Occupational Therapy Plastic & Reconstructive SurgeryOutpatient
Urgent Advice
- To discuss an urgent referral, please contact the Registrar through switchboard 1300 744 284 or our GP Only Enquiry Line 5687 0003.
Are you referring to the right service?
- Chronic Venous conditions can be referred to our Occupational Therapy Vascular Outpatient Service
- Lymphoedema conditions can be referred to our Occupational Therapy Lymphoedema Outpatient Service
- Upper limb orthopaedic conditions with no skin grafts/flaps can be referred to our Hand Therapy Outpatient service
- If active involvement from medical oncology/radiation oncology can be referred to our Cancer Care Occupational Therapy Outpatient Service
- Post-surgical care for plastic & reconstruction surgery completed within a Queensland Health facility as a result of trauma, burns, infection or cancer removal. May include;
- Lower limb or upper limb trauma
- Post-surgical management of skin grafts or flaps (upper & lower limb)
- Burn Management
- Scar Management
- Therapy is focused on individual patient goals and assisting patients to self manage their condition. A wholistic approach to condition management incorporating lifestyle, function and daily activities are undertaken to enable increased function and quality of life. Some examples include:
- splinting
- compression bandaging
- compression therapy
- dressings and wound care (not as sole intervention)
- scar management
- exercise programs
- rehabilitation activities
- education and advice
- psychosocial support
- home environment review
- occupational performance review including guidance about return to work/hobbies
Conditions
Out of Scope Services
The following conditions are out of scope for this service:
- Referrals to this service will only be considered once all other referral sources such as DVA, etc. have been attempted and exhausted. Your referral should be sent to these organisations in first instance and only referred to this service if clearly declined from the other organisation.
- Patients residing outside Gold Coast Hospital and Health service (GCHHS) district, unless surgery has been performed within GCHHS and postoperative care cannot be provided within the health service district the patient resides in. For patients residing outside of GCHHS, clinical assessment and intervention may be provided, however, costs for some consumables (e.g. compression garments and splints) will be at the patient's own expense.
Out of Catchment
Gold Coast Health is responsible for providing public health services to the people who reside within its boundaries. Special consideration is made for patients requiring tertiary services or for services that are not provided by their local hospital and health service district. If your patient lives outside the Gold Coast Health catchment area and you wish to refer them to one of our services, please indicate relevant medical or social information that will assist with the processing of your referral.
Notes
Please note that where appropriate and where available, the referral may be streamed to an associated public allied health and/or nursing service. Access to some specific services may include initial assessment and management by associated allied health and/or nursing, which may either facilitate or negate the need to see the public medical specialist.
- A change in patient circumstance (such as condition deteriorating or becoming pregnant) may affect the urgency categorisation and should be communicated as soon as possible.
- Please indicate in the referral if the patient is unable to access mandatory tests or investigations as they incur a cost or are unavailable locally.
- If your patient consents to telehealth, please indicate in the body of the referral.
Patient Must Bring
- Medicare card
- Any concession cards (e.g. Pension, Health Care, DVA, PBS Safety Net, ADF, etc.)
- Current medication list
- Reading glasses, hearing and mobility aids
Send Referrals To
Smart Referrals
Preferred Method
About Smart Referrals
Secure Web Transfer
Send to: Gold Coast Health Service District
Internal Referrals
Fax
Post
Booking and Referral Centre
Gold Coast University Hospital
1 Hospital Boulevard
Southport QLD 4215
Enquiries
Service Availability
Facilities
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.