About Us

WHO WE ARE

This Medical Centre was established in 1929 as a solo family practice. In the 70’s, it was expanded to become a group practice and continued its traditional family practice with the name Lakemba Medical Centre. In 2000, the name was changed to BHC  Medical centre which means Better Health Care Medical Centre.

At BHC we believe prevention is better than cure. As Thomas Edison once said:

doctor

It might take a long time before we will be able to live long and free of disease, but in the meantime we now know how to prevent a lot of them. It is all thanks to the advances in medical research and technology.

We offer healthy lifestyle coaching, encouraging our patients to create and stick to a healthy diet and regular exercise. This simple approach has a profound positive impact on our health. A healthy lifestyle can help us to prevent high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes as well as risk of a stroke and heart attack even cancer in the long run.

We give our patients the whole range of preventative measurements such as regular blood tests, ECG, lung function tests and immunisations to prevent many diseases for children as well as adults and pregnant women, regular breast cancer screenings, PAP smears to prevent cervical cancer, bowel cancer screening etc.

We believe in good communication is the key to a happy patient-doctor relationship. We listen to your concerns by working with you to explore all the possible and alternative therapies to find the best option of treating your problem.

Whatever we do, your health always comes first… Because WE CARE!

PRACTICE UPDATE

Patients with Medicare are bulk billing

 

Schedule of our fees is listed below 

(for private patients)

Level A Level B Level C Level D
Dr Andrew Le Week Days $35 $75 $130 $200
Weekends and Public Holidays $45 $90 $140 $260
All other Doctors Week Days $25 $50 $75 $110
Weekends and Public Holidays $35 $60 $85 $120
Dietitian Weekdays $50

 For all types of consultation (initial/follow up)

Paediatrician Initial Consultation $300
2nd Visit $200
3rd Visit $150

You can book your appointment by using one of the following ways:

  1. Through our website: https://bhcmedicalcentre.com.au/ 
  2. Call our Medical Centre at 02 97591244

Our patient scheduling system is flexible enough to accommodate patients with urgent, 

non-urgent, complex and planned chronic care, and preventative needs. 

Our GPs and other members of the clinical team are consulted about the length and scheduling of appointments. Patients are encouraged to book longer appointments for multiple conditions, concerns or family members. Our standard consultation length aims to provide adequate time for GPs to facilitate high quality care.

Patients can request to see their preferred doctor or member of the health team. If a patient is unable to see their preferred GP, they are advised about the availability of other clinical staff and offered an appointment to see them. The urgency of the patient’s condition is always assessed before booking an appointment with their preferred GP at a later time. 

Where it is possible, information is provided in advance about the cost of healthcare and the potential for out-of-pocket expenses. 

If a patient presents at the practice with urgent medical needs, practice staff will respond with appropriate action in relation to the patient’s condition. The practice makes every effort to accommodate patients with urgent needs and all staff are trained in how to respond to medical emergencies.

Where safe and reasonable, our practice makes visits to regular practice patients in their homes, aged or residential care facilities, or in hospitals within and outside of normal working hours. Our practice has decided upon a reasonable distance within which visits can be conducted.

For regular patients whose circumstances are deemed not safe and/or reasonable, the practice ensures that there is an alternate system of care that these patients can access. 

A patient can arrange for a home or other visit or a general practitioner may request to see a patient in their place of residence if the following criteria are met:

  • The patient is a regular patient of this practice
  • The patient resides in a location that is within 10km radius of our practice
  • Where it is safe and reasonable
  • The practice has the correct contact details for the patient on file, and 
  • The patient has the type of problem that necessitates a home visit such as:
  1. Acutely ill
  2. Immobile
  3. Elderly
  4. No means of transport
  5. Unable to access the practice facilities due to disability
  6. Patients in final stages of a terminal disease

When receiving a request for a home or other visit from a patient, the practice team refer to our triage protocols to determine if the urgency of the request. Where necessary, advice is sought from the patient’s usual general practitioner when scheduling the visit.

Our surgery hours:

Mon – Fri:  8:30am – 5pm

Sat & Sun: 9am – 5pm

Public Holidays: 9am – 1pm 

For receiving After Hours services, please call 87246300 (Sydney Medical Service) patients holding a valid Medicare card are bulk-billed.
For Emergency, please call 000 or go to your nearest hospital.

Our practice’s telecommunication system facilitates patient access to the practice services and aims to adequately meet the needs of patients and team members. The auditory privacy and confidentiality need of patients have been considered when locating our telephones and facilities for electronic communication. 

Our telephone system provides sufficient inward and outward call capacity and has the functionality for electronic communication (either email or facsimile). The practice has 4 lines dedicated for telephone calls and 1 line for electronic communication. 

It is recognised that the telecommunication needs of the practice may change over time, in-line with staffing changes and growth of the practice. Strategies are in place to monitor, review and make the appropriate changes to the telecommunications system as required, and this includes monitoring through feedback from patients and practice team members. 

A telephone line is available for the practice team to summon assistance in an emergency.

Please notify us if your contact details/ Medicare card details have changed.

Our practice’s system for the follow up of tests, results and referrals has a strong focus on risk management. 

All test results, including pathology results, diagnostic imaging and investigation reports, and clinical correspondence received are reviewed, initialled (or electronic equivalent) and, where appropriate, acted upon in a timely manner and incorporated into the patient’s health record.

The nature and extent of the practice’s responsibility for following up test results, diagnostic imaging and investigation reports, and clinical correspondence/referrals depends on what is reasonable in the circumstance and the clinical significance of the test, referral or result.  

Whether something requires follow up is determined by the:

  • Probability that the patient will be harmed if follow up does not occur
  • Likely seriousness of the harm, and
  • Burden of taking steps to avoid the risk of harm.

Important referrals for consultations or tests ordered are followed up by the referring practitioner (or delegated authority) in a timely manner. This may include checking the patient has attended the referred consultation or the expected investigation, that correspondence or test results have been received and reviewed, and that a record of any follow up and subsequent actions or recall process is incorporated into the patient’s health record. 

Sometimes our general practitioners may need to be contacted outside our practice’s normal opening hours by the pathology service about a serious or life-threatening result, and we have provisions for allowing this contact to occur. 

Our patients (or their carers) are made aware of their obligations and responsibilities for their own healthcare. This includes being informed about how to obtain their results and the seriousness of not attending for ordered appointments/investigations and any recall or subsequent follow up. Where appropriate, this advice is documented in the patient’s health record. 

In addition to an appreciation of the need for timeliness when following up and actioning referrals, tests and results our practice team members are aware of the need for confidentiality and discretion with regard to referrals, diagnostic tests and results or correspondence.

This practice uses an active RECALL &REMINDER SYSTEM, if you do not wish to be included in the recall and reminder register, please notify the receptionist.

Dear patients,
We would like to let you know how we look after your privacy
When you register as a patient of our practice, you provide consent for our GPs and practice staff to access and use your personal information so they can provide you with the best possible healthcare. Our main purpose for collecting, using, holding and sharing your personal information is to manage your health.

What personal information do we collect?

  • Names, date of birth, addresses, contact details, emergency contact details, Medicare number
  • Medical information including medical history, medications, allergies, adverse events, immunisations, social history, family history and risk factors

How do we collect your personal information?

  1. When you make your first appointment, our staff will collect your personal and demographic information via our new patient registration form.
  2. When providing medical services, we may collect further personal information. Other methods we receive information are “MyHealthRecord” and electronic downloads from hospitals or pathology.
  3. We may also collect your personal information when you send us an email, telephone us, make an appointment, or communicate with us.
  4. In some circumstances, personal information may also be collected from other sources. Sometimes it is not practical or reasonable to collect it from you directly. This may include the following:
    1. Your guardian or responsible person
    2. Involved healthcare providers, such as specialists, allied health, hospitals, pathology, and diagnostic services etc.

Who do we share your personal information with?

  • With other healthcare providers, and when sending referrals on your behalf
  • When it is required or authorised by law (e.g., court subpoenas)
  • When it is necessary to lessen or prevent serious threat to a patient’s life, health or safety or public health or safety
  • To assist in locating a missing person
  • To establish, exercise or defend an equitable claim, and/or for the purpose of confidential dispute resolution process
  • When there is statutory requirement to share information (e.g., diseases or virus mandatory notification)

Only people who need to access your information will be able to do so. Other than in the course of providing medical services or as otherwise described in this policy, our practice will not share personal information with any third party without your consent. We will not share your personal information with anyone outside Australia (unless under exceptional circumstances that are permitting by law) without your consent.

You have the right to request access to your personal information
Our practice acknowledges patients may request access to their medical records. We require you to put this request in writing and our practice will respond within a reasonable time. We will then contact you to make an appointment for access to records in consultation with your doctor. There will be a fee applicable to the time spent.

How can you lodge a privacy related complaint, and how will the complaint be handled at our practice?
We take complaints and concerns regarding privacy seriously. You should express any privacy concerns you have in writing, to our Practice Manager. Please allow adequate time for follow up and initial response to your concern. You may also contact the OAIC. The OAIC may require you to give them time to respond, before they will investigate. For further information, visit www.oaic.gov.au or call the OAIC on 1300 336 002.

 

Please do not hesitate to ask one of our reception team members for the full version of our practice policy on how we manage your privacy

  • Place an order on our website (except Clark Cream) https://bhcmedicalcentre.com.au
  • Sending an email to (order@bhcmedicalcentre.com.au)  
  • Calling our Medical Centre on (02)97591244

You can pay by credit card or direct bank deposit

The order will be delivered to your nominated address by Auspost

Free postage for orders above $150