Health Management

At Bellbowrie Family Practice, our health management services ensure that all members of our community have access to quality, affordable health care. When you make an appointment with us, our role is to make sure that you receive the care you need, when you need it, and from the right health professionals. We also take into account your situation, background, and cultural heritage to ensure that you receive appropriate care.

How Health Management Benefits You

Getting to know you as a regular patient helps us to manage your health care for the best possible outcomes. It means that:

• We are familiar with your history, condition, lifestyle, background and family situation
• When we know more about you, we are able to provide specific advice on lifestyle, illness prevention, and managing your condition.
• We are able to make decisions about your health care that are tailored to your situation and health status
• We are able to help you avoid unnecessary procedures and hospital stays
• We can help you navigate the health and welfare system if you find it confusing
• We help you access the care you need from other health professionals without duplicating their services
• When we are at the centre of your health care, your needs are not overlooked because there is no one to coordinate services and treatment

Health Management Aims

As GPs we find that we are usually the first place people turn to for health care. An increase in the age of the Australian population means that we are treating more complex and chronic conditions than in previous decades. At the same time, we are aware of our social responsibility to wisely manage public funds provided by Medicare. So our health management services aim to:

• Provide cost-effective community-based care, meaning that we care for our patients in the community and avoid unnecessary hospital visits
• Enable access to care provided by other health professionals
• Coordinate care between other health providers and parts of the health system in a seamless manner
• Ensure that our patients do not experience the duplication of services, gaps in services or fragmented services
• Avoid unnecessary procedures and treatments
• Provide a positive health care experience for our patients
• Use public funds in a responsible and sustainable manner

Health Management and the Community

At Bellbowrie Family Practice, we believe that everyone in our local community deserves the same access to health care. This includes:

• Elderly people
• People with disabilities
• People of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander heritage
• Migrants
• People whose first language is not English
• Minority religious groups
• People with diverse sexual or gender preferences

As part of our ongoing commitment to health care access for everyone, we undertake training and education to better understand the needs of our community.

We also seek to enable better access to health care by:

• Bulk-billing our appointments
• Providing after-hours care where necessary
• Offering home visits to people who are unable to get to an appointment
• Offering appointments with the doctor of choice
• Striving to make our services culturally appropriate

If you would like to know more about our health management services, please call us on 07 3202 5360. You can also make an appointment using our online booking service.