IF YOU HAVE COLD & FLU SYMPTOMS, PLEASE ADVISE RECEPTION SO WE CAN OFFER A MASK TO BE WORN TO PROTECT OUR DOCTORS AND OTHER PATIENTS.
Our patients are the most important asset at Taabinga Family Practice.
Our patients can be assured that they are being looked after because Taabinga Family Practice is accredited as per the RACGP Standards for General Practices through GPA.
Contacting our Practice to arrange your appointment is easy – phone 07 41623116 or you can walk into the Practice to arrange your appointment. The surgery operates on an appointment system. A standard appointment is scheduled for 15 minutes and will usually be adequate to deal with most health issues. Patients can request to see their preferred doctor. Staff will need to be advised if the consultation is in relation to a WorkCover incident. Please book a longer appointment if you are making an appointment for an employment or insurance medical, procedure/complex or multiple medical problems. Appointment times are held aside each day for emergencies, sick children and same day urgent reviews.
Taabinga Family Practice has a Missed Appointment Policy. If a patient fails to attend an appointment or does not cancel an appointment within 2 hours of the booking time a fee of $40 will be charged and must be paid prior to making another booking.
Taabinga Family Practice also now utilises HotDoc for online bookings. Why not check it out and see if you like the service?
Taabinga Family Practice does not routinely bulk bill.
Our fee schedule and billing policy are displayed at reception.
All patients are required to finalise their accounts at the time of consultation.
Our reception staff can help you claim your Medicare Rebate on same day service through the Practice.
You cannot claim money from Medicare if you do not hold a current Medicare Card.
Payment facilities include Eftpos, MasterCard, Visa and Cash.
Please phone 07 41623116 for a full explanation in relation to our fees.
If required, DVA Gold Card Holders are billed directly to Veteran Affairs.
Concession Card holders are charged at a discounted rate and children under 16 will be bulk billed.
All procedures will incur a fee regardless of age and concession card entitlement to help cover the cost of consumables.
A List of our Fees can be found at the top of this page. All efforts are made to keep this up to date.
Home visits are generally restricted but can be available for our regular patients by prior arrangement and confirmation from our Practitioners if deemed necessary. Home visits are only permitted within a 6 km radius of Kingaroy.
Our surgery hours are Monday to Friday 8:30 am – 5:00 pm. We are routinely closed Saturday, Sunday and Public Holidays. We may open on a Saturday morning if the Practice is on call for the weekend. For medical care outside our opening hours call 07 41623116 and you will be advised who is on call. For any serious accidents or emergencies please proceed to the Kingaroy Hospital (133 Youngman Street Kingaroy Ph: 07 41629200) Further details can be obtained from staff at the Practice.
If you have any concerns, suggestions or ideas to improve our service, please contact our Practice Manager Mrs Kylie Almond on 07 41623116 or by email practicemanager@taabingafamilypractice.com.au .
We would ask you to attend your regular Doctor for an appointment (or if unavailable, one of the other Doctors) in order to receive further prescriptions for your medications. This enables us to monitor your health and fulfil our ethical and legal responsibilities. Please keep an appointment in place for when your prescriptions are due to run out so as not to get caught short and/or unable to obtain an appointment with short notice. Our Emergency Appointments left to be made on the day are not routinely used for people who need to obtain scripts due to running out of medication.
Doctors in this practice may be contacted by phone during surgery hours but we encourage you to speak to the nurse on duty to discuss any of your medical concerns. This way the nurse can triage your required medical care and follow up with the doctor. We will only interrupt a consultation if the problem is deemed urgent. During COVID and while Medicare are allowing telephone consultations you are encouraged to book a telephone or video consultation.
Your medical information is confidential. All information at Taabinga Family Practice is handled according to the current Privacy Act. Taabinga Family practice will send certain medical information to other medical organisations e.g. Australian Immunisation Register. This is normal practice and is only for the benefit of patient health. Our surgery is registered to allow registration and upload of My Health Records. Should you require further details, please speak to the Practice Manager.
We have on site Telehealth and Skype services providing a quiet and confidential space for appointments with Specialists. Appointments are to be booked through the front reception in conjunction with treating Specialist.
Normal results may be given by phone call from the Nurse, however if you require further information or clarification an appointment is required.
Electronic Communication Policy for use of email, SMS, internet and social media
General practices are increasingly using electronic communication to correspond with patients and other health professionals.
Our practice electronic communication policy for use with email, SMS, internet, and social media will help protect the security of patient information and the reputation of Taabinga Family Practice.
The practice team will be familiar with the following policy, comply with the policy, and understand the risks associated with using electronic forms of communication, both internally and externally.
The Electronic Communication Officer
The practice has appointed our Practice Manager, Kylie Almond as the Communication Officer/Advisor, to act as Electronic Communications Officer.
The Electronic Communications Officer is responsible for:
Email and SMS – For staff
The use of email and short message services (SMS) are recognised as a useful tool for communication purposes. Practice staff are permitted to use the practice email accounts to send and receive business related material such as education updates, stakeholder communication, submitting Medicare provider number applications and communicating with locums or other staff where appropriate.
Practice staff will have access to a practice email account in the following levels:
The use of the practice email account is for business communications only.
Patient information will only be sent via e-mail if the patient has consented to this mode of direct communication. Employees are reminded that the practice may become liable for the contents of any email message under certain circumstances. As such, a template email disclaimer will be inserted into the signature of all practice emails.
This email and any files transmitted with it are confidential and intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom they are addressed. If you have received this email in error please notify the Taabinga Family Practice on either a reply email or 07)4162 3116. This message contains confidential information and is intended only for the individual named. If you are not the named addressee you should not disseminate, distribute or copy this e-mail. Please notify Taabinga Family Practice immediately by e-mail, if you have received this e-mail by mistake and delete this e-mail from your system. If you are not the intended recipient you are notified that disclosing, copying, distributing or taking any action in reliance on the contents of this information is strictly prohibited.
The use of personal email accounts using practice internet and computer systems is discouraged but may be used in personal/lunch/break times where necessary and where this does not interfere with day to day operations. Large files such as video files and photographs should not be transmitted over the practice internet computer systems for personal communication.
Protection against spam and theft of information
The practice utilises the built-in Google App for Business Email Spam Filtering Service.
Staff will need to exercise caution in email communication and are advised to:
Encrypted files are not automatically checked for viruses. All team members are to save, decrypt and then scan before opening the document.
Each of our team members will have unique identification for all protected systems.
Access will be by individual password only and passwords will be changed immediately if compromised.
Email and SMS – For patients
Our patients will be given the option of being contacted by electronic means such as via email and/or SMS.
All patients in the practice will be given information on our electronic communication policy via our registration form and are asked to provide signed consent to agree or disagree to be communicated with in this manner.
It is acknowledged by the practice that consent is implied if the patient initiates electronic communication with the practice.
Reception staff are to check each patient has this information on their record on arrival to the practice, along with the verification of their name, date of birth and address.
The signed consent will be scanned and recorded in the patient electronic record and their response recorded on the practice software.
The registration form states that the practice may use this mode of communication:
Further information will state that the practice:
Our practice email account for patients and stakeholders for non-urgent communication with our practice is info@taagingafamilypractice.com.au
This email account will the routinely checked throughout the business day by the reception team member on duty. delegated authority,
The email message will then be forwarded to the appropriate team member for response. Communication conducted with a patient via electronic means will be added to the patient’s medical record by the team member resolving the enquiry.
When recalling a patient for a test result, the extent to which patients are followed up will depend on the level of urgency and the clinical significance of their test results. If the patient has not responded to the SMS or email in 24hrs, then other forms of communication (phone call, registered mail) should be considered.
Email and SMS between the practice and the patient will form part of the medical record and need to be included, as must any actions taken in response to the message.
The use of the internet as a legitimate business and research tool is both recognised and approved by Taabinga Family Practice. However, staff and management have a responsibility to ensure that there is no abuse of the resources for private purposes, that staff productivity is not compromised, that offensive material is not spread throughout the organisation and that the practice computer system is protected from the introduction of computer viruses.
All downloads from the internet must be scanned for viruses.
All sites accessed must comply with legal and ethical standards and the practice policies. The internet must never be used to download or access any illegal software or pornographic, defamatory, offensive, share-trading or gambling-related material.
Downloading of material via the internet slows access for other staff. The internet should not be used for downloading music, videos or radio programs, for making personal purchases or accessing interactive social websites, including Facebook, YouTube, Skype and Twitter, except in a professional capacity and approved by the Electronic Communications Officer.
Web browser security settings are not to be changed without authorisation of the practice manager.
The practice will have in place firewalls and intrusion detection systems as advised by our IT company.
Social media
Social media is defined as online social networks used to disseminate information through online interactions. These include Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.
Private Social Media is not permitted to be used from practice devices in a private capacity by any staff member.
Regardless of whether social media is used for business related activity or for personal reasons, the following standards apply to members of our practice team, including general practitioners. Practitioners and team members are legally responsible for their postings online. Practitioners and team members may be subject to liability and disciplinary action including termination of employment or contract if their posts are found to be in breach of this policy.
The practice utilises the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) social media policy which can be found on page 13 in the RACGP’s Guide for the use of social media in general practice and can be accessed by clicking the following link (attach to this policy):
https://www.racgp.org.au/download/Documents/e-health/Social-media-guide-v5.pdf
Further information
The RACGP has additional information on using electronic forms of communication in general practice.
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Cultural safety is about creating an environment that is safe for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. This means there is no assault, challenge or denial of their identity and experience. Cultural safety is about: Shared respect, shared meaning and shared knowledge. Taabinga Family Practice staff are expected to engage with all people as individuals in a culturally safe and respectful way and foster open, honest and compassionate professional relationships.
213 Haly St, Kingaroy, Queensland 4610
Hours 8.30am - 5.00pm Monday to Friday