Welcome to
Central Clinic
Central Clinic is committed to providing comprehensive
General Practice care to individuals and families in the
Alice Springs community.
CLINIC HOURS
| Monday | 8am to 8pm |
| Tuesday | 8am to 8pm |
| Wednesday | 8am to 8pm |
| Thursday | 8am to 8pm |
| Friday | 8am to 8pm |
| Weekends | 8am to 4pm |
CONSULTATIONS
All consultations are by appointment. Most consultations take 10 – 20 minutes but if you have a number of issues to discuss or are attending for a medical or pap smear and think that you may require longer please let reception know when you make the appointment. Sometimes your Doctor may be delayed by an emergency or an unexpectedly long consultation; however our staff will keep you informed to ensure that you are not inconvenienced. New patients to the practice are encouraged to make a longer appointment. All patients are encouraged to arrive 10 minutes early to see the practice nurse.
BILLING
In order to continue to provide a quality service, it is necessary to charge a consultation fee. Regular patients of the practice with Health Care Cards from Centrelink MAY be bulk billed. Patients are required to show their Health Care Card and Medicare Card at every visit. If there are special circumstances and difficulties being experienced, they need to be discussed with the Practice Manager. Immediate payment is expected and can be made by EFTPOS, credit card, cash or by cheque. Payment plans are available.
OUR SERVICES
EMERGENCIES
Please inform Reception if you have a condition which requires urgent attention. If you have a life-threatening emergency, please ring 000.
HOME / NURSING HOME VISITS
Doctors are available for home and nursing home visits when circumstances necessitate this and where the patient is a regular patient to the clinic. Please ring the practice as soon as possible after 8am if you need a home visit to be arranged.
SKIN CHECKS
We have four doctors with a special interest and extra qualifications in skin diseases. They are able to diagnose and treat a wide variety of conditions including skin cancers.
SPECIALISTS
We currently have a specialist orthopaedic surgeon and specialist vascular surgeon on our books. A referral is required to see these specialists, and our team of specialist general practitioners can assist you with this. Other specialities will be joining soon.
AVIATION MEDICALS
We have a Designated Aviation Medical Examiner (DAME) who provides CASA approved medical examinations.
ALLIED HEALTH
We have a dietitian, physiotherapist and audiologist offering services through Central Clinic, with other specialities to join soon.
INVESTIGATION RESULTS
All inquiries for results should be between 11am and midday Monday to Friday – the practice nurse will be available to issue and discuss results at that time. Test results are not usually available for at least 3 days. Some test results require a follow up consultation with the Doctor; others may be given over the phone at the Doctor’s discretion, by the Doctor or the Practice Nurse.
REFERRALS
To ensure the best management of your case, your doctor would prefer to discuss your condition with you before referral to a specialist. Doctors are not permitted by law to backdate specialist referrals, so please ensure that you have a current referral before seeing a specialist.
PATCHES
Now consulting via Allied Health Hub
Do you have a ‘My Health Record’?
This can be set up online by visiting www.myhealthrecord.gov.au
When you have a ‘My Health Record’ let your doctor know
so that you can request information uploads at each visit.
Your My Health Record could contain:
Medicines you are taking prescribed by your doctor
Your Medicare claims history
Your organ donation decision
Hospital discharge information
Diagnostic imaging report (like ultrasound or x-ray results)
Pathology reports (like blood tests)
You can also add your own information like:
Any allergies and adverse reactions you may have
Your advance care planning information (this records your wishes about your health care in the event that you are too unwell to communicate)