Location
Address: Alana Healthcare is located at 88 Anzac Parade, Kensington, right next door to McCyclery on the corner of Goodwood St and two doors up from Anytime Fitness. Our entrance is up the stairs and next to the accessible platform lift. We are located diagonally across the road from the famously pink Peters of Kensington. The nearest cross street is Goodwood St which has a 7-Eleven on the corner.
Parking and Public Transport: Ample timed and untimed parking is located on Goodwood St. Please allow sufficient time to find a park prior to your appointment. Otherwise public transport is via bus or the South East Light Rail, with ES Marks tram stop located just outside our building. There is a paid basement car park inside our building however it does not have pedestrian access to our suites.
Accessibility: Should you require assistance in any way to facilitate your visit to our practice (including the need for a Health Care Interpreter) we ask that you notify our reception staff by calling 9009 5255 and we will happily assist you as best we can. If you are attending our practice in a wheelchair or with a pram there is an accessible platform lift located at the entrance to our rooms. There are no stairs inside the practice and there is an accessible bathroom with baby change facilities.
What to bring to your Consultation
Referral letter: All appointments including follow ups must be covered by a valid referral letter in order to claim a Medicare rebate. If you do not have a valid referral letter, you will still be able to see the doctor but you will not be able to claim the Medicare rebate. In general, referrals from GP’s are valid for 12 months and referrals from other Specialists are valid for 3 months.
All new patients, patients on expired referrals, existing patients returning for a new clinical presentation and patients not seen for 12 months will need a new referral letter. If you are attending in follow up and are not sure if your referral is still valid please call us to find out. As a general rule, if you have not been seen for 12 months or are attending for a new clinical presentation, you will need a new referral letter.
Patients attending for Fertility appointments with their partner who wish to claim a Medicare rebate must have either a valid referral stating both names, or individual referrals.
Completed Patient Registration, Practice Information and Consent Form: This form can be downloaded here.
Medicare and private health insurance details: If applicable, please bring this information with you to your appointment.
Previous relevant medical records: It is advisable to bring any relevant health records related to your health problem. This is especially important if you are seeking a second opinion. Having the following information will streamline your consultation and ensure that all of the necessary information is available for a care plan to take place. These are all part of your medical record and should be in your keeping or can be requested from your initial treating doctor.
- Any past operation reports (from the surgeon or hospital) including any images of surgery;
- Pathology results from any gynaecological procedures that you have had (biopsies from tissue removed at surgery);
- Blood test results that have been taken to investigate any gynaecological issues (such as hormone tests, blood count, liver
- and kidney function);
- All images such as ultrasounds, CT scans or MRI scans that have been undertaken. If you have had multiple scans over many
- years, please bring scans from the last 24 months
- Any correspondence that you may have from treating specialists in regard to your current gynaecological issues.
You may also find it useful to write down any medications that you take and symptoms that you have been suffering.
Cancellation Policy
Confirming your appointment: Confirming your booking is essential and this is generally done via SMS at least two working days prior to your scheduled appointment. If you do not have a mobile phone, we will call to you to confirm verbally. If it is necessary to cancel your scheduled appointment we require that you notify us by 12:00pm the working day prior. This can be done by phoning 9009 5255 or responding to the SMS.
If we do not receive an SMS or verbal confirmation from you by 12:00pm the working day prior to your appointment, your appointment will automatically be cancelled. You will then need to call us and reschedule to the next available appointment time.
Cancellation: Any appointment not confirmed via SMS or phone call by 12:00pm the working day prior will automatically be cancelled. This appointment will then be reallocated to another client accordingly. Late cancellations will be considered as anyone who cancels their confirmed appointment after 12:00pm the working day prior. A “Did Not Attend” (DNA) is someone who misses a confirmed appointment without cancelling it. This may also affect you making an appointment with our service in the future.
Cancelling an appointment by 12:00pm the day before: No charge
Cancelling a confirmed appointment after 12:00pm the working day before: 50% of the consultation fee
For missing a scheduled confirmed appointment: 100% of the consultation fee
Waiting list: If you have chosen to place your name on to our waitlist, we will SMS you as cancellations become available to offer the earlier appointment to you. Due to the extensive waitlist and demand for appointments, you will generally have 15 minutes to respond to secure next day appointments, and 60 minutes to respond to secure all other appointments. If you decline, or fail to respond, on three occasions, we may remove your name from our waitlist.
Paying for and Claiming your Consultation
Information about our fees can be found here.
Please note, our doctors can only consult with you for the reason you have been referred, as stated on your referral. If you are attending in follow up, but have an additional concern you wish to discuss, you need to provide us with a new referral and book a new appointment, in accordance with Medicare.
Payment at the time of consultation is required. Payment methods include Visa, Mastercard, AMEX, and EFTPOS only. We do not accept cash or cheque and we do not bulk bill. We do not accept Veteran Cards.
We can submit your claim direct to Medicare via our practice management software. To claim your rebate you will need to be covered by a valid referral, and have your bank details registered with Medicare, which will then be deposited overnight into your bank account.
Information regarding fees for Cervical Screening Tests: On 01/12/2017, cervical cancer screening in Australia changed from two-yearly Pap testing to five-yearly HPV testing. This means that Medicare will only cover one HPV test every 57 months for women who are ‘low risk’, with no symptoms or abnormal history. Information regarding the Cervical Screening program can be found here.
General Information About Your Consultation
COVID-19/Influenza: Entry to our clinic at present is subject to the requirements outlined on our COVID-19 information page, and any government mandated requirements. All of our staff are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. To minimise harm to patients and staff alike, we ask that anyone with respiratory symptoms please do not attend in person, but call us to make alternative arrangements.
Appointment time: Recognising that your time is valuable, we aim to keep your appointment to within 15 minutes of schedule. In the event your practitioner is running late, we will aim to contact you via SMS to advise. If you have already arrived at our practice, we will keep you up-to-date on the likely time delay and discuss alternative arrangements if required.
If you are unable to make your confirmed appointment on the day, your prompt telephone call may allow us to allocate that time to another client.
Appointment duration: Every appointment is booked for a certain amount of time. If you are expecting to be late, your telephone call will allow us to minimise inconvenience to you and other clients. Appointments are prioritised as follows:
- Emergencies
- On time appointments
- Late appointments
Late appointments will be seen when possible to minimise inconvenience to other clients. This may include reducing the amount of time you have with the doctor or alternatively your appointment may need to be rescheduled. New patients should arrive around 10 minutes prior to their appointment time so that any necessary registration paperwork or processes can be completed. Alternatively, complete this form ahead of time, and return it with your referral letter.
Your Security
Photo: Part of the registration process at Alana may include taking a photo of you for your file. This is mainly for security purposes, but because we are a group practice it also aids the medical staff in identifying you. The photo is stored on your file and not used or distributed for any other reason.
Identification: As a provider of Medicare rebated services, we may also request to verify your identify through identity documents and/or three points of identification, such as date of birth, home address and Medicare number, for example.