New Patients

Welcome to Kotara Family Practice!

We believe in treating you well and keeping you well so that you feel cared for and cared about. We believe that health care is not just about helping you when you are sick, but also about staying healthy for as long as possible. It's about working together as a team, it's about treating you with respect and understanding and, most importantly, it's about making a difference to your health. 

In this section you will find all the information you need, as a new patient to KFP. But of course, if you have any other questions just give us a call and we will be happy to help. 

 

Choosing a GP

We encourage all patients to choose a GP they are comfortable to follow-up with. Although there may be times when your chosen GP is unavailable and you need to seek care from another GP, we encourage you to have a "preferred" doctor you can build a relationship with and have consistency of care. You can find information about all the GPs currently providing services at KFP, and accepting new patients, here: Doctors

 

Getting Ready for Your Consultation

As a new patient to the practice, it is important for your doctor to understand your past medical history so that they can begin to treat you in the best way for your health care needs. For this reason, your doctor will ask you to book a long appointment for your first consultation. You can help by writing down your past medical history, current medications and health concerns on the New Patient History form and bringing that along to your first appointment.
The New Patient History form, as well as other New Patient forms, are available to print out and return to us by email or on the day of your appointment, or you may receive a link to them via SMS message when you make your appointment. 

You can find our forms here: Forms

 

Transferring Your Medical Information

If you have a complex or significant medical history, your new doctor may wish to access a copy of your medical record from your previous GP practice. The transfer of medical files is commonly done between practices when patients move. We can help you to arrange this. Please be aware though that it is common for practices to charge a small fee for a file transfer, to cover the associated administrative and postage costs. Your previous practice will be able to advise you on whether there will be a transfer fee and of how much.

 

Where Are We and When Are We Open?

We are located inside Westfield, Kotara. On the Ground Floor near the Scott Dibben pharmacy. Shop 1001 to be exact. You can find more information about where we are here: Contact Us

You can find information about our opening hours and after-hours care arrangements here: Clinic Hours and After Hours

 

Health Services Offered

The doctors at Kotara Family Practice offer general medical services for patients of all ages. You can find more information about the services provided here: Services

 

Appointments

We offer a range of appointment types to suit your care needs. Long appointments are recommended if you have a complex concern or several issues you wish to discuss. Making the right appointment type for your needs helps your GP to stay on time. However, from time to time unavoidable delays do happen. If your doctor is running late we will let you know and give you the option of rescheduling your appointment if you are unable to wait. More information about making appointments can be found here: Appointments

With your consent, we will set you up to received appointment reminders. This will send as an SMS message to your nominated mobile phone the day before your scheduled appointment. Please confirm your attendance by replying YES or NO.

 

Unable to Attend Your Appointment?

If you are not able to attend your scheduled appointment, please let us know as soon as possible by calling the practice or replying NO to your SMS appointment reminder. This allows us to offer your appointment time to another patient. Failure to cancel an appointment without sufficient notice may result in a Missed Appointment Fee.

 

Fees and Payments

Kotara Family Practice is a private billing practice. That means there will be an out-of-pocket cost for your consultation. If you have a Medicare card you will be eligible for a Medicare rebate covering some of the consultation fee. We can arrange for your medicare rebate to be deposited into your bank account upon full payment of your consultation fee. You can find more information about the practice billing policy and a schedule of the most common fees here: Fees

 

Home Visits

Your medical team prefers patients to attend the practice for care so that they have access to appropriate medical equipment and support. Home visits are only offered when it is safe and reasonable to do so for patients with genuine inability to attend due to severe illness or immobility and with consideration for the doctor's existing appointment load. Patients also have access to Telehealth consultations when an in-clinic visit is not appropriate.

 

Telehealth Consultations

Telehealth consutations - telephone or video - are available for patients when an in-clinic face-to-face consultation is not appropriate. Telehealth consultations are privately billed, like face-to-face consultations, and a Medicare rebate is available in most circumstances. Unfortunately, Medicare do not currently offer Medicare rebate for telehealth consultations if the patient has not been seen face-to-face at the practice in the previous 12 month period. If you would still like to book a telehealth consultation in this situation, a full private fee is still payable with no Medicare rebate.

 

Test Results

From time to time your doctor may order various tests and medical investigations for you. Generally the practice will contact you via SMS or phone to let you know if your doctor recommends follow-up of your results. You can give the practice a call a few days after your test if you have not heard from us. You can find more information about receiving test results here: Test Results

 

Health Care Reminders

Our practice is committed to keeping you well through preventive health care initiatives. We use a reminder system to notify patients of any upcoming or overdue health care activities. From time to time you may receive a phone call, text message or letter reminder. If you do not wish to participate in this reminder service please let us know. You can find more information about Health Care Reminders here: Care Reminders

 

Repeat Prescriptions, Referral Letters and Forms

In the interests of your ongoing healthcare, your doctor will NOT normally issue prescriptions or complete referral letters or forms without a consultation. If you require an URGENT script before an appointment is available your doctor may issue you with a single script (no repeats) and request that you make a follow-up appointment for your full prescription. Alternatively, your pharmacy may dispense your medication on a "script-owing" - it will be your responsibility to make an appointment with your doctor to have the prescription completed. You can find more information about this here: Scripts and Referrals

 

Your Health Information

The privacy of your health information is important. All team members, including administrative staff, respect your privacy and keep your health information confidential at all times. Our practice Privacy Policy outlines how your information may be collected, used and disclosed and can be found here: Privacy

 

Contacting Your GP

Generally your GP will be unable to speak with you while they are in consultation with other patients. Our reception team will always try to assist you first, but if a message needs to be left for your doctor, please be aware that it may take several days for your doctor to respond.  

 

Giving Feedback

Your feedback is really important - we love to know if you have had a positive experience we can share with the practice team, or if you have a concern you think we can improve on. You can find more information about how to provide feedback or how to notify a concern here: Feedback