Frequently Asked Questions for Newcastle Mobile Medic & After Hours Surgery
For patients, we offer home visits for treatment of illnesses requiring attention when your doctor is not available. We encourage patients to see their own doctor for routine consultations.
Our service provides backup if you are unable to see your doctor within normal surgery hours, or if you have a medical condition that cannot wait until the next day. We communicate with your doctor to facilitate continuity of your treatment and ongoing care.
For house calls, our booking line is open beginning at 4 pm on weekdays and from 10 am Saturday morning throughout the entire weekend.
| Weeknights: | 6 pm to 7 am (taking bookings from 4 pm) |
| Weekends: | Noon Saturday to 7 am Monday |
| Public Holidays: | 24 hours |
| Weeknights(M-F): | 6 pm to 9 pm |
| Saturday: | Noon to 9 pm |
| Sunday: | 9 am to 9 pm |
| Public Holidays: | 9 am to 9 pm |
Our friendly staff, who will request the patient’s details and symptoms, answer all calls. These details are then passed on to the nearest available doctor. Our system records the time of the call as well as the time the doctor completed the call.
If the patient deteriorates, please phone again so our operators can suggest an alternative course of action. Should we experience any unforeseen delays our staff will attempt to contact you.
After Hours Medical Service covers a vast area covering the Newcastle, Lake Macquarie area. To confirm if your area is within our geographical boundaries please contact the office on 02 4943 6666.
A medical report of each visit is forwarded to your doctor. Where appropriate, e.g., hospital admission, death or special circumstances, a telephone call is made next morning to your doctor advising the details. Pathology results will be forwarded to the patients GP to follow up.
For abnormal results, the GP will be contacted by phone immediately or referred to the Services Medical Director to organise the appropriate follow up.
All visits or surgery consults are bulk billed, except for overseas visitors, patients without a valid Medicare card or workers compensation.
Your medical record is a confidential document. It is our policy to maintain the security of personal health information at all times and to ensure this information is only available to your doctor and authorised members of staff.
Patient reports are completed by the locum at the time of the consultation and sent to your doctor the next day.
If you have a problem you would like to discuss, please feel free to talk to our office staff. We take your concerns, suggestions and complaints seriously. You may also send a written complaint to our Medical Director who will complete an appropriate investigation and inform the complainant of the outcome.
However, if you wish to take the matter further there are several options available, including Health Care Complaints Commission Locked Bag, 18 Strawberry Hills, NSW 2012. Their telephone is 02 9219 7444.
We are often requested to attend a patient to confirm death. The locum doctor verifies the time of death and that all vital functions have ceased. This allows the patient to be moved to the funeral parlour of the family’s choice. The death certificate will be completed by the patients GP the next day.
NAHMS ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION POLICY for use of email, SMS, internet and social media Date 20/11/2021 can be found by clicking here.
If your question is not listed above, please contact us or post it below.