FAQs

We’ve provided answers to some of our commonly asked questions below.

If you can’t find the answer to your question here, or have pressing queries or concerns, please call our clinic directly on 9509 2244 and our staff will be happy to assist you.

New Patients – Referrals, Making an Appointment & Patient Registration

Consultations with our paediatricians are by appointment only, please call our clinic directly on 9509 2244.

We require your referral prior to making an appointment, your referring GP or specialist can fax it straight to us on 9509 2833 or email to info@vccmalvern.com.au. Our team can then triage your referral and offer you an appropriate length appointment with the most appropriate paediatrician.

→ Make a Referral

New Patients are required to complete a ‘New Patient Registration Form’. It’s very helpful to us if you complete and return this prior to your first appointment. Otherwise, please arrive 10-15 minutes early to complete it before your appointment time. You can download and print the form using the link below.

Download New Patient Registration Form (PDF)

Fees, Payments, Medicare & Private Health Insurance

Our paediatricians’ fees are determined individually, and vary depending on the service they provide to you on the day. Fees are reviewed every 6 -12 months.

Victorian Children’s Clinic is a private clinic, and we require full payment of your account on the day of consultation. Payments may be made by cash, EFTPOS and credit cards (Mastercard and Visa only). Please speak to us before the appointment if you have any queries or concerns.

To claim a rebate from Medicare, a valid referral from your GP or specialist is required. GP referrals are valid for 12 months and specialist referrals for 3 months.

We offer online Medicare claims which allows Medicare to pay the rebate for your child’s consultation directly into your registered account within 24-48 hours. Information about claiming and how to register your bank account details with Medicare is available at: http://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/subjects/medicare-services#a4

If you have private health insurance, some services provided at this clinic may be covered. The services and extent to which they are covered will depend on your type of cover and policy. Please check with your health fund to be sure of exactly what you are covered for.

Getting To Our Practice – Location, Car Parking & Public Transport

We are located at 149 Wattletree Road, Malvern 3144. Enter via the front of our building on Wattletree Road, disabled access available. See map below

2 hour on-street parking is available on Wattletree Rd (check signage as clearway conditions apply) and in surrounding Drysdale St and Nicholls Sts.

2 hour and all day public carparks are located off Wattletree Rd, and in nearby Drysdale St or Llaneast St.

By tram:
Tram #5 along Wattletree Rd: closest stop #46 Cnr. Nicholls St. & Wattletree Rd
Tram #16 along Glenferrie Rd: closest stop #54 Cnr. Glenferrie & Wattletree Rds

By train:
Frankston, Moorrabbin, Dandenong or Cranbourne lines (ensure stopping all stations) to Malvern Station.

Attending Your Appointment – What to Bring & Who Should Attend?

Medicare Card, referral, registration forms and previous assessments reports (if not previously emailed or faxed through). Your child’s Health and Development Record (blue or green book) can also be helpful.

If you have relevant reports from any external medical appointments, teachers, or test results that you would like your paediatrician to consider, please send them by mail, fax or email prior to the appointment.

Medicare will not provide a rebate if your child is not present at the consultation. If you know you need to speak to your paediatrician without your child present, please bring a relative or trusted friend to sit with your child in reception while you do so.

Every family is different, so we leave this up to you, or in some cases, your legal requirements. It does help your paediatrician if the main care-givers are present at the same time, it makes for easier communication and decision making.

Please notify us if parents are separated with regards to appointment notifications and correspondence.

We appreciate your time is valuable, and our paediatricians always endeavour to run to time.
Please consider others by arriving on time for your appointment, and advise if you’re running late. If you need to see your paediatrician regarding complex or multiple issues, please tell our staff when booking the appointment so they can schedule accordingly.

Assistance animals usually refer to dogs trained by the Guide Dogs Association of Victoria or another community organisation specialising in this work such as Assistance Dogs Australia.

Patients attending consultations may need to have their assistance animal with them and are permitted to attend the clinic. For the team at Victorian Children’s Clinic to support patients with assistance animals as best we can, we ask that:

  • Only registered/certified assistance animals are permitted to attend the clinic; we do not allow unregistered personal/companion pets. We may ask for proof of your assistance animal’s registration.
  • Patients are asked to contact the clinic before attending, to provide advanced notice that their assistance animal will be attending. We ask for advanced notice so that we can prepare and make arrangements for other patients in the clinic with potential animal allergies or phobias.
  • Assistance dogs should please remain on a lead while in the clinic under the responsibility of the patient or patients’ family.
  • Patients and their assistance animals may be asked to wait in a separate room until their clinician is ready to see them.
  • All infection control procedures (outlined in the section below) are followed.
  • The welfare of the animal is considered along with that of the patient; this includes issues such as providing access to water for the animal in a safe location while the patient is receiving treatment.

Infection control

Infection Control principles apply during any visit by an animal:

  • Hand hygiene must be practised by all those involved with the transport and handling of any animal in the clinic setting.
  • The main person responsible for the management of the animal will be responsible for cleaning and disinfecting any spills caused by the animal, especially urine and faeces.
  • The animal must always be under the control of the handler/person responsible.

Animal attendance requests and approval

All requests to bring animals to our clinic must be made in writing via email to info@vccmalvern.com.au and be made at least seven (7) days prior to attendance, where applicable. Acknowledgement will be provided in writing by our reception team and/or practice manager.

Accredited assistance animals cannot be prohibited from entering our facility but may be restricted from access to certain areas as outlined in the exemptions in the Commonwealth Disability Discrimination Act 1992

Cancelling Your Appointment

We would appreciate AT LEAST 48 hours’ notice if you need to change or cancel your appointment as this allows us to offer it to other patients.

Missed appointments, or appointments cancelled with less than 48 hours’ notice may be subject to a cancellation fee.

Fees need to paid at the time of cancellation to allow for future appointment bookings.

Telehealth Consultations

Our Doctors are able to provide telehealth consultations via Skype to families living in eligible rural and regional areas. Please speak with our reception staff for more information.

Contacting your Doctor – General Enquiries, Test Results, Medication & Prescriptions

Please feel free to call the clinic, send us an email, or leave an answering machine message if you’re calling out of hours.

We do not provide an after hours service, so in case of emergency please present to a paediatric emergency department or nearest hospital.

If you require medical advice, please speak with our reception staff to arrange an appointment to see your paediatrician.

Please note: Following your consultations, your Doctor will always send a report to you, your GP and/or your referring Doctor, so if you have any queries your GP may also be able to assist.

Your paediatrician may refer your child to have blood tests or medical imaging. In most circumstances they will advise you to book a follow-up appointment to review the results personally. This ensures a safe approach and allows us to maintain a high standard of medical care.

If you haven’t heard from us when you were expecting to, or you have any concerns, please call our clinic and we’ll follow up for you.

If the Doctor has prescribed your child with a new medication or altered their regular dosage, they may organise a follow up appointment to review. It’s important to attend this appointment within the recommended timeframe.

Depending on the type of medication, you may need a review appointment with your Doctor, or GP before a repeat prescription can be provided.

If your paediatrician has said they can provide a repeat prescription without an appointment, please contact us well before your prescription is due to run out, as some of our paediatricians are only at the clinic weekly or fortnightly. Please contact the clinic on 9509 2244 or email your request to info@vccmalvern.com.au. Fees for script preparation may also apply. If your script is required more urgently than this we may recommend you see your GP.

Privacy Policy – Your Information: Use, Disclosure, Access & Complaints

Information about you or your child’s medical and family history is needed to provide accurate diagnosis, treatment and to ensure quality health care. We consider patient health information as confidential and will only collect this information with your consent.
Comprehensive care often requires full knowledge of patient health information by other health professionals involved in your child’s treatment. For this reason, with your permission, health information may be shared with other health professionals. It is our usual practice to write to your referring doctor after the consultation, and we will also send you a copy of the letter.
 
Limited information about patients is provided to Medicare and private health funds, for billing and rebate purposes only. We may be legally bound to disclose information, e.g. mandatory reporting of some infectious diseases.
You have the right to access your health information. You may wish to view the information or ask for a copy of a part or of the whole record. A small fee may be charged for this service. There may be times when we are unable to provide access, for example, if the privacy of others is affected. You will be advised in this case.
 
Your child’s right to privacy of their health information might at times restrict access to this information by parents or guardians.
 
If you find information held is not accurate or complete, you are entitled to have that information corrected.
 
With your permission, your child’s health information will be made available to another health practitioner.
Please do not hesitate to discuss any concerns regarding your child’s care, questions or any issues relating to the privacy of your personal information with us. Our practice manager can be contacted on 9509 2244 or by email via Please click here to contact Us.
 
Further information is available from the Australian Government Office of the Australian Information Commissioner http://www.oaic.gov.au or it’s Hotline 1300 363 992.

Give Us Your Feedback

Our team are dedicated to providing a high level of patient care, and we will always do our best to assist with queries or resolve any concerns you may have.

We would love to hear from you, and appreciate any feedback you would like to give regarding your experience with Victorian Children’s Clinic.

The following form can be printed and brought to the Practice, or forms can be collected from the Practice during your visit. A “Suggestion Box” is available in the Reception area for you to return your form.

Download Feedback Form PDF

Alternatively please feel free to call, email or fax us via the contact details below, or utilise the Online Enquiry Form on our Contact Us page.

Victorian Children’s Clinic
149 Wattletree Road, Malvern VIC 3144
T: 03 9509 2244
F: 03 9509 2833
E: Please click here to contact Us 

Local Emergency Departments

In the case of an overdose or an emergency:
 Please dial 000 or attend the Emergency department at your local hospital.

Royal Children’s Hospital (Public) – Parkville
http://www.rch.org.au/home/

Monash Medical Centre (Public) – Clayton
http://www.monashhealth.org/page/Monash_Medical_Centre

Cabrini Hospital (Private) – Malvern
http://www.cabrini.com.au/patients-and-families/facilities-and-directions/cabrini-hospital-malvern/

Box Hill Hospital (Public) – Box Hill
https://www.easternhealth.org.au/locations/box-hill-hospital/item/216-box-hill-hospital

Sunshine Hospital (Public) – St Albans
http://www.westernhealth.org.au/OurSites/SunshineHospital/Pages/default.aspx

University Hospital Geelong (Public) – Geelong
http://www.barwonhealth.org.au