Changing
to a doctor at the Mornington Health Centre is easy. Your
first step is to decide which doctor you would like to see.
If you are unsure about your options, take a look at the “Meet
the Doctors” section of this website.
Alternatively, give
our reception staff some idea of what you are looking for
in your doctor, and let them make a suggestion.Once
you have decided on your doctor, make an appointment through
the reception desk. Let the receptionist know that this will
be your first visit since many of the doctors require a slightly
longer appointment so that they can take a brief family history.
During
your appointment, the doctor will ask you about having your
existing medical notes transferred to the Mornington Health
Centre. You can either contact your previous doctor yourself
to organise this or, if you prefer, we can do it for you.
Most people prefer to let us do it. All we need from you is
your signature on a release form which authorises your previous
doctor to transfer them to us.
Your
patient notes are extremely important and should be kept as
up-to-date as possible. Most of the time, you will not even
need to think about them as they are maintained by your doctor
and the health centre staff, however, if any of your particulars
change (for example, you move to a new address), you should
let us know at your earliest convenience. Similarly, if you
decide to change to a different doctor within the Mornington
Health Centre, you should inform the reception staff the next
time you make an appointment so that your records can be updated
accordingly.
If
you ever decide to change to a doctor at another health centre,
we will be happy to forward your notes for you. Again, all
we need is your signature giving us permission to do so, together
with the name of your new doctor. Please note that because
of the requirements of the Privacy Act 1993 and the Health
Information Privacy Code, we ask that when a family's records
are to be sent to another doctor, each member of the family
who is 14 years of age or older needs to sign an individual
release.
