MyMedicare: A New Way to Connect with Your GP
Forrest Road Medical Centre has joined the new initiative called MyMedicare from 1st November 2023. We invite all existing and new patients, who consider us to be your preferred practice, to register with us in MyMedicare.
Click Register Now to download the registration form to your computer, fill it out, and then email it to us at info@forrestroadmedical.com.au.
You can also complete the form via your Medicare App, or fill out a paper form at the practice.
Eligibility criteria apply, learn more below.
What is MyMedicare?
MyMedicare is a new Commonwealth Government program that recognises and promotes the importance of a continuous relationship with your GP and general practice team. MyMedicare allows you to formally register with your usual general practice and preferred GP. This registration aims to strengthen the relationship between you, your GP, and the team at Forrest Road Medical Centre.
By joining MyMedicare, you tell the health system that you trust us to look after you. This means we can get more information about your health from other places, such as hospitals or specialists. This way, we can plan and coordinate your care better with you and other health professionals.
Why is MyMedicare Important?
Research shows that having a regular general practice and GP improves health outcomes, reduces health care costs and improves the experience of people receiving and providing care (you and your health care team). Finding a GP and practice that you trust, and formalising that relationship, is an important first step in providing continuity of care. By promoting regular interactions with your general practices, the Commonwealth Government also hopes to reduce visits to hospital and emergency departments, as well as readmissions to hospital. Registering for MyMedicare has various benefits for you as well as for our practice. These are outlined below.
Registration with Forrest Road Medical Centre means many things (with plans for more benefits to come). The key benefits to you include better access, better continuity of care, and better planning.
Registering in MyMedicare will help us better understand you, your needs, and help us better tailor our services to meet those needs. This includes providing us with information about patients who choose us, which will help us to target and focus our health check reminders and health promotion activities.
As your registered practice and nominated GP, our name will be visible on your My Health Record. Most people have a My Health Record but don’t use it very much. Over time, all pathology and test results done elsewhere will have to be uploaded to your My Health Record and be visible to you on your My Health Record App. This will help us collate and be informed about all your care so that we can coordinate care in a comprehensive fashion.
In the future, the Commonwealth Government will use registration with MyMedicare to provide incentives to us that will enable us to provide better and more services to you. This will include chronic disease management items linked into a patient’s registration to support continuity of care with chronic and complex conditions.
How Do I Join?
Registration is now open! More information is available on the MyMedicare website.
There are essentially three ways to register with us.
- Apply online via the Medicare app or website
- Apply via a manual paper form at our practice
- Click Register Now to download the form to your computer, fill it and email it to us at info@forrestroadmedical.com.au.
Registration is completely voluntary.
You can withdraw your registration at any time. Also, even if you are registered, you can still attend any other practice at any time, especially if we are closed. You can see any of GPs or nurses at any time, not just your nominated GP.
You can only choose one practice to register with.
Even if you registered with us, you can still attend any practice at any time.
Registration is free.
Registration is completely free and the Commonwealth government is not paying Forrest Road Medical Centre for the registration.
Registration is optional and you can change registration at any time.
You can also change your mind and leave the program at any time. It does not affect your Medicare rights or benefits.
Confidentiality
All information held by Forrest Road Medical Centre is private and held in accordance with our privacy policy. MyMedicare simply links you to our practice in the Medicare system.
As outlined in this fact sheet, MyMedicare does not hold any clinical information.
It does not allow open access to the records we hold. Medicare already has information about you in relation to all the Medicare services you use – this does not change. You can read more about the MyMedicare Privacy here.