Helping students access the health care they need

Paul & Katie will provide students with most of the same services that GPs in the community do, including the management of physical, mental, sexual and reproductive health issues. This includes completing paperwork to help the student manage any chronic health condition, such as asthma or epilepsy plans.

The school clinic won’t be providing a vaccination service nor undertaking any procedures such as suturing or minor surgery. Where such services are required, these will be referred to an appropriate service.

All consultations with Paul & Katie are confidential, just the same as seeing any doctor in the community.  They are not employees of the school nor of Queensland Government, they are totally independent of both. No information will be shared about a student’s appointment with the school without the consent of the student or their parent or guardian. There are several exceptional circumstances where information could be shared without the express consent of the student or their family. 

These are –

• Sharing information is necessary to prevent a serious threat to public health, safety or welfare, for instance, if your child has an illness that must be notified to the Department of Health.
• Sharing information is necessary to lessen or prevent a serious and imminent threat to the student’s or another person’s health, safety or welfare.

School staff will not ask students why they needed to see the GP, or what was discussed during the appointment.  The medical records will belong to Acacia Country Practice, where they will be securely stored electronically.  ( You can request to see their privacy policy for more information ).  The school has no access to student’s medical records and no records are kept on the school site.  

Appointments will be available before school, during lunch breaks and class time.

Appointments to see the school GP can be made either in person by visiting the school office or contacting Acacia Country Practice

All visits will be provided at no cost to students or their families.  If appropriate the GP will bulk-bill appointments through Medicare.  This means with the GP can be paid the medicare rebate directly and no cost to the student.  If medicare is not applicable it will still be a free GP service.  At times medications may need to be paid for by the student or parent/guardian.  

In Queensland, young people under the age of 18 can consent to their own medical treatment if they are determined to be a mature minor. Young people who are not deemed to be a mature minor cannot give consent to their own medical treatment and consent will be sought from their parents or guardian.

Mature minors are young people under the age of 18 years who are determined by the GP to be capable of providing informed consent for treatment of a particular health issue without having the permission of a parent or guardian.

To decide whether a young person is a mature minor and can consent to their own medical

treatment, the GP will consider a range of factors, including:

• The young person’s age
• Their maturity in other areas of their life
• Independence – whether they live at home with a parent or guardian, or support themselves;
• How serious the treatment is
• If the young person understands what their health issue is, why treatment is needed, what the treatment involves, what other options they have, things that might go wrong (like side effects from drugs, or other complications), and what happens if there is no treatment.

For the purpose of the school clinic, it has been decided that any student in Year 7-8 will assumed not to be a mature minor and therefore parent’s consent will always be sought and involvement encouraged. Any student in Year 9-12 will be able to choose to make a GP appointment on their own if they wish. The GP will then determine if the student is a mature minor for the health issue for which they are seeking advice or treatment.   For the benefit of the student’s health the GP will encourage them to talk to their parent or guardian about issues, but cannot enforce this and cannot breech confidentiality and disclose any information.

It is important to understand that this is the same process that would occur if your child were to see a doctor in any GP clinic in the community.

The decision about whether a young person is a mature minor might be different depending on the nature of the health issue. If the GP decides your child is not a mature minor, they must get your consent before any medical treatment is provided.

Having a regular GP and the continuity of care that this provides is an essential part of healthcare. If your child already has a GP but would like to see the GP at school, they can do so. A summary of your child’s medical records will often be required from their own GP so that the school GP has the most up to date information to enable them to offer the best possible support and input. Any input from school GP can be communicated to the student’s regular GP, with the student’s, their parent or guardian’s consent, to ensure ongoing continuity of care.

Yes, if the student would like them to attend. Involvement of parents or guardians will always be encouraged, even when a student is considered to be a mature minor.  Parents and guardians are an important source of support and information for young people in managing their health and wellbeing.

You should talk about this with your child, and with the school.

Most Year 9-12 students will be considered mature enough to decide to see the GP on their own. The GP will then determine if your child is a mature minor for the reason they are visiting the clinic. This would be the same case if they presented to GP clinics in the community.

If the GP decides that your child is a mature minor, their health information cannot be discussed with you or anyone else unless your child says it is OK to share, or the sharing of the information is permitted or required by law. This is called confidentiality.  The school staff must also maintain the same confidentiality.

Students will always be encouraged to involve their parent or guardian in their care.

Any further questions please contact the school on admin@charlevilleshs.eq.edu.au or 07 4656 8888.