Services

Our telephones are answered in house 8.30am to 5.30pm Monday-Thursday & 8.30am-5pm Fridays (excluding public holidays) outside these hours they will be answered by our Medical After Hours Team.

Closed public holidays for after hours care visit the 24 Hour Surgery which is located at 401 Madras Street or in an emergency call 111.

Consultations are by appointment.

Appointments can be made online. If you cannot see an appointment on the day and you feel it is urgent please phone us, our nurses will triage your call and assess. Please note: Online bookings are only for standard appointments. Please phone 03 3896655 for extended appointments e.g Travel, Removal of lesion, Punch biopsy, Mirena, Jadelle, IUCD, Immunisations and Nursing Services.

If you have an urgent health need we will try to accommodate you that day.

If you have a health emergency we will see you immediately but may divert you to Hospital or 24 Hour Surgery if you require more specialized services.

Please help us by telling the receptionist if your problem is urgent or you need extra time. As a general rule a consultation is allocated 15 minutes, should you have more complex needs you are encouraged to book a double appointment. This helps us keep to time for all patients and ensures that you get the best quality healthcare.

Standard appointments are scheduled for 15 minute intervals. It is usually only possible to deal with a maximum of two problems in that time. If you think you will need longer please remember to book a double appointment. Double appointments may be booked online. While a double appointment may be more expensive, it is often better to give problems the time they need.

Be sure to tell us if you are making an appointment for immunisations, liquid nitrogen, minor surgery or other procedures, or complex insurance medicals.

At times we may run late due to urgent or complicated patient problems and we ask for your understanding. Please, if you are running late, call us. We encourage you to have your own doctor at the medical centre. However, if necessary, you can see one of the other doctors who will have access to your medical record.

At North Avon Medical we encourage healthy lifestyles. We provide a comprehensive weight management programme and can provide diet and exercise advice and regular monitoring of progress. Funding for this is available for patients with multiple medical conditions and we provide all other patients the service for a nurse fee of $35 per visit.

Our doctors can refer you to a counsellor from within our community. Their services are targeted to patients with mild to moderate depression or anxiety. Our doctors may also refer you to other mental health services if you require different interventions.

A B4 school check is offered to all 4 year old children born after the 1 August 2004. These checks are designed to identify any potential health, behaviour or learning issues that a child may have and then work alongside the family to enable the child to be as best prepared for school as possible.

If you are planning a pregnancy, we encourage you to come and talk to us about this early. We can assist with investigation or referral for fertility problems. A pregnancy test can be carried out by your practice nurse and doctors. We will conduct the first antenatal check and provide information on midwife services and work with your midwife to provide health advice and assistance as required during a pregnancy.

Our doctors provide home visits to patients who live in our practice area where this is needed. While in most cases a visit to the surgery is preferable and provides access to the facilities of the centre, we understand that sometimes you may be too unwell to come in. Please call as early in the day as possible to make your request. It can be difficult to fit a visit in if the call comes later in the day. A nurse or doctor may call you back for further details.

North Avon Medical Centre provides a comprehensive screening programme including cervical smears (conducted by both our nurses or doctors), enrolment with the national breast screening programme, INR testing, and regular screening bloods.

North Avon Medical Centre provides free sexual health consultations for all patients 17 years of age and under. We provide advise on all forms of contraception, and undertake insertion/removal of IUCD and Jadelle, provide regular depo provira and can assist with your healthcare needs in the event of an unplanned pregnancy.

Our doctors provide care to patients in a number of nearby rest homes including St Helenas, Aldwins House, Admatha Rest Home and Lodge, Windsor House, Merivale Retirement Village, Rosewood Dementia Unit, Essie Summers Residential Home and Hospital, Lakewood Residential Home, Nurse Maude Hospital, Burlington Village, Alpine View, St Albans Retirement Village and The Village Palms Retirement Village. Please discuss your needs with our practice staff.

North Avon Medical Centre provides a comprehensive disease management programme including screening and ongoing management of diabetes, hypertension, gout, arthritis, COPD and heart failure. Many patients suffering from multiple medical conditions may be eligible for additional funding to ensure a higher level of service provision.

If you are intending to travel overseas we encourage you to seek medical advice at least 6 weeks prior to departure. We provide comprehensive travel medicine advice and immunisations.

We provide care for minor injuries and chronic ulcer management. Wounds can be dressed or stitched onsite. We can assist with referrals to specialist services or investigations as required. Urgent injuries can usually be seen promptly.

Patients with moderate/severe injuries e.g. broken bones, large soft tissue injuries, are encouraged to attend the hospital or 24 Hour Surgery.

We also offer intravenous antibiotic treatment for skin infections and iron infusions at the practice