AIMHealth Melbourne Central Medical Centre ensures reasonable arrangements for medical care, including the follow up of seriously abnormal and life threatening pathology results for our patients outside our normal opening hours.
The arrangements for medical care outside normal opening hours including how to access this care and the possibility of out-of-pocket costs, is communicated clearly to patients of this practice.
In our practice, we offer after-hours care to patients of our practice by our own general practitioners providing care for patients outside of normal opening hours either individually or through a roster
Feedback about the quality and timeliness of after-hours care provided to our patients by the after-hours service provider is obtained, and patient satisfaction with our after-hours service is regularly evaluated and improvements implemented if necessary.
To facilitate continuity of care, we ensure any reports or notes pertaining to consultations occurring outside the normal opening hours are incorporated into the patients’ health records in a timely manner.
Our practice has provisions enabling pathology providers to contact a patient’s general practitioner or other member of our medical team where significant and life threatening pathology results are identified outside our normal opening hours.
Our practice’s normal opening hours are 0930-1730 Monday to Friday and 1200-1800 on Saturdays.
Advice to our patients on how to access care during the after-hours period, including the potential for out-of-pocket expenses, is available:
- By our telephone 03 9663 7199 and follow the phone voice message instructions
- In the practice information sheet
- On a sign visible from outside the practice, and
- On our practice website.
For calls received after-hours, our practice has a comprehensive message on the answering machine that includes the practice’s opening hours, details of the after-hours care arrangements in place (including a contact telephone number) and a recommendation to call ‘000’ if the matter is an emergency.
In our practice, we offer after-hours care to patients of our practice by our own general practitioners providing care for patients outside of normal opening hours either individually or through a roster
Sometimes our general practitioners may need to be contacted during the after-hours period by the pathology service about a serious or life threatening matter. These organisations include Dorevitch Pathology, Melbourne Pathology, 4Cyte Pathology and Capital Radiology. We have provided these organisations with a list of the after-hours contact numbers of our general practitioners and, in the event they cannot be contacted, an alternative person to contact in their absence. This list is reviewed and updated on a regular basis to ensure the numbers and contacts remain current.
Any correspondence or notification received about after-hours care provided to a patient of our practice is documented in the patient’s health record.
5.10.3. Patient Care Arrangement
- After-hours care is provided directly by AIMHealth Melbourne Central Medical Centre general practitioners.
- When patients call the practice outside opening hours, the voicemail advises:
- The practice opening hours.
- Instructions to send an SMS to the designated after-hours mobile number.
- A reminder to call 000 in an emergency.
- The designated mobile phone is carried by the Principal GP outside of normal hours, who reviews and responds to patient messages in a timely manner.
- If the Principal GP is on leave, the Practice Manager organises an alternative GP to cover after-hours responsibilities.
- The on-call GP provides advice, referral, or care as required, and ensures all after-hours contacts are documented in the patient’s electronic health record in Best Practice.
- Pathology and radiology providers are supplied with the current after-hours GP contact list for urgent or life-threatening results. This list is reviewed and updated regularly by the Practice Manager.
- All feedback and incidents relating to after-hours care are reviewed at clinical governance meetings to ensure quality and safety.
English 
Chinese