Welcome To Noosa Outlook Medical Centre

Providing the highest standard of patient care incorporating a holistic approach towards diagnosis and management of illness.

07 5449 9733

“Don’t Overlook the Outlook”

NOOSA OUTLOOK MEDICAL CENTRE (NOMC)

N

Nurses - empathy & experience

O

One hundred percent effort, Open minded & Organised

M

Medics - patient focused & Ever- learning

C

Compassion, Commitment & Collaboration

COVID-19 Advice (and other respiratory illnesses)

Please phone reception prior to booking an appointment/attending an appointment if you have a fever or flu like symptoms such as cough, sore throat, difficulty breathing. If in doubt, do the right thing, and get tested.

Things we have done to promote safety:

  • Waiting outside the clinic
  • We ask that your wear masks in your consult with staff, as we are a small practice, and cannot physically distance. (we are a small clinic so we are also trying to protect our staff so they can carry on working!)
  • We may offer a “drive thro” service on consultation with our nursing staff, once COVID swabs are known to be negative.

The best things to do right now:

  • keep up to date with information
  • wash your hands often and properly (20sec with soap)
  • stay 1.5 metres away from people, and
  • IMPORTANTLY, stay home if you’re sick (& ideally if you are well also).

Since COVID- times, the Government have allowed patients, who are known to our practice for at least a year, access to essential health services in their home.  This can be via phone or via video link. We are promoting video link as it is better to see you. We will need email consent prior to such consults.

Call the Practice now to book your telehealth consult.

(Any telephone or video link will attract a fee at this time)

We are not administering COVID vaccines at Noosa Outlook Medical Centre, due to the enormous efforts needed, as we are only a small practice trying to focus on our loyal patients care.

www.healthdirect.gov.au for your local covid vaccine clinic or call 1800 022 222

If we suspect your symptoms could be COVID or another respiratory virus, we can assess you at the back of the clinic, while you sit in your car (& will perform a swab)

More COVID Info

A Message from Claire, Noosa Outlook Medical Centre Owner

Billing at Noosa Outlook Medical Centre

As from the 4th July 2022, we can no longer routinely bulk bill our pension or health care card holders.

Noosa Outlook Medical Centre is now a Privately billing Medical Practice. This is due to significant increases in running costs but mostly due to a large increase in rent.

This also applies to all face to face and telehealth and telephone consults.

This decision has not been easy.

But for the Medical Practice to be a sustainable small business, in this financial climate, this has to happen…

The Australian Government pays for Medicare through the Medicare Levy. Working Australians pay the levy as part of their income tax.

The Medicare rebate is YOUR payment from the Government to help YOU pay for your healthcare. It is not the ACTUAL cost of your healthcare.

The Federal Government has frozen or only increased your Medicare rebate slightly over the last 10 years. However, the cost of running our Practice has increased continuously.

We would ask that you contact your Federal Member of Parliament.

Quality care that you have come to expect takes time. We understand that you need time to discuss your health concerns, and your doctor needs time to listen to you and examine you and discuss the right treatment. 

Bulk billing does not support the time it takes to provide this level of care.

…no that is not the case. Yes, of course, GP’s spend a significant amount of time training, as do many professionals, and so it is only appropriate that they get compensated for their skill set, but for the business that the GP is working in to carry on, it needs to be able to run its overheads. 

You will all be aware of the increased cost of living. The rent alone has gone up significantly and in order to allow this small business to carry on operating, we need to charge more than your medical rebate.

When the doctor agrees to bulk bill you, it means the rebate that you get from the government, is given to the doctor. This amount is time dependent.

So, for example, if you have been seen in your medical consult between 6-20minutes, this equates to $41.40 at present.

Medicare is not set up to allow optimal management of chronic disease and complex multiple conditions.

We want to spend time with our patients, but the rebates do not allow for this.

Essentially Medicare is encouraging in and out medicine. One appointment, one problem.

Fast medicine is like fast food, it might seem good at the time, but long term it isn’t good for your health.

Every day we know this is not how people go to their GP. Often people bring a long list (“I don’t come to the doctors often”) and the expectation is that everything will be covered at that time. Trying to convince a patient to break their list into different appointments is often met with negativity.

When the doctor agrees to bulk bill you, it means the rebate that you get from the government, is given to the doctor. This amount is time dependent.

So, for example, if you have been seen in your medical consult between 6-20minutes, this equates to $39.10 at present.

Medicare is not set up to allow optimal management of chronic disease and complex multiple conditions.

We want to spend time with our patients, but the rebates do not allow for this.

Essentially Medicare is encouraging in and out medicine. One appointment, one problem.

Fast medicine is like fast food, it might seem good at the time, but long term it isn’t good for your health.

Every day we know this is not how people go to their GP. Often people bring a long list (“I don’t come to the doctors often”) and the expectation is that everything will be covered at that time. Trying to convince a patient to break their list into different appointments is often met with negativity.

…it doesn’t work like that…Approximately a third of this is given to the practice.

This proportion then has to cover expenses like rent, staff(nurses, receptionists) wages and training, income tax and superannuation, insurance, electricity, medical equipment and supplies, office supplies, mandatory accreditation, IT systems, cleaning…the list goes on. The costs of running a business.

In the GP’s share they pay tax, and out of the rest, they have to pay all their other expenses including insurance, indemnity, college fees, membership fees, subscriptions…

No – they are paid in terms of the patients they see. If GPs don’t turn up to work, through sickness, there is no money. If patients miss their appointment, then no money is coming into the practice. And like any self–employed person, they do not have sick leave or annual leave.Their work continues out of the consulting time. So when they see their last patient of the day, their work does not just end.

There is also a shortage of GPs in Australia and worryingly  junior doctors are not wanting to train to work in General Practice due to the poor renumeration. As a result, we need to look after the GPs that are working, else there will be burn out.

  • DVA card holders will still be billed through Veteran Affairs.
  • Children aged 16 or under will be bulk billed.
  • People who identify as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander will be bulk billed.
  • Exceptions include when care planning and creating mental health care plans. 

Times change. Practising medicine in these times is very different. 

We want to be able to provide quality care and the rebate does not allow this.

  • You can continue to attend our practice and acknowledge the private billing structure

Or

  • You can find another GP, but unfortunately more and more Practices are having to make these difficult decisions.

 

We would like you to contact your Federal Member of Parliament. It is the Federal Government that dictates the Medicare rebates.

Llew O’Brien MP Wide Bay
PO Box 283 Maryborough 4650
319 Kent Street Maryborough 4650 
Phone:  1300 301 968 / 07 4121 2936 
Fax: 07 4122 3968  
Email: Llew.OBrien.MP@aph.gov.au

Ted O’Brien MP Fairfax 
PO Box 1978 Sunshine Plaza
17 Southern Drive
Maroochydore Qld 4558   
Phone: 07 5479 2800 
Email: ted.obrien.mp@aph.gov.au

Only the government have the power to pay you more for your healthcare. They need to keep up with the cost of running a practice and they haven’t.

Hard working GPs are not Medicare-funded puppets- some of us are small business owners just trying to keep our business and our patients alive, while the media try to make you believe that we’re the enemy for turning to private billing.

We are not the enemy. 

We will require a full payment (not just the out of pocket amount–also known as “the gap”) at the time of your consultation. We will accept cash and EFTPOS payments. We will process your Medicare claim on the day and Medicare will deposit your rebate into your nominated bank account.

We recommend you make sure you register your bank account details with Medicare to receive your rebate as soon as possible.

Fees
Standard
 
Pension / Health Care Card Holder
 
Time
Fee
Medicare Rebate
Out of Pocket
Brief
$48.25
$20.60
$27.65
Standard
$105.75
$45.05
$60.70
Long
$158.05
$87.10
$70.95
Extended
$204.80
$128.35
$76.45
Time
Fee
Medicare Rebate
Out of Pocket
Brief
$41.35
$20.60
$20.75
Standard
$81.65
$45.05
$36.60
Long
$128.30
$87.10
$41.20
Extended
$173.10
$128.35
$44.75

We thank you for your understanding.

Noosa Outlook Medical Centre

 

Things on your “to do” list

Still Smoking?

Talk to your doctor quitting smoking. See some healthdirect tips to quit smoking.

Breast Screening

Contact Breast Screen Queensland - Call 13 20 50

cardiovascular Risk

Use the CVD Check calculator to check your risk. Talk to your doctor about your risk factors and how to modify them.

Stressed

Stress and overwhelming feelings? Call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

 

Updated message to our wonderful patients…

I haven’t put a message up on the website for quite a while…I guess I’ve been kinda busy!! As BIG NEWS…MASSIVE NEWS….

I am very excited to announce there will be a new General Practitioner, Dr Susannah Gibbs, starting to work…(fingers crossed, Medicare paperwork allowing!) on Tuesday 29th September 2026. She is originally from the UK(did both her medical training and General Practice training there) but has been working in North Qld since the beginning of the year, so she will be familiar with the Australian medicalsystem…and yer Aussie ways- !!! Though please feel comfortable to teach her any phrases you feel she may need to survive Tewantin!

How I see our new GP role is to allow me to breathe a little and be able to share the load that I have had for a number of years now. It’s not that we will be doubling our patient population. As I hope you know, I love my job and the community but I very much welcome someone to join the team…a fresh approach, but still someonevery much aligned with the philosophy of the Medical Centre. One of the reason you wait (in addition to the complex chronic conditions I help to manage) is because of the multiple hats I wear in this business, I don’t have a practice manager- I pay the wages, rent, suppliers, as well as hire, and support staff etc, …this results in frequent interruptions in my working day as all issues get channelled to me. By Dr Susie coming on board, I can still see patients in the clinical setting, but I know that there will be more availability for patients to be seen both ahead of time, in terms of bookings, and to help reception and nurses to manage the “on the day” requests. I would ask that you all welcome my new colleague and we all look forward to Susie joining our team.…what I would ask of my loyal patients, please see Dr Susie as an extension of me, and that there is no need to affiliate to just me, (you know I have your back, and we are on this crazy journey together!)…but it is very reassuring to me to know that you will be beautifully cared for by her as well. Big thank you! claire

 

I would like to thank all our patients…for being part of such an amazing Noosa Outlook community, and the reason why I get up in the morning.

Your kindness, generosity, humour, and patience is very much appreciated. The words written in cards at Christmas time make me emotional and reflect the relationships that develop within a small medical centre. Your generosity when yummy cakes or biscuits are shared with us never fails to make us smile.

The NOMC team feel blessed to be involved in looking after you, being part of the ups and downs of your life.

As you know, Dr Rebecca Lock, whose main professional role is in education, working for our Royal College of General Practitioners, joins me on a Tuesday morning. She allows me to debrief and bounce off diagnostic dilemmas as well as astound me with her vibrant matching earrings and scrubs! I am so grateful that she works in our clinic and provides me with much needed support.

The rest of the time, the NOMC team remain my rock. Our wonderful receptionists try to accommodate the, at times, challenging requests whilst running the administration side of the practice, and supporting myself and our nurses.

Our nurses are my eyes and ears and I truly rely on their clinical skillset to run our clinic. When appointments are sometimes difficult to access once the “on the day” slots have been allocated, our nurses can help navigate if an issue is urgent. Their advice is gold.

As a result of me being on my own for the majority of the time, I will run late. This is part of having a medical clinic when a large percentage of the population is older age and juggling many chronic medical conditions.

The government want us to practice short medical consults. They are trying to get people who aren’t doctors to do the things that we do. They are saying we shouldn’t be dealing with mental health consults, as that’s what psychologists do…anyone who knows, accessing such professionals can be challenging. GPs are and should be the first port of call, but again, someone is crisis isn’t always “in and out”. I would like to think that people who I have given time to would be compassionate for others and understand why I run late.

So… I am aware that waiting times aren’t ideal, surgeries with multiple doctors have “catch up” slots…if I had lots of these in my schedule, it would mean I couldn’t see as many patients, and already it is challenging having to wait to see a doctor. I’m in a difficult, no win situation , and that’s why I am thankful when:

-patients are succinct,

-when patients have do a list but appreciate I might not be able to cover at one appointment

-when patients don’t punish me for having to wait.

Things are changed on 1st July 2025- The GP management care plan and team care arrangement have been amalgamated, and attract a smaller rebate. The intention of the Government is that unless a patient is registered with MyMedicare (a scheme that is set up to strengthen connections between a patient and their medical centre), they will not be able to access the “perks” of 5 subsidised allied health visits.

Our reception can provide paperwork and they can help or you can register via your Medicare app online.

As a result of the reduction in rebate for care planning and the cost of all business expenses going up, not least the rent rise in this shopping complex, our consult fees have gone up.

The election with political figures holding Medicare cards talking about accessing free health care may work in a regional setting, whereas here in Noosa our running costs are astronomical and simply not even close to a viable option. The scheme they want to introduce as the magic wand, does not add up.  I would ask that you contact your local politician and l let them know that we struggle everyday to balance the needs of the patient population and be able to remain a viable business.

I appreciate peoples predicament, but healthcare has always been seen in peoples eyes as a right that we shouldn’t have to part with our hard earned cash, but General Practice is a business providing a service, the same way you go to the hairdresser or call out a plumber, they are all professionals and you are acknowledging their skill and prioritising the need for their input. We have undergone extensive training, and make it our business to promote health and treat or manage illness. We have your back.

I thank you for your understanding during these challenging times.

I wish we could all take a leaf out of therapy dog Forrest’s book, chillax and remain kind and understanding to people.