We listened to your feedback…and we are making improvements

This facility and doctors providing services from these rooms recently carried out a feedback survey exercise (the Practice Accreditation and Improvement Survey) and asked for your honest opinions regarding the services doctors provide.  The overall results were extremely positive, however doctors listened to your feedback and have taken the following actions to make improvements.
 

What you told us: The wait time is sometimes too long.  

What we have done: Doctors understand and are always seeking ways to reduce wait times.  As always, thank you for your patience and understanding.  Unfortunately, the unpredictable nature of medicine is such that doctors often encounter emergencies, which can cause them to run behind time. Here’s what doctors are doing to try to reduce wait times: Limiting double bookings, some doctors may look to increase standard appointment lengths, reminders to support staff to always inform patients if the doctor looks to be running behind time, increased catch-up and block off times in doctor schedules, reminders to patients to book extended appointments where required, continue to offer telephone consultations where appropriate. 

What you told us: You’re not entirely happy with the after-hours service. 
What we have done: Please be aware, the Labrador Medical Centre is not an after-hours service provider. A formal after-hours deputising arrangement is in place with Chevron After Hours in Nerang Street Southport. When rooms are closed, telephones automatically transfer to Chevron After Hours who provides an after-hours service to patients of doctors providing services from this facility. There are alternative choices for after-hours care within our local community and we have made this information more readily available at reception. 
 

What you told us: You’d like more access to home or other visits. 

What we have done: The doctors regularly visit many local Residential Aged Care Facilities. Doctors do not offer home visits as a general rule or default appointment choice. However, where safe and reasonable and at the doctor’s discretion, doctors may make visits to regular long-term patients in their homes, Aged or Residential Care Facilities. Home and other visits are a suitable care alternative and the provision of a home or other visit is determined by certain criteria. For patients whose circumstances are deemed not safe and or reasonable for a home visit, details of alternative home visit and after hours medical services available on the Gold Coast can be provided. Telephone consultations are also utilised where appropriate. I.e. Your doctor is available via telephone when you are unable to attend face to face (and where a telephone consultation is appropriate). Home visit providers are available within the community. Contact information for these services is more readily available at reception.
 

What you told us: You’d like more waiting room space.

What we have done: We appreciate this feedback and previously increased waiting room space via the creation of a second waiting room area on the West Wing of the facility and additional nurse waiting areas.  An outdoor seating / waiting area is also available.  You are of course welcome to arrive, call reception to check in and wait in the car until your doctor is ready for your consultation.  
 

What you told us: Reception staff need to be more welcoming at times and you’d like better listening when making appointments. 
What we have done: It is always good to receive feedback so we can continue to improve our support services. We aim to make everyone feel welcome at all times and appreciate a welcoming smile goes a long way. Our frontline teams have been under increased pressure during the pandemic, but have been made aware and will continue to strive for improvement. 

What you told us: You’d like to be given more information about costs.

What we have done: Indicative consultation fee, costing and rebate information is displayed throughout the rooms. Each doctor sets their own fees. We’ve also added basic indicative fee information to the information page on this website. Your doctor can provide further information about their fees.    
 

We also received many positive comments from survey participants, some of which are included below:

Great practice. Excellent. Well managed. I have been attending this clinic for many years and have nothing but satisfaction to pass on. Service is excellent. A particular doctor is excellent. I have been very satisfied and continue to be. Happy client. Staff and my doctor are excellent (that's why I travel a distance for my consultations). Always found staff and doctors always excellent. Keeping doing what they're doing because they're caring staff and doctors are respectful and caring. Thank you. Keep up the great work. All staff are very good. No improvement needed. Don't change anything. I love you all as you are. Great job! This practice can accept good and bad feedback and act around the situation too. I am very satisfied. No improvement needed. Could not be better. I'm happy as is. Stay as they are. Carry on. Very happy with everything. Couldn't better overall care and respect shown by staff and doctors. No improvements needed. Excellent overall. Everything is number one, no improvement needed.