Frequently Asked Questions

Still have questions?
Please contact reception +02 9907 8588

  • Face to face, telephone or video appointments are available. Telehealth appointments are available if you have had a face to face appointment within the last twelve months. Bookings are by appointment only and can be made by phone, online on our website, or by downloading and using the AMS Connect mobile app.

  • If you have more than one health concern or a complex issue to discuss, please request a longer appointment. Booking the right length of appointment is important to ensure adequate time for your concerns to be addressed and to help doctors to run to time. A standard consultation (10-15mins) is for one issue (e.g. a cold or new medical problem), a referral to a specialist for a new condition or a review of a chronic condition. A long consultation (20-30mins) is for multiple issues, first visits, cervical screening tests, well person checks or a life crisis. We ask that you phone as soon as possible if unable to keep your appointment to enable others to be seen.

  • In the event of an emergency, please dial 000. If your problem is not an emergency, but you need to be seen more urgently, please phone the surgery and we shall do our best to accommodate you. We have appointments that are released on the day so check to see if one of these appointments is available.

  • Yes. SMS reminders will be sent for appointments and recalls unless you opt out which is easily done via the AMS Connect app or by phoning the surgery.

  • All results must be followed up. Your doctor will advise you at the time of ordering a test how to follow up results. If a test is worth doing, it is worth knowing the result. Whenever you do a test with any doctor, we encourage you to pursue the result. It is never appropriate to assume that if you do not hear anything, all is fine. Test results frequently require explanation. Please make an appointment to discuss these, unless explicitly stated otherwise by your doctor.

  • Due to time constraints, doctors are limited in their ability to take non-urgent phone calls from patients and cannot always return calls. It is preferred that patients make an appointment to discuss any concerns with the doctor in person. Otherwise the receptionist will take a message and we shall endeavour to return your call.

  • We ask that you make an appointment for repeat scripts and referrals to allow appropriate consideration to be given to the condition for which they are being requested. In the event that a script is required urgently, please phone to request it.

  • We have two kinds of telehealth appointment available; phone or video. Like any appointment, these need to be booked in through our website, the AMS Connect app or our reception staff.

    Some medical issues cannot be adequately assessed via telehealth so, occasionally, we will ask you to come into the practice for a follow-up appointment afterwards. If this is the case, we will explain exactly why.

    Phone consultations
    Many of our doctors are happy to offer phone consultations for straightforward issues; please check with our reception staff, on our website or the AMS Connect app.

    Video consultations
    Several of our doctors are currently offering video consultations for all patients, and treat these just as seriously as a normal, 15-minute appointment. Please book these as a normal Telehealth consultation through our website, via the AMS Connect app or with our reception staff.

    These work in a similar way to Zoom or Skype; five minutes before your appointment is due to start, click on the link which will take you to our online waiting room.

    Please don’t panic if you have any technical issues. If you are not “present” in the waiting room at the time of your consultation, you will be phoned, and the consultation will continue as a Telehealth consultation, without video.

  • We are equipped to get your test results and scripts to you digitally, and to arrange referrals to specialists even if you can’t come into the practice. We can explain these processes during the appointment.

  • We treat telehealth appointments as seriously as any in-person appointment, and charge accordingly. You will also receive the same medicare rebate as an in-person appointment.

  • Our practice does not communicate with patients via email with the exception of providing a means of exchanging documents. Your doctor will give you our email address in the event that a document has been requested. Our email is not continually monitored and is used for administrative purposes only. If you have a question for one of our doctors or receptionists, please phone the surgery on 02 9907 8588. Please do not send clinical queries via email.

  • For urgent medical attention outside our consulting hours, please dial 000 for an emergency, or, for less urgent matters, phone an independent deputising service on 8724 6300.

  • Your medical record is handled with utmost respect for your confidentiality and privacy. It is the policy of this practice to maintain security of personal health information at all times and to ensure that this information is only available to authorised personnel. A copy of our privacy policy is available online and from the reception.

  • There is level access to the surgery via the front door. Rear access, from the car park, is via a ramp. There is a wheel chair accessible toilet close to the rear of the surgery in the car park on Condamine Street.

  • There is ample parking in the council car park at the rear of the surgery, which is accessed via Condamine Street.

  • We prefer to examine patients at the surgery where full diagnostic and treatment facilities are available. Home visits are available for regular patients of the practice whose condition prevents them from attending the surgery.

  • We welcome comments, suggestions and complaints regarding the care you receive at our practice. Please feel free to talk to a doctor or receptionist. You may prefer to leave us feedback via our online form or write to us. Please leave a name and number if you would like a response. We will try our best to resolve any issues to obtain the best outcome. If the problem cannot be solved in this manner, you may contact the Health Care Complaints Commission, Locked Mail Bag 18, Strawberry Hills NSW 2012 Email: hccc@hccc.nsw.gov.au Ph:1800 043 159 or 9219 7444.

  • We do not currently use social media.