Telepsychiatry is a consultation conducted by video or via a personal computer between you and your psychiatrist at a distant location. The consultation may occur at home, at your general practitioner’s practice or in hospital.
The psychiatrist will speak with you and ask you questions in the same way they would at a face-to-face consultation.
Telepsychiatry improves your access to a psychiatrist and will reduce travel time and costs. It also means that you do not have to be away from work for long periods of time.
Everyone is eligible, however Medicare claims are only possible if you live outside a major city and are more than 15km from the psychiatrist & are not currently admitted in hospital. People living in residential aged care facilities or receiving Aboriginal medical services anywhere in Australia are not affected by these restrictions. Visit Doctor Connect to find out if you are eligible.
The psychiatrist will speak with you and ask you questions in the same way they would at a face-to-face consultation.
Telepsychiatry improves your access to a psychiatrist and will reduce travel time and costs. It also means that you do not have to be away from work for long periods of time.
The general practitioner will ask you to give your permission to share information with the psychiatrist. The same privacy and confidentiality requirements that apply to face-to-face consultations apply to video consultations. The psychiatrist will not provide information to anyone other than those involved in your care.
You need to discuss with your General Practitioner & If your doctor thinks that you need a Specialist Psychiatric assessment, your doctor will send a referral to our service.
No. If preferred, a face-to-face consultation can be organised and it will require you to travel. There may however be a longer waiting time to see a psychiatrist. A video consultation will only be offered if the psychiatrist and general practitioner consider it safe and suitable.
Video consultations require significant coordination by the psychiatrist and/or general practitioner, so it is important to keep the video consultation appointment. If you need to cancel, please let the psychiatrist/general practitioner know immediately, because rescheduling video consultations is more complicated than rescheduling a face-to- face consultation.