We are updating the way we communicate with you about your Specialist Clinics appointment bookings. Email and text messaging will become the main way we contact you for the majority of appointments. In some circumstances, patients will still receive a letter of offer for appointment.

We make appointments only seven weeks in advance so that changes are less likely and forgotten appointments are minimised.

How appointments are made

Initial appointments

First we need to receive a referral from your doctor. 

When we receive your referral, we check to see if all relevant information is included. If anything is missing, we contact your GP for further information.

If a referral is declined, we send a letter to you and your referring doctor to notify you of this outcome.

If the referral is complete, it is registered and checked for suitability for one of our clinics.

We then prioritise the referral:

• If urgent, we contact you and arrange an appointment
• If routine, we send a letter to you and your referring doctor confirming that you have been placed on our waiting list. You will receive a text message, email or (on occasion) a letter when your appointment is booked.  

Review appointments

If your review is required within the next 7 weeks

If you require a review (or follow-up) with your doctor within the next 7 weeks and there is an available appointment time, you will be able to book this review with the clinic administration officer before you leave your current appointment.

If there are no available appointments in the next 7 weeks, we will be in contact with you in due course. 

If your review date is further away than 7 weeks

If your review date is further away than 7 weeks, you are placed on our wait list. When the time comes for your review and an appointment becomes available, we we will contact you via text message, email or letter, as outlined above.

If you have not yet received communication from us regarding your next appointment, please wait patiently as we haven’t forgotten you, we are just waiting to book you into the next available appointment. 

Booking enquiries

If you have an appointment, you can use our online form to book, change or cancel appointment bookings.

Enquire now

We want to help with your enquiry as quickly as possible. If our form doesn’t match what you need, please phone our Call Centre instead. See: Contact Specialist Clinics.

Let us know if your contact details have changed

Next time you are in contact with one of our specialists' clinics staff members, make sure to give them your most recent contact details.  

Get help with test and procedure bookings

Patients are often required to undertake tests or procedures such as blood tests or X-ray prior to their Specialist Clinic appointment.

If you need assistance to coordinate tests to suit your clinic appointments, please contact us.

Related services

• Aboriginal health program

  We support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and their family while using hospital services.

• Do you need an interpreter?

  We provide free interpreters for our patients.

• Disability liaison

  We support people with disability to use hospital services and access the care and treatment they need.

Contact us

Specialist Clinics

Contact Specialist Clinics

Phone: 03 9496 2444

Phone: 1800 134 864 (toll free for regional patients)

Phone: 131 450 (free telephone interpreter service)

Open hours

Specialist Clinics is open 8.00 am to 4.30 pm, from Monday to Friday.

Our Call Centre is open 8.00 am to 5.30 pm.

We're closed weekends and public holidays.