OPENING HOURS 9am – 4pm Monday to Friday
We have put together information on what you can expect when visiting our clinic.
Have a read through and if you still have questions you can note them down to ask us when you come in, or give us a call, our friendly team will be very happy to answer any questions you have.
Dr Anderson will advise NQENT staff the urgency of your appointment from your GP referral. It is important that we have received a detailed referral from your GP or specialist with an explanation of symptomatology to be able to appropriately understand your condition and categorise urgency of your appointment.
If you consider your condition urgent, present to your General Practitioner, the Mater Hospital Emergency Department or the Townsville University Hospital Emergency Department.
Dr Anderson is primarily an otologist and sub-specialises in Paediatric ENT and complex ear conditions. If you are experiencing nasal, throat conditions or head and neck concerns, Dr Anderson may on-refer you to another specialist.
Before calling our rooms, please double check with your referring GP/specialist that the referral has been sent to our private rooms otherwise alternatively you can email your referral yourself. Our best contact details to receive referrals is the below:
Email: Referrals@nqent.com.au
Fax: 07 4721 4535
Please be advised that the triaging process of the referral can take up to 7-10 business days. If you have heard from us after two weeks, please contact our rooms for an update of your referral.
Once the referral has been received and triaged, Dr Anderson will advise the staff on what type of appointment to book you in for. No appointments can be booked before this process is completed.
We are a specialist clinic; we do need a valid referral as this is a formal letter stating the patient’s concerns and also provides medical history and this also allows you to receive a Medicare rebate.
Please contact us on (07) 4721 4582 or alternatively email us at referrals@nqent.com.au
Our current wait times are approximately 4-6 months however this is dependent on what Dr Anderson advises staff of the type of appointment to book you in for.
We do have a cancellation list, please ask our staff to be placed on this list in the event of an earlier appointment becoming available.
Unfortunately, at times due to extensive wait lists Dr Anderson cannot see all patients within a clinically appropriate timeframe and is unable to provide adequate care. Therefore, your referral will be handed back to the referring practitioner which will include further recommendations to another specialist. Dr Shane Anderson is now focusing on his sub-specialties of Paediatric ENT and Complex Otology.
If you have any audiograms, vestibular testing, CT or MRI Scans, X-rays or any other medical reports that may assist Dr Anderson, please arrange for these to be sent to the practice at referrals@nqent.com.au .
We do ask to prefill a patient registration form before your consultation, please have all the above information handy whether this is printed or on your electronical device. If you have any correspondence that may relate to your concerns, please send this to referrals@nqent.com.au or alternatively, bring them along with you to your appointment.
Dr Anderson will determine how urgent your surgery is and will advise staff on when to schedule your surgery date. Our NQENT staff will endeavour to accommodate your requests for dates for your surgery.
School holidays are a popular time for surgery, please feel free to talk to our staff to see if we are able to accommodate dates or give alternative dates, otherwise we can place you on a cancellation list if a particular date is not available.
For a majority of patients, the answer is no. Dr Anderson will need to have a consultation and obtain informed consent for surgery before being scheduled for the procedure.
For patients from out of catchment, prior initial consultation can be performed via Telehealth or Video Conference.
We can do EFTPOS/Credit Card or cash (we do not accept AMEX/Diners or Cheques).
We can take payments over the phone.
Yes. Dr Anderson treats uninsured patients. Your initial consultation or follow-up consultations will require full fee payment with a rebate from Medicare.
If you require surgery, this will need to be at your own cost. We can provide a detailed quotation and information after your appointment with Dr Anderson.
Please note, there will also be private hospital fee, anaesthetic fee and potentially radiology and pathology fees payable to other entities associated with your surgery.
Dr Anderson clinic waiting times are unpredictable dependant on last minute urgent appointments being scheduled in therefore the waiting time can vary. Sometimes patients need more time than allocated which will cause a prolonged wait.
If it is an extensive wait time for more than an hour, our friendly staff will reach out to advise you either via text message or phone call.
It is out of our and Dr Anderson’s control regarding the wait times through the public system. You certainly can see Dr Anderson in our private rooms however there will be a private standard consultation fee with a Medicare rebate that will incur.
If you decide to do a consultation with Dr Anderson privately and then opt to have surgery publicly, we have no control over who and when your treatment will occur. Please note that the public system have their own triaging system and this will not fast track the process.
Yes we do, DVA Gold Patients are fully covered for their consultations.
For DVA White Patients. You will be required to go back to DVA to be reimbursed.