Request a GP mental health treatment plan
With Qoctor, you can speak to an experienced GP about your mental health and discuss treatment options that may be available, as well as setting treatment goals and getting advice about supports and services that may be of assistance. A mental health treatment plan is a way to access 10 psychologist per calendar year, at a reduced cost, if you have a valid Medicare card. Your Qoctor doctor will be able to discuss this with you.
First, we’ll ask you a few online questions about your mental health, then you can have a phone/video consultation with an experienced doctor. Your treatment plan will be available to download after your appointment, though please note it may take a few days to clear with Medicare.
*For longstanding, serious or complicated health issues, where possible, we recommend you continue to see your own GP and keep them informed.
About our doctors
Our online GP mental health appointments are provided by doctors with a high level of experience in General Practice and mental health. All Qoctor doctors are AHPRA registered and are committed to ensuring that your telehealth experience is a positive one. Efficient communication is key to the telehealth experience- that’s why we use a video call where possible, and our doctors can issue documents to be downloaded instantly and securely- including eScripts, pathology requests, referrals and other letters.
Common Questions and Answers
A mental health treatment plan is a plan created together with your GP, to support you if you are suffering with mental illness. It will help you to access and coordinate your treatment, as well as providing information on additional supports and services, and the steps to take if your condition deteriorates suddenly.
In most cases, when people attend their GP to discuss a mental health treatment plan, they are interested in getting a referral to a mental health professional (usually a psychologist) as part of this plan, to enable access to lower cost therapy sessions.
If you have a valid mental health care plan, the Australian Government will pay some or all of the cost of up to 10 sessions with a psychologist/mental health professional per calendar year. In this case, the psychologist you’ve been referred to will be able to give you a Medicare Rebate for those sessions, to reduce your out-of-pocket cost.
Working on your mental health with a therapist takes time, and usually requires many appointments over months or years- so a mental health treatment plan is a good way to reduce the financial impact of getting the help you need.
When a GP creates a mental health treatment plan (mental health plan) with you, it means you can access lower cost sessions with a psychologist/mental health expert, as you qualify for a Medicare rebate for up to 10 visits per calendar year. Without the plan, it can be a lot more expensive to see a psychologist.
Once the first 6 sessions are completed, your psychologist will usually advise you to book in for a review with your GP. During this review appointment, the GP will assess how you are going. They may repeat some questionnaires to measure your progress. They can then enable access to 4 more sessions. You can book an an appointment with an online GP for a mental health plan here
Yes- it is quite straightforward to see a doctor online in Australia.
- Your own local GP may offer telehealth appointments as part of their routine services- if so, you maybe able to get bulk-billed, or access a Medicare rebate for some of the telehealth consultation cost. It is worth finding out if this option is available to you. However, many local GP clinics have long waiting times, and it can be difficult to get an online appointment for urgent issues, or if you need one the same day.
- With Qoctor the online doctor, you can book a same day consultation with an experienced AHPRA-registered doctor online, 365 days a year, wherever you are in Australia. It is a particularly useful option if local clinics are booked out. Opening hours are 8AM to midnight on weekdays, and 9AM to 10PM on the weekend. Customer service is available daily via live chat- our Melbourne based team will get back to you quickly if you have any questions.
- Whilst Qoctor is a private service, the fees are affordable, starting at $14.99 for a single, same day medical certificate consultation. This is much less than the “gap fee” now charged in many GP clinics.
- With Qoctor, it is possible to speak to a doctor about a health issue or symptom, request a medical certificate, a carer’s certificate, a specialist referral letter, a pathology referral, an asthma/allergy action plan, a prescription and much more.
- For any long term or complex issues, we strongly encourage patients to see their regular doctor where possible- as it is best to have the continuity of care. If you see a Qoctor doctor online but want your GP to be kept in the loop, we are happy to provide you with a summary or letter to take with you on your next visit, if you wish.
Intending to see a doctor online in Australia? Some important things to bear in mind:
- For medicolegal reasons, you do need to be physically in Australia at the time of your online assessment.
- The doctor should be AHPRA registered- you should be able to easily check their number on the AHPRA website
- The practitioner should be clear whether they are a doctor, a nurse, or other practitioner- some low quality providers are intentionally unclear about this.
- Your privacy and confidentiality should be respected by the provider at all times (at Qoctor we are committed to this). The experience should feel as professional as what you’d expect from an in-person assessment.
- Video call is deemed the gold standard for telehealth, by the Australian medical board. However a telephone call is acceptable in some cases. Low quality websites that only communicate via SMS or online questionnaires are sub-standard, and in many cases may not be fully insured.
Book an online doctor appointment <here>.
Once you’ve spoken to the doctor and they have assessed you, they may issue advice, a prescription, a pathology request, a referral letter or a medical certificate. These items are available for download immediately after your appointment. eScripts are sent via SMS, directly to your mobile phone.
No, you do NOT need to have Medicare to book a GP appointment, though by providing your Medicare details it allows your doctor to provide you with useful services such as ePrescriptions (eScripts), as well as including your Medicare details on pathology requests or specialist referrals so that you can access Medicare rebates. Therefore if you have Medicare card, it is very helpful if you enter your details when registering.
Visitors from overseas can still use Qoctor to book a GP appointment, if they need medical assistance or advice whilst travelling in Australia. Medicare is not required.
Unfortunately it is not possible for telehealth providers like Qoctor to offer Medicare rebates for most telehealth appointments, due to the Medicare “12 month face to face rule”. This is a legislative requirement that GPs and Other Medical Practitioners (OMPs) working in general practice can only perform a telehealth or telephone service where they have an established clinical relationship with the patient, and have seen them in person in the past 12 months. There are limited exemptions to this requirement, such as mental health treatment plans.
Yes, when you book a general GP telehealth appointment with Qoctor, you can discuss more than one issue with the doctor- quite often people need a few things- such as a prescription, a medical certificate or a referral for a test or treatment! If you have many complex medical issues and the consultation is becoming very prolonged, the doctor may suggest you return for a second appointment at a later time, to continue to work through all your concerns.
A general GP consultation with Qoctor costs $49.99. Waiting times are generally less than 2 hours. General GP appointments are available 365 days a year, and do not cost more out of hours or at weekends. Our experienced AHPRA registered doctors can discuss your health concerns- whether you wish to ask about symptoms, request a prescription, a pathology referral or a medical certificate.
If you are in a hurry, you can also avail of the priority booking service which allows you to see a doctor within around 15 minutes! The priority booking service is available 9am-9pm on weekdays.
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