Bulk-Billed Consultation with Nurse Practitioner

We’re looking forward to meeting you, and working on a care plan to have you feeling better as soon as possible.

What to expect from your first consultation:

On your first visit you’ll meet with our pelvic floor nurse practitioner for a 30-90 minute session (depending on your symptoms). This is a great time to share what you’re experiencing, how long, when it started, and anything related to your situation. We know from many years of seeing patients that life events and experiences, especially traumatic ones, can greatly impact your body and how it functions, even if it happened years before your symptoms developed.

It goes without saying that your privacy is very important to us. This is a safe space to share what’s going on for you, and there’s no need to be embarrassed. We’re here to help, and the more you can share, the quicker we can understand your circumstance.

During this session, with your permission and depending on your symptoms, our nurse practitioner will conduct an assessment. These specialised studies are bulk-billed to Medicare and provide us with valuable information. These studies are done in the first consultation to give us a good understanding, along with what you’ve shared, of what you’re going through. It also saves you coming back to have the assessment done at another time.

What are these tests?

The tests are both external and internal examinations that are designed to test the function of organs and muscles. In some instances you’ll be asked to tense and relax muscles. The procedures are very safe, though, understandably some people find them slightly uncomfortable.

If you’d like to know more about the tests, see Anorectal Physiology Studies and Urodynamic Studies.

During and after your consultation

Pelvic floor problems can be quite complex, and these tests can all contribute to providing our physiotherapists and specialists with important information related to the function of your bowel, bladder and pelvic floor. Our nurse practitioner has extensive experience in helping manage pelvic floor patients and can provide some initial advice and coordinate further care in our centre if necessary.

If you have any questions at any point in the consultation, don’t hesitate to ask.