Dr Atul Ingle

FAQs

No, we do not. We operate a full-service private practice clinic with leading local clinical and administrative staff, along with the latest state-of-the-art diagnostic and therapeutic clinical technology, which enables us to offer patients a truly world-class clinical experience. This service is not possible to run on a Bulk-Billing model. Therefore, there are reasonable out-of-pocket expense associated with most consultations and procedures.
No, you do not need a GP referral to see a specialist in Australia however, having a GP referral allows you to receive the Medicare rebate (ie: recoup a substantial amount of your consultation fees) and allows your GP to send a referral letter with your full medical history detailed, which is essential for Dr Ingle to review. We strongly recommend speaking to your GP prior to considering seeing Dr Ingle, simply to ensure that your issue cannot be managed by your primary care provider.
If you are a Medicare card holder and want to claim the Medicare rebate, you will require a valid referral from either a GP or another Specialist to entitle you to claim your Medicare rebate.
Patients who do not have a Medicare card, do not want to claim the Medicare rebate, or international patients do not require a referral to attend our practice and will be billed per our standard rates.

GP referrals are valid for 12-months and referrals from other Specialist are valid for 3-months.

The referral starts from the date the specialist first meets the patient, not the date issued.

In clinic
Private health insurance does not cover what is done in the rooms (unless you are an in-patient or overseas visitor with international travel insurance). If you are an international visitor with the necessary insurance, full payment is required at the time of the consultation, you will then be provided with a receipt to claim directly from your provider.

Surgery
No, you are not necessarily required to have private health insurance to be a patient in a private hospital. A ‘self-funded’ patient is someone who doesn’t have Private Health Insurance, but pays cash for their medical treatment upfront. This consists of the specialist’s fee, the anaesthetist’s fee, the surgical assistant’s fee and the hospital’s fee. It’s the hospital fee which makes up the vast majority of the cost.

Public Hospitals
If you are a Medicare card holder and your treatment is performed in a public hospital, there will be no fees associated with your care.

We happily offer telehealth consultations. If you have booked a telehealth consult via our admin team, we will send you details of how to connect. If you did not receive these, please contact us.

  • Please note: full upfront payment in advance is required for all telehealth consultations. You may wish to pay at the time of booking, or we will contact you a week before your appointment to arrange.
  • If you are considering proceeding with a cosmetic surgical procedure, a face-to-face consultation is necessary prior to booking a date for surgery.

Dr Atul Ingle is a Specialist Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon based in Townsville.

He has 20+ years of experience in plastic and reconstructive surgery and holds two Master of Surgery Degrees. He is the Head of the Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Department at Townsville University Hospital.

If you have a question about a condition or treatment, or would like to book an appointment, please contact us and one of our friendly staff members will happily assist you.

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