Information & Fees

To minimise waiting time, we operate by appointments of 15 minutes duration. We encourage our patients to book with the same doctor; if your doctor is unavailable an appointment with another doctor can be arranged. If a longer appointment is required (eg. cervical screening, medical etc.) please advise the receptionist at the time of your booking. If you are unable to keep an appointment – please notify the receptionist as soon as possible, so we can allocate that time to another patient.

The Doctors and staff at Junction Road Family Practice understand that there is always room for improvement in the medical service they provide, and welcome any suggestions you may have. Please feel free to discuss these issues with your Doctor or the Practice Manager. Grievances will be dealt with promptly and if you still feel unhappy with the resolution, you may contact the Health Quality and Complaints Commission on 07 3234 0272, or www.hqcc.qld.gov.au.

Junction Road Family Practice is a Private Billing Practice. Payment is required at the time of your consultation, by cash or eftpos. If there are financial difficulties, please discuss this with the Doctor at the time of your appointment.

Practice Fees are revised on 1st July each year. Once payment has been received, patients can claim their Medicare benefit and have it paid back into their bank account using the practice’s Tyro EFTPOS terminal (Savings or Cheque key card is required). Alternatively, the receptionist can send the claim online and Medicare will pay the benefit back into the patients nominated bank account. It is the patient’s responsibility to ensure that their contact details and bank details are up to date with Medicare.

Interpreter services are available through:

NABS (National Auslan Interpreter Booking & Payment Service) – Sign Language

NRS (National Relay Service) – For the Deaf

TIS (Translation and Interpreter Service) – Languages other than English

Arrangements can be made with these services prior to appointments – please inform the receptionist if needed.

Your medical record is a confidential document. It is the policy of this Practice to maintain security of personal health information at all times, and to ensure that this information is only available to authorised members of staff.

For Doctors to provide a “Medical Certificate”, it is necessary for the Doctor to consult the patient for that ailment. It is not possible to backdate medical certificates.

Our practice considers it very important to contribute to the training of medical students. From time to time we may have medical students sitting in on consultations and assisting the doctor. We appreciate your co-operation with this.

The Practice has a computerised recall and reminder system for follow-ups of immunisations, pap smears, blood tests, and health assessments. A reminder is sent to the patient when the recall is due. If you do not wish to be part of this system, please let your doctor or the receptionist know.

Most prescriptions provide sufficient medication to last until that condition needs to be reviewed. The policy of Junction Road Family Practice is that you consult with the doctor to have repeat prescriptions, however some prescriptions may be provided if the patient has been seen in the last three months in regard to this condition. 24 hours notice is needed for this request and a $33.00 charge will apply to be paid at the time of pick-up. It is illegal for doctors to write prescriptions for patients if they have not been seen for the condition within a 6 months period.

Junction Road Family Practice requires everyone to make an appointment (face to face, telephone or telehealth) for ALL INVESTIGATION RESULTS, including blood tests and imaging results. This is to ensure we provide you with the most comprehensive medical care. If your results are normal, but your problem persists, you may require further investigations or a referral. It is our policy not to email or fax results due to privacy laws.

We may need to contact you either via SMS, phone, email or mail so it is essential your contact details are up-to-date.

Referrals for a Specialist are usually written at the time of consultation with the GP. With this in mind, all referrals will require an appointment to be made. However, if a duplicate referral is required – 24 hours notice is needed. A $33.00 fee will apply to be paid at the time of pick-up. Due to continuing changes in Specialist consultation fees, we advise our patients to contact the Specialist rooms for confirmation of any out-of-pocket costs. Under no circumstances can a Doctor backdate a referral.

To ensure all patients receive care and time during consultations, telephone calls to doctors are limited to emergencies. If it is impractical to speak directly with the doctor at that time, the reception staff will take a message and have the doctor contact you at a more convenient time.

This Practice will provide upon formal request from your new Doctor, a copy of your medical file as appropriate. This medical history will be posted by registered mail directly to the Doctors as required. This medical history is not given to the patient.

Vaccinations for travel are available through our Practice, but it is highly recommended that you speak with your Doctor at a prior consultation, to ensure the necessary vaccinations are on hand for your travel destinations.

Visits for a work related injury/illness are treated at the expense of the injured worker and payable at the time of consultation. It is also the injured worker’s responsibility to forward all medical and accounting paperwork to their employer or WorkCover Queensland. Please inform the Doctor at the time of consultation that it is a WorkCover related visit, and provide the doctor with all relevant information and necessary paperwork.

– We request you make an appointment if you need to speak with your usual doctor or health professional. Please speak with our reception staff who may be able to help with your concerns if you’re unsure how to proceed. We request you make an appointment with your doctor for all clinical queries as our reception staff are not clinically trained.

– All requests for paperwork outside an appointment will incur a fee.

– Please note that it is the policy of the doctors and health professionals not to communicate with patients via social media channels or email. We request you not use this as a form of contact or leave messages on those channels, as the messages are not monitored 24/7. Social media channels are intended for the practice to provide general information only. If you need to communicate with your health professional or have a clinical query please make an appointment. Ring 000 in an emergency.

– To provide a high standard of care and as an accredited practice we need to record basic personal and health information. This information is treated with the strictest of confidence and may only be divulged to a third party (eg. insurance company) with your consent, by law, when lives are at risk or through a court order. The staff members of Family Doctors Plus are subject to strict confidentiality obligations.

– Our staff are unable to email copy of test results. If you require a copy of your test results we request you make an appointment with your doctor to request a copy.

– Misleading or inaccurate information may affect our ability to provide the best health outcome for you.

– Your health records may be reviewed as part of the quality improvement activities of this practice.