Generic FAQs
Yes, whilst some of our Doctors are of different nationalities ALL of our doctors speak fluent English.
At Blackbutt Clinical Centre we do not bulk bill. We do offer a discount price for all healthcare and pension card holders.
As long as Medicare have your correct bank details we can send the billing to them electronically and the rebate will go into your account in only 48 hours.
If you will not be able to make it to your booked appointment, please let us know as soon as possible by calling the practice. This allows us to offer your appointment to another patient. Failure to cancel your appointment with your GP within 1 hour of the booked time may result in a non-cancellation fee – $52 (Short Appointment) or $96 (Long Appointment).
Appointment FAQs
We have a range of different appointment types at Blackbutt Clinical Centre that cater to a variety of health concerns. If you are booking your appointment online, you will be stepped through the process of what appointment type to book for your specific needs through our simple online booking service or on our AMS app.
The two most common appointment types are our standard and long appointments:
Standard Appointment:
This is the most commonly used appointment type at our surgery. This is the appointment to book if you would like to spend 15 minutes or less with your doctor. It is useful for managing 1 or 2 relatively straightforward problems.
Long Appointment:
This appointment type is the one you should choose if you have a complex problem that you want to discuss in depth, or you have 2 or more problems you want to attend to in the one appointment. Please look at our billing schedule and note we have different Billings for appointments that go up to 20 minutes or appointments to go up to 30 minutes. The Medicare rebate for both of these appointment types is the same. Booking for appointments up to 20 minutes and appointments up to 30 minutes is the same however you will only pay for the time that you use.
There are a range of different appointment types based on your specific health query, if you’d like to learn more about how each of these appointments are billed please click here to see our fees.
Unfortunately, it is not possible to speak to your doctor without an appointment. Our doctors are most of their time in consult with other patients, so to make sure you and all the patients receive equal and quality and professional service, the best way to talk to your doctor is to see him/her in person and use all of their medical skill to address your issue.
We don’t support making appointments by phone except for the elderly and those with no access to the internet. If you have any concerns regarding your health or want to discuss any health issues with your doctor, you can book an appointment on a few easy steps through the app, and your appointment will be confirmed in real-time with no further actions required!
To get an appointment to see a health specialist, you need to get a referral from your GP within the previous 12 months- A referral can never be backdated!
If you have seen the doctor in the last 12 months, it is possible in many cases to get a repeat referral or script without seeing the doctor. Please note this is not for a new medication, or to see a provider to whom your doctor has not referred you previously. Luckily you can now obtain repeat scripts through our app!
Reminders are placed to remind you, and your treating team, to take an action that could be critical to your health. Recalls are when you are called back in relation to the results of a test you have taken. Both are only sent when it is something important to your health.
Breast Screening
Screening mammograms are so important! They are the best way to detect breast cancer early before any symptoms are noticed. When breast cancer is picked up early, most women will recover and can quickly get back to normal life.
This test is recommended for women aged 50-74. Once you have your first breast screen, you should have one every 2 years.
Visit the Breast Screen website
Bowel Screening
Did you know Australia has one of the highest rates of bowel cancer in the world? The National Bowel Cancer Screening Program (NBCSP) invites eligible people starting at age 50 and continuing to age 74 to take a test every two years.
However, if you are under 50 years of age who have concerns about breast or bowel cancer, or if you have a family history or symptoms, book an appointment and talk to your doctor about your individual circumstances. Your doctor will advise what testings are required.
We do not send a text reminder for routine mammograms and bowel screening. Please ensure your details are up to date with Breast screen and Bowel screen services, to ensure you receive a timely reminder for these important screening test.
The best way to ask a medical question is to make an appointment. You cannot ask a question about your health or medications by e-mail. Please do not call us as we won’t be able to answer to your questions, you can book an appointment at any time using the app.
The most convenient way to manage your appointments is on the app, there, you will be able to book, check your appointment details and make any changes if necessary. Bear in mind that you cannot cancel your appointment online within 1 hour of the appointment.
If you will not be able to make it to your booked appointment, please let us know as soon as possible by calling the practice. This allows us to offer your appointment to another patient. Failure to cancel your appointment with your GP within 1 hour of the booked time may result in a $44 non-cancellation fee.
Please don’t call us as we cannot handle or discuss results over the phone. When your GP orders tests for you, you can talk to him/her about how’d you like to get your results. Your GP might ask you to come and get them, alternatively you can get the results sent to your home in a hard copy if you request it at the time of your examination. Otherwise, to receive the results for your tests you will need to be logged in for our secure SMS results handling system.
After your GP checks your results, you will be sent a message about what those results mean for you. If they require some further action, we will send you a message asking you to book an appointment within the following month. If according to your results, no further action is required, we will send you a message letting you know this as well. To read these messages you will need to enter your date of birth and securely log in.
If you have any other enquiries, you can e-mail the surgery on info@blackbuttcentre.com.au. Please note e-mail may not be a secure form of communication. Please do not include personal medical details. If you need to find out more about using e-mail with our surgery, please read the information regarding email and privacy on our website.
You can check you billing history on our kiosk. You can also request you invoice history from reception in person at our surgery. Unpaid bills can be paid at our reception desk or at the kiosk.