Appointments
Appointment Policy
Standard consultations are 15 minutes with some shorter and longer bookings available by request. The doctors at Russell Clinic constantly strive to run on time but the nature of general practice makes this difficult.
If you have a complex issue, feel you may require a longer time or have several issues to discuss, please book a longer appointment with your doctor. This allows the doctors to spend adequate time with you to provide the best care without running over time.
If you are booking for the following services, please advise reception when booking your appointment:
mental health care plan, medical examination for Life Insurance, Superannuation, heavy duty drivers license, iron infusions, CAMS medical, any procedures including implanon insertion/removal, excisions and biopsies.
Nurse Clinics
We run daily Nurse led clinics for immunisations, dressings, INRs and vaccinations.
Cancellations
Please notify the reception staff if you are unable to attend your appointment. Due to the high demand for appointments, a non-attendance fee will be charged if appointments are missed without at least 2 hours prior notice. Care plan appointments require 24 hours notice.
Accidents
Before attending the practice after an accident of any kind, please phone our rooms to allow our staff to triage the situation and advise you of the best course of action.
Urgent problems will be managed promptly.
Extreme cases such as chest pain should be managed by calling an ambulance on 000.
After Hours Service
If you require after hours medical treatment, please phone National Home Doctor Service on 8130 3324.
Home Visits
If illness prevents you attending the surgery, arrangements can be made for a telehealth consult.
Fees
All consultations are billed at the doctors discretion. Our fees are set between those recommended by Medicare and those recommended by the AMA.
Full payment of account will be required on the day of consultation. Concession cardholders and children under 16 are currently being bulk billed for standard consultations. There may be fees for other services provided by the practice.
EFTPOS facilities are available and all major credit cards are accepted.
We are on HIC online, this means accounts are directly processed to Medicare through our system.
Consultations after 6.30pm on weekdays and all appointments on Saturday are deemed after hours and different fees may apply.
Payment of Consultation Fees
When booking a Telehealth appointment, you are required to enter your payment details. These details are securely stored until billing has been processed by the practice. If your consult has been bulk billed, the account is deleted and your details are no longer held.
Outstanding Accounts
We recently started sending text message reminders to patients with outstanding accounts. This message provides a link that allows you to easily pay online. We can assure you this is a secure way to settle your accounts.
After sending three text message reminders, you will receive a letter and phone call follow ups until the account has been settled.