Hypertension (Cardiology)
Adult

Cardiology

Useful Management Information

Minimum Referral Criteria

Does your patient meet the minimum referral criteria?
Category 1 (appointment within 30 calendar days)
  • Severe persistent hypertension (>180/110 but below 220/140) in patients with known ischaemic heart disease or cardiomyopathy) without any of the following concerning features
    • Headache
    • Confusion
    • Blurred vision
    • Retinal haemorrhage
    • Reduced level of consciousness
    • Seizures
    • Proteinuria
    • Papilloedema
    • Signs of heart failure
    • Chest pain

That persists after trial of oral medication as described by the Heart Foundation Hypertension Guideline

Category 2 (appointment within 90 calendar days)
  • Medication intolerance
  • Suspected renal artery stenosis (consider referral to vascular surgery if available)
  • Refractory hypertension (>140/90 but <180/110) despite receiving 3 or more antihypertensive agents
Category 3 (appointment within 365 calendar days)
  • Changing pattern of hypertension
  • If the patient does not meet the criteria for referral but the referring practitioner believes the patient requires specialist review, a clinical override may be requested:
    • Please explain why (e.g. warning signs or symptoms, clinical modifiers, uncertain about diagnosis, etc.)
  • Please note that your referral may not be accepted or may be redirected to another service

Essential Referral Information

  • BP (BP measurements on both arms preferable)
  • FBC, ELFTs, eGFR, fasting lipids results
  • Urinalysis results
  • Urinary protein estimation results or albumin creatinine ratio
  • CXR report
  • ECG

Additional Referral Information

  • Details of relevant signs and symptoms
  • Details of all treatments offered and efficacy
  • Relevant previous medical history and co-morbidities
  • Any investigations relevant to co-morbidities
  • Stress test report (if available)
  • Renal duplex report if renal artery stenosis suspected
  • History of smoking, alcohol intake and drug use (including recreational drugs)
Last updated 17 September 2023

Send Referrals To

Smart Referrals

Preferred Method
About Smart Referrals

Secure Web Transfer

Send to: Gold Coast Health Service District

Internal Referrals

Cardiology (E-Blueslips)

Fax

(07) 5687 4497

Post

Booking and Referral Centre
Gold Coast University Hospital
1 Hospital Boulevard
Southport QLD 4215

Enquiries

1300 559 083

Related HealthPathways

No directly related pathways found

Service Availability

Dr Rohan Jayansinghe
Medical Director Cardiology

Facilities

Gold Coast University Hospital
Robina Hospital

If you would like to send a named referral, please address it to the specialist listed above, who will allocate a suitably qualified specialist to see the patient. Alternatively, you can view a full list of our specialists.

Gold Coast Health - For Clinicians
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