For more information please click here.

Telephone and Telehealth consultations

From 20 July 2020, Medicare provides a rebate for  telehealth or telephone consultations only where the patient has an existing relationship with the GP/clinic providing the consultation. There are limited exemptions to this requirement (Eg. infants under 12 months of age, people who are homeless). This means that:

• If you have not seen a GP in our clinic face to face in the last 12 months you will not be eligible for a Medicare rebate for telehealth or telephone services. The full consultation fee will apply.

Reception will call after your consultation to collect payment over the phone & send your claim to Medicare for a rebate if applicable.

If you are experiencing financial distress due to the COVID 19 pandemic please speak to your doctor.

From the 1st of July 2021 the Australian Government removed Medicare rebates for most phone consultations (eg long and extended phone consultations, chronic disease care plans, mental health care plans). This means that you will not receive a Medicare rebate for these services and will need to pay the full out of pocket fee. We advocated strongly against this given most of our patients prefer telephone consultations over video consultations. We encourage you speak with your MP if this is an issue for you.

Dr Anne Nixon’s and Dr Craig Schmeider’s consultations 

Dr Anne Nixon’s consultations and Dr Craig Schmeider’s skin check consultations have an additional gap that is not refundable by Medicare. Please call us for details.

Script or Referrals

Script or referral only/no consultation  $26.  Please note, that the request will be forwarded to your doctor for approval and there may be a 48 hour wait (more if your doctor is away), so we kindly request you plan ahead. Your doctor may request an appointment if they deem a review is needed before providing a script or referral.

During the current pandemic our doctors will try to address your issues over the phone during the telephone consultation, however, there may be occasions when they request you present to the clinic for a physical examination, so they can assess you.

Family Dr+

Family Dr+ is a private billing clinic and payment is required at the end of your consultation. Private billing allows our doctors to spend more time with you and helps fund the services we provide. Cheques are not accepted. A processing fee of $150 will be charged for late payment. If you need to cancel or reschedule your appointment we request for 24 hours notice. Failure to attend an appointment may attract a $95 non-attendance fee.

It is our policy not to prescribe drugs of addiction.

Use of the treatment room may incur a private facility fee that includes nursing, equipment and dressing costs which is not Medicare claimable.

On arrival

Whether visiting one of our GPs, specialists or allied health professionals please always check in at the reception desk with one of our receptionists so we can log you onto our system.

It is important that your contact details are up to date so we can contact you if necessary. On arrival our reception staff will confirm your current details. If you are new to the clinic you can complete your details here by downloading our patient form and bringing it with you to your appointment. (download form)

If  you or your child are seriously ill or need emergency care please let the receptionists know on arrival so our nurse can immediately start caring for you. If your condition deteriorates while you wait please let the reception staff know as well.

We have systems in place to ensure we are running on time, however sometimes unforeseen problems or emergencies arise. If a doctor is running behind and you are unable to wait, our receptionists will try and accommodate you with another doctor.

• All consultations require an appointment. A standard consultation is designed to deal with one straightforward medical issue. They last up to 15 minutes. We rely on your help to ensure that your doctor runs on time. If you have more than one issue or require a longer consultation please let our receptionists know at the time of booking. These may include:
  • More than one medical issue
  • Complex medical issues
  • Mental health/Stress issues
  • Complete Well Women’s/Men’s Health Checks
  • New pregnancy health check/confirmation of pregnancy
  • Work Cover issues
  • Some skin excisions
• If you require an emergency appointment, please discuss your situation with our receptionists. We try to accommodate fit in appointments for sick patients however it may not be with your regular doctor.
• Family Doctors Plus requires everyone to make an appointment for ALL INVESTIGATION RESULTS, including blood tests, ultrasounds and x-rays. Please bear in mind that even normal results may need follow-up, e.g. if the problem has not resolved. During the COVID-19 crisis we encourage you to make a telephone consultation appointment to discuss your results. If you have concerns regarding this policy please speak with our reception staff.
• Due to Privacy Legislation we are unable to email results or discuss your results with others on the phone.
• For your convenience we offer early morning, late evening and weekend appointments. Extra appointment fees may apply
• Repeat scripts and referrals may require an appointment. If you are just in need of a repeat script (script for regular medication, no other concerns)please let our reception staff know so they can fit you in at your earliest convenience.

Please note that driver’s licence medicals, travel consultations and skin checks require their own appointments. We cannot provide the information and care you need when these are booked as a single appointment together with another medical issue.

Before you leave

Please settle your account with our receptionists. They will make follow-up appointments if needed. They can provide you with directions to pathology, radiology and public transport. If blood tests or other investigations such as x-rays or ultrasounds have been ordered by your doctor please make a follow-up appointment for these results.  Most blood test results will be available within 2 business days, COVID-19 screening results within 3 days, cervical screening results within one week and radiology investigation results the day after you visit radiology.