connect to wellbeing
1300 160 339

Find out more by visiting the Neami National website.

Connect to Wellbeing connects community members to the right mental health support and information. They can organise free in-person or over the phone counselling, as well as provide up-to-date information and resources for those requiring support.

1300 160 339

If you require immediate support contact:

24hr Mental Health Line — 1800 011 511

Lifeline — 13 11 14

Beyond Blue — 1300 224 636

For children under 12 years: Kids Helpline — 1800 551 800

In an emergency, call 000 or go to your nearest hospital emergency department.

Healthy North Coast acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands across our region and pays respect to the Elders past, present and emerging. We recognise these lands were never ceded and acknowledge the continuation of culture and connection to land, sky and sea. We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as Australia’s First Peoples and honour the rich diversity of the world’s oldest living cultures.

Healthy North Coast is an independent, not-for-profit organisation proudly delivering the PHN program in North Coast NSW. We are committed to improving the health of our communities through quality primary health care.

The PHN program is an Australian Government Initiative.

North Coast Health Connect
Appointment Booking Service

At the end of the triage process, callers to North Coast Health Connect are offered an appointment booking service.
The appointment booking service is unique to North Coast Health Connect and will:

actively direct triaged consumers to general practice or community pharmacy, and
assist consumers to navigate their way to where they should go in the health system.

The booking service works through a digital interface between the triage nurse and your practice. The interface allows the nurse to see a unique appointment type and availability specifically for use by North Coast Health Connect:

The North Coast Health Connect triage nurse cannot see the practice’s entire calendar; they can only see and select the North Coast Health Connect appointment type.
The North Coast Health Connect appointment type cannot be seen by the public.
The practice manages which appointments it allocates to North Coast Health Connect.

The triage nurse enters the patient details enabling the practice to make direct contact with the patient if required.

The triage nurse checks each practice’s protocol (mask-wearing, etc) for attending the practice with the caller.

If the caller has given the nurse accurate information and the person is an existing patient, the booking tool will match the patient to their existing record preventing the duplication of patient files.

The caller receives a text or email from the booking tool provider with the time of the appointment, address and phone number of the practice.

The digital interface

The booking tool software can be used by any practice that currently uses Best Practice, Medical Director, ZedMed or Genie.

Practices without electronic booking can be supported to adopt electronic booking if they wish to register to become part of the North Coast Health Connect network.

Booking tool installation and cost

Upon registration, our Healthy North Coast engagement team will contact you to discuss your software options and requirements.

If you are already a client of one the booking tool vendors, the interface will be straightforward with no additional cost.

For practices who are not current clients, financial support is available to cover up-front costs and fees for the first four months.

The contractual agreement and licence to use the tool is between the practice and the booking tool vendor. The vendor provides training and support in the use of the platform.

Our engagement team is here to help and support the process.

North Coast Health Connect Overview

North Coast Health Connect provides 24/7 clinical advice from experienced triage nurses (registered nurses) via phone or webchat for North Coast consumers with acute clinical symptoms.

The objective of the service is to support consumers to find the right care at the right time and place, whilst also empowering them to manage their own care when safe to do so.

The service is funded by Healthy North Coast through the North Coast PHN Program, delivered by Amplar Health (Amplar) and evaluated by The George Institute.

The triage process

Triage is conducted by registered nurses who are experienced in taking calls from health consumers. Each assessment commences with the collection of pertinent demographic information and ruling out life-threatening emergencies. Triage nurses then conduct a clinical assessment to gain an understanding of the relevant acute clinical symptoms and determine the best course of action.

The nurses are guided by over 180 clinical decision support algorithms which; in turn, are informed by strong clinical evidence and practice globally. Amplar has used and continually improved these algorithms for over a decade, undertaking many millions of interactions with consumers in Australia. In addition, they have also improved the algorithms to fit our local conditions here on the North Coast.

Despite the robustness of these decision support tools, all registered nurses maintain the autonomy to override the algorithm outcome if they make the clinical determination the patient needs higher acuity care (or lower care in limited circumstances).

Triage outcomes

Where it is determined the caller is not able to manage their symptoms at home, the nurse who conducts the triage assessment may refer the caller to a wide range of services in the acute and primary care health system including:

ambulance response — 000
the nearest Emergency Department
see a general practitioner (GP) in 2 hours, 6 hours, 12 hours, 1-3 days or by routine appointment. View more information.
where no face-to-face GP appointments are available, attend an HNC GP telehealth appointment in 2 hours, 6 hours or 12 hours. View more information.
dental services
see a community pharmacist within 24 hours (read more below)
connection to a mental health support phone line or other phone lines where appropriate.

Clinical governance

Amplar monitors the clinical quality of the triage service to ensure it continues to align with best practice (ISO 9901:2015). Amplar has a dedicated Clinical Governance Team, overseen by a medical practitioner, who ensures patient safety and service effectiveness are always front of mind.

Referral to a general practitioner

In partnership with participating general practices in the Healthy North Coast region, North Coast Health Connect will provide a more integrated approach to patients who need a consultation with a GP urgently.

When the triage assessment indicates the patient should consult with a doctor, the triage nurses will endeavour to assist the patient to find an available appointment with their own general practice in the first instance. Where that GP clinic is integrated with the triage service, the nurse will also be able to book that patient into a GP appointment directly, saving time and stress for the patient and GP clinic admin staff.

This integration will also focus on increasing access to those without a regular GP, by booking the patient directly into an integrated GP clinic where possible.

Healthy North Coast’s GP Telehealth service will be available to callers who are triaged as needing a GP appointment when no face-to-face appointment can be found and the presentation is suitable for a telehealth appointment.

Referral to a community pharmacist

In partnership with the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia, North Coast Health Connect has developed a new low-acuity referral option to see a community pharmacist within 24 hours. These referrals are arrived at through the standardised clinical algorithms. Referrals are restricted to the current scope of Australian pharmacist practice.

The consumer will receive a private 1:1 consultation with a community pharmacist, supported by evidence-based guidelines. The type of management interventions provided by the pharmacist include:

Provision of tailored health education and care advice
Supply of a non-prescription medicine
Escalation to another health professional

The inclusion of community pharmacists as a North Coast Health Connect referral point provides an additional option for face-to-face healthcare advice and reassurance, as well as access to evidence-based treatments for patients who do not need urgent care. It also assists North Coast Health Connect to leverage maximum health system capacity for North Coast health consumers.

North Coast Health Connect Overview

North Coast Health Connect provides 24/7 clinical advice from experienced triage nurses (registered nurses) via phone or webchat for North Coast consumers with acute clinical symptoms.

The objective of the service is to support consumers to find the right care at the right time and place, whilst also empowering them to manage their own care when safe to do so.

The service is funded by Healthy North Coast through the North Coast PHN Program, delivered by Amplar Health (Amplar) and evaluated by The George Institute.

The triage process

Triage outcomes

ambulance response — 000
the nearest Emergency Department
see a general practitioner (GP) in 2 hours, 6 hours, 12 hours, 1-3 days or by routine appointment
where no face-to-face GP appointments are available, attend an HNC GP telehealth appointment in 2 hours, 6 hours or 12 hours
dental services
see a community pharmacist within 24 hours (read more below)
connection to a mental health support phone line or other phone lines where appropriate.

Clinical governance

Referral to a general practitioner

This integration will also focus on increasing access to those without a regular GP, by booking the patient directly into an integrated GP clinic where possible.

Referral to a community pharmacist

The consumer will receive a private 1:1 consultation with a community pharmacist, supported by evidence-based guidelines. The type of management interventions provided by the pharmacist include:

Provision of tailored health education and care advice
Supply of a non-prescription medicine
Escalation to another health professional

connect to wellbeing
1300 160 339

Connect to Wellbeing connects community members to the right mental health support and information. They can organise free in-person or over the phone counselling, as well as provide up-to-date information and resources for those requiring support.

1300 160 339

Get our newsletter and events straight to your inbox.

Mental Health Practitioner Directory

Frequently Asked Questions

MNCLHD ADN Contact Form

North Coast Health Connect
Appointment Booking Service

The digital interface

Booking tool installation and cost

Contact our Education Team

North Coast Health Connect Overview

North Coast Health Connect Overview

Flood-impact survey and results

Alexandra Howard
Director Disaster and Public Health Emergencies

Dr Sara Renwick-Lau

connect to wellbeing1300 160 339

Connect to Wellbeing connects community members to the right mental health support and information. They can organise free in-person or over the phone counselling, as well as provide up-to-date information and resources for those requiring support.

1300 160 339

Get our newsletter and events straight to your inbox.

Mental Health Practitioner Directory

Frequently Asked Questions

MNCLHD ADN Contact Form

North Coast Health Connect Appointment Booking Service

The digital interface

Booking tool installation and cost

Contact our Education Team

North Coast Health Connect Overview

North Coast Health Connect Overview

Flood-impact survey and results

Alexandra Howard Director Disaster and Public Health Emergencies

Dr Sara Renwick-Lau

connect to wellbeing
1300 160 339

North Coast Health Connect
Appointment Booking Service

Alexandra Howard
Director Disaster and Public Health Emergencies