Did you know Physio & Exercise Physiology Consults can be performed online from the safety & convenience of your own home or office?
While our in-clinic Physio consults usually involve ‘hands-on’ treatment, and Exercise Physiology involves face-to-face contact, we guarantee you can still get amazing benefits from an Online Consultation. Physiotherapy as a profession has moved away from a reliance on complex machines and more towards structured management & rehabilitation plans, with education & progression that you can perform under our guidance without needing to attend in clinic.
And the great news is there extensive research evidence to support the benefits of Telehealth Online consults.
At Gold Coast Physio & Sports Health, we are now offering these Online Telehealth consultations to help you achieve your health, activity, exercise and sporting goals, from the safe & hygienic location of your choice, including the comfort of your own home!
This means that you can get your injury personally assessed and diagnosed by a qualified Physio or Exercise Physiologist via any combination of webforms, video consultations and secure messaging. Your Therapist will formulate a management plan specific to your goals & needs, and then convey it to your computer via written report, online video, or email.
When should you consider a Telehealth Consult? Imagine this….
What if you have a Consult booked in Clinic but your work schedules an important last-minute meeting that doesn’t leave you enough time to get to the Clinic, but you desperately need advice on how to progress to return to running program after a bone stress injury so you don’t re-injure?
What if you have a sick child at home so you can’t make the appointment you have booked in clinic, but you desperately still need Physio advice or assessment for your shoulder pain?
What if you have just had a repeat episode of acute low back pain and you can’t drive to the Clinic?
What if the exercises we have given you for your achilles pain are making the pain significantly better but you are travelling overseas for a few weeks away & need to know the exercise progressions?
What if you strained your Calf muscle, are following the management & exercises prescribed already from a few clinic visit consults, but then you have to work from home for the week while your wife is away travelling, and you really need to know the next progression of rehab exercises?
What if the World gets shut-down in a period of isolation due to Covid-19 or other threat and you still need physio advice and direction?
No problems at all- this scenarios are the perfect opportunity for you to benefit from a Telehealth Consult.
If you know you are not able to attend clinic, we can pre-book a Telehealth Consult.
If you need a last minute appointment change due to not being able to get to clinic, simply call us and we can change your in-clinic appointment to a Telehealth/Online Consultation. We will confirm with your Treating Therapist that this change still benefits you. The only difference may relate to whether or not you are able to claim Private Health Rebates for this appointment change (see below in Other Frequently Asked Questions for this).
What does a Telehealth / Online Consult look like?
The online physio or Exercise Physiology consultation process is almost the same as if you were to visit us in clinic. You still receive significant benefits, just delivered online instead of face-to-face.
Your Telehealth Online Consult process will involve:
Assessment
An initial assessment involving us asking you important questions as we would do in clinic
An objective assessment where we ask you to move in specific ways and we watch you via your computer or phone
Diagnosis
Giving you a diagnosis on your symptoms
Treatment & Planning
Formulating a management plan and providing education, advice, & direction via exercises and supervision
Prevention Strategies
Giving you strategies and ideas to help prevent recurrence or secondary injury
Watch an example of how easy & useful Telehealth Physio & Exercise Physiology is here…
How to Book a Telehealth Consult
Step 1
Phone the clinic 07 5500 6470 and Book a Physio or Exercise Physiology Appointment.
Book an Initial Appointment if you have never attended or been assessed by one of our Therapists before, or if you have a New Injury or New Concern you need a management plan for.
Book a Standard Folllowup Appointment if your appointment relates to an injury or concern, or maintenance that one of our Therapists has already assessed, diagnosed & given you a management plan for.
Step 2
You will be sent an email link with a Scheduled Meeting for your Booked Appointment time via the Zoom Online Platform. You DO NOT need an account with Zoom to accept this meeting request- it will be as simple as clicking on the link in the email we send you on your computer emails or phone emails (although you will need to check for this email from Gold Coast Physio & Sports Health to make sure if doesn’t go to your junk email folder).
We do request payment prior to the Consultation, and we will send you an Invoice at the time of you Booking the appointment.
We accept payment via Direct Debit (with our account details listed in the email sent to you with the Zoom link), credit card or via Paypal (details of payment required will be with the Invoice). For PAYPAL payment, click here
Step 3
We recommend you have your computer or phone setup 10min prior to your scheduled appointment time so you know your I.T. is working. Should your internet be limited, we can move to a phone consultation if required. While a phone consultation is not as ideal for assessment using a medium with a camera, we believe our Therapists are that skilled that we can still provide benefit to you.
Step 4
At your scheduled appointment time, click on the Zoom link we sent to your email address and be ready for an awesome Online Consult experience.
Remember the Online consult goes both ways, so feel free to ask questions and provide information as you get through the appointment exactly the same as if you were in clinic!
What if you are unsure if a Telehealth/Online Consultation is appropriate for you?
If we start an Online consult process and feel that we cannot help you in this form, you can be assured we will let you know and the consult fee will be reduced to account only for the time it takes to complete your Assessment & Diagnosis.
And we will not leave you stranded! We will still formulate a plan and pathway forwards for you, and refer you either in to clinic, or on to appropriate imaging or to a Specialist as appropriate.
If you are unsure whether your injury is suitable for a consultation or not, send us an email (info@mygcphysio.com.au), and we will let you know!
Other Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a referral to use your service?
No, you do not need a referral to have a Telehealth Or In Clinic consult as Gold Coast Physio & Sports Health.
Medicare Enhanced Primary Care (EPC) referrals from a GP are currently approved for Bulk-Billing to Medicare with a referral from your GP. Ask your GP if you are eligible for this.
How can a Physio diagnose my injury if they haven’t even touched me?
All Physio & Exercise Physiology appointments start with a ‘subjective assessment’, in which the Therapist will ask you a series of questions designed to discover the information they need to know about your injury or concern (without touching you). By the end of this assessment, the Therapist should already have a very clear idea of your diagnosis, or have a level of understanding of how to help you and what they need to test to confirm your diagnosis and pathway. This is no different to what happens in clinic.
How can Online Physio treat my injury without touching me?
Most people’s traditional view of Physiotherapy is that it involves “hands on” treatment. In reality, this is only a small portion of what Physios do to assist you with your injuries, aches or pains. Education, guiding return to work, exercise or sport progressions and identifying contributing factors from your lifestyle all can be done as treatment (again without touching you). Initiating a structured exercise program and watching or correcting you performing these exercises can also be directed online.
Here is a useful video explaining more from Karen Finnin who is a Physio working entirely Online with her Business, and has successfully done so for a number of years:
Can I get a private health insurance rebate for Telehealth consults?
Please phone us to discuss this on 07 55006470. Workers compensation and DVA consults CAN be provided via Telehealth with pre-approval. Ask your compensable body prior to your Telehealth Consult & let us know this when you book.
We will provide a receipt for you following your Consult for you to send to your Insurer if required.
Troubleshooting & I.T. Requirements
You will need:
A reliable internet connection if it is a video call (or reliable phone connection if by phone)
Please complete a test call to check whether your internet speed is sufficient for a telehealth consultation.
A computer, tablet or smart phone or:
A web camera, speakers, and microphone or a laptop with these built in.
When you start the video call, you may be guided through a few steps to test your equipment. This will check whether your Internet connection is fast enough, your speakers and microphone are working correctly, and your camera is positioned correctly.
Internet data usage You don’t use any data while waiting for your physiotherapist to join you. A telehealth consultation uses less than half of the data you would use while watching a YouTube video in High Definition. That’s about 230 MB on a mobile device, and 450 MB on a PC for a 20 minute call, which is similar to Skype or FaceTime. Data use is less on lower-speed internet connections, or if you’re using a less powerful computer, tablet, or smartphone. These factors can also reduce the overall quality of the video call. Data use increases when there are more than two participants in the video call.
Need more information?
Phone us on 07 55006470 and we will be happy to help!
