13 HEALTH
Welcome to 13 HEALTH this is Leanne speaking I’m a registered nurse, can I start with your surname please? 13 HEALTH is a special telephone line that people can ring if they’ve got any health concerns. They talk to registered nurses and its open 24 hours a day. It’s not for emergencies its more for health concerns that you’re not too sure about. No question is a silly question. We treat everybody with a lot of respect and we really take on board if it’s a concern for them it’s a concern for us. Its also those times during the night, so having a 24 hour service overnight when everything is shut what do they do? They can ring us. We also get a lot of people from isolated areas phone in and we can do a quick little assessment and we can give our recommendations and it might be that they don’t need to go see the doctor, it might be self care or it might be a bit more serious than what they think and we might recommend that they go to the hospital. The best part of my day is ending a call and truly knowing that I’ve helped somebody.
13 HEALTH (13 43 25 84) is a 24/7 phone service for all Queenslanders seeking advice about their health or information about health services. For the cost of a local call, registered nurses provide health information and referral services.
Note: Calls from mobile phones may be charged at a higher rate. VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) callers should check costs with their telephone service provider.
Registered nurses provide health–related advice over the telephone. This is known as teletriage. Teletriage may include symptom assessment, home treatment advice, referral to other health services, information, disease management and crisis intervention.
Clinical decision protocols assist the nurses to recommend who you should talk to and how quickly you should do it. The clinical decision protocols are reviewed by a Clinical Advisory Panel comprising metropolitan, rural and remote specialists, GPs, dentists and pharmacists.
Privacy and confidentiality is ensured. Calls to 13 HEALTH are recorded as a confidential medical record. Only staff within 13 HEALTH can access information for training and quality assurance purposes. Your details are not required if you are calling for general health information.
For a 13 HEALTH fridge magnet, please call 13 43 25 84.
Technical help:
- 13 HEALTH (13 43 25 84) is only available in Queensland. Interstate callers should contact their local health service provider or call HealthDirect Australia on 1800 022 222.
- VoIP callers who can’t connect to 13 HEALTH should try using only the first 6 digits of the number (13 43 25). If you can’t connect, please contact your service provider or contact 13 HEALTH using a landline or mobile phone.