assessment of urgency, the Clinics will contact your practice and request the additional

1. assessment of urgency, the Clinics will contact your practice and request the additional information required. 4. Lead Nurse a contact point for GP’s. In addition to performing the prioritisation of appointments, each Lead Nurses also acts as a contact point for the Clinic. GP’s can telephone the Lead Nurse if the appointment given is not appropriate or when rapid access to the clinic is required. 5. A greater clinic focus on discharge back to referring GP’s withthe aim of avoiding endless review visits which do not contribute to the management of the patient. 6. A short and reliable turn around time for clinic correspondence. This varies with changes in demand but our aim is to keep the turn-around time within 5 working days. 7. Greater attention placed on getting the patient “worked up”by the GP where possible before attending the Clinic, in order to maximise the effectiveness of their clinic appointments. 8. Reduce any unreasonable patient waiting room times by implementing strategies to prevent overbooking and appropriate patient mix. These changes are complex and will be ‘rolled- out’ gradually to ensure that unique needs of each clinic are accommodated. Expect some teething problems but we can all look forward to a more efficient and “GP aware” outpatient service. Turn over for important contact information Like many large public hospital outpatient departments, St. Vincent’s Clinics will see over 60,000 patient in 2005. In keeping with innovations in hospitals around Australia, we are therefore making major changes to improve the experience for patient’s, GP’s and staff. The most significant change is the appointment of a Lead Nurse to each of the medical specialty groups. …but what does this mean for GPs? Prioritising all referrals. All referrals will be prioritised by the Clinic Lead Nurse based on an assessment of urgency. The result will be appointments made faster and relevant investigations arranged prior to clinic appointments. This highlights the importance of the GP providing adequate referral information including investigation reports. An “easy-to-use”Referral Form To support the need for appropriate referral information St. Vincent’s Clinics have developed an electronic referral template to be loaded into the letter writer of your medical software. A paper version is also available. At this stage, GPs will need to print off and fax the referral form but true electronic referral capability will be available in coming months. Appointment allocation within 48 hours The Clinics aim to provide a response to referring GP’s within 2 working days. If inadequate information is provided to make an Issue 1 Outpatients at St. Vincent’s:a new way of working Contact Red & Blue News via Blake Spring on 9288 3492 or blake.spring@svhm.org.au

2. Important Contact Information St. Vincent’s Clinics Referral Ph: 03 9288 3475 Fax: 03 9288 3489 Clinic Lead Nurses Call 03 9288 3475 Catherine McCarthy Clinics Business Manager St. Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne 03 9288 3484 Dr. David Isaac GP Liaison Consultant St. Vincent’s Hospital Melbourne 03 9288 3208 Clinic Referral Templates 1. Appointment Request Fax Pro-Forma To obtain a copy of our preferred Appointment Request Fax Pro-Forma, please contact the clinics on 03 9288 3475. An online version will be available to download shortly. 2. Medical Director Referral Template The Medical Director template for referrals is available from your Divisional IT Officer: Inner East Melbourne DivisionJudy McIllreeMob: 0412 400 717Email: judym@iemdgp.com.au Melbourne DivisionGraeme BerryMob: 0413 034 397Email: graeme.berry@mdgp.com.au Feedback? Contact Blake Spring 9288 3492 Contact Red & Blue News via Blake Spring on 9288 3492 or blake.spring@svhm.org.au