Referrals for specialist treatment
If your GP or allied health professional have determined that the next steps in your treatment are required, they may suggest you see a specialist and provide you with a referral.
Talk to your GP about referring you to a specialist who participates in GMHBA’s Access Gap Cover scheme because it may reduce your expenses. If your GP doesn’t have this information, ask them to give you a list of relevant specialists, or an open referral that you can take to a specialist of your choice.
Patients can be referred to a specialist or consultant physician for treatment of their condition. The referral must include:
- relevant clinical information about the patient’s condition for investigation, opinion, treatment and/or management
- the date of the referral, and
- the signature of the referring practitioner
Referrals don’t need to be made out to a certain specialist or consultant physician. Even if they are, they can be used for any specialist or consultant physician in the same medical specialty.
A referral letter does not necessarily mean you will be having surgery. A referral is the introduction to a physician that specialises in the area that you require further investigation for.