Planning to have a procedure?

Step 1. Read the information brochures available here.

Step 2. If you have any questions after reading the brochures ask your proceduralist (surgeon, dentist etc) how to contact your anaethetist. Refer your questions to your anaesthetist.

Step 3. If you are having a private procedure, ask for an estimate for the anaesthetic procedure.

While 80% of all anaesthetic procedures are provided at 'no gap' (no additional expense to the patient) the remaining 20% will incure some expense. You should inform yourself of this likely expense prior to the procedure. Anaesthetic fees are determined primarily on the complexity of the procedure and its duration.  The estimate will be based on the average time for the procedure.

Step 4. Your anaesthetist will visit you before your procedure to discuss your health and carry out a relevant examination. Please ensure you discuss any concerns you might still have at this stage.

Step 5.  After you recover and return home, if you are a private patient you may receive a fee for the services of the anaesthetist. Please review the account and clarify any matters with the anaestheist's office. Some anaesthetists offer early payment discounts to encourage prompt payment.

Anaesthetists (as with other professional medical specialists) do not have a standard scale of fees. This is contrary to the Trade Practices Act. Instead the account will indicate the Medical Benefits Schedule (MBS) number or the Relative Value Guide (RVG) number with a unit value against the number. Medicare will rebate a portion of the unit value and your health fund will rebate a further portion. Each health fund has its own rebate arrangement. Ensure to contact your fund at the time to obtain your anaesthetist's fee estimate  (click here for details).

Anaesthesia in Australia

If you or someone you know is shortly to undergo a medical procedure that involves anaesthesia, you can be comforted by the knowledge that there is no safer country in the world to have an anaesthetic than Australia.

Anaesthetists in Australia are amongst the world's most highly trained doctors, having spent several years undergoing specialised training in anaesthesia, pain control, resuscitation and managing medical emergencies.

You will be in safe hands. Read the patient information brochure, Anaesthesia and You, and if you have further questions about your anaesthetic please contact your anaesthetist. The All About Anaesthesia website also has a lot of information that may prove informative.

Specialist Anaesthetist

A specialist anaesthetist in Australia has completed at least 13 years of graduate and post graduate studies, is a medical doctor and is recognised as a Fellow of the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists.

General Practitioner (GP) Anaesthetist

A GP Anaesthetist is also a medical doctor who has undertaken special training and whose maintainence of knowledge and skills complies with the requirements of either the Joint Consultative Committee on Anaesthesia or the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine.

Informed Financial Consent

You should be aware of the cost of your anaesthesia before your private medical procedure. You should also be aware that Medicare and health fund rebates may not cover the entire cost of your anaesthesia. This difference between the anaesthetist's fee and your rebates is the 'gap'. The size of the 'gap' varies greatly depending on your health fund.

Wherever possible you should contact your anaesthetist to obtain an estimate of the anaesthsia fees, inlcuding Medicare item numbers, prior to your procedure.This information will allow you to enquire from your health fund about the level of benefits available to you.

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