Outpatient Referral Office

Referrals from GPs and private specialists should be sent via the Central Referral Service (CRS) for the following specialties (for receipting and triaging according to specialty and postcode allocation):

  • community rehabilitation
  • diabetes and endocrinology
  • geriatrics (including memory and Parkinson's clinics)
  • gynaecology
  • gastroenterology.

Should there be a need for assessment or intervention in the future, please refer to Community Rehabilitation through CRS:

  • Secure messaging: Send electronic CRS form via HealthLink to ‘crefserv’
  • Fax: 1300 365 056
  • Post: GPO Box 2566, Perth, WA 6831
  • Referral form templates

Inter-hospital referrals to BHS from e-Referral sites should come via the e-Referral system directly.

Urgent referrals

Urgent referrals should be clearly marked as such. Referrers must discuss the referral with the speciality who will decide if an urgent appointment is required. An urgent appointment must be made within 7 days. The referral is then faxed directly to the clinic, or BHS referral office – it must be marked urgent with the date of booked appointment.

For patients that require an appointment within 7 days:

  • Contact the Bentley Hospital Clinician (Bentley Switchboard – 9416 3666) and discuss case.
  • Mark the referral URGENT and write name of the Bentley Hospital Clinician contacted to facilitate rapid triage and booking, include date and appointment time if provided.
  • Fax or email the referral to the Bentley Hospital Outpatient Referral Office (details listed above).

Please avoid addressing referrals to specific RPH and Bentley Hospital consultants by name wherever possible.

Referring to the speciality without naming a consultant allows the referral to be allocated to any suitable qualified specialist within the speciality so that your patient receives the first available appointment for their clinical triage urgency (Urgent, Semi-Urgent, Routine).

Referrals to named consultants follow these same booking principles however as they are limited to only one consultant’s clinic, patients often end up waiting longer to be seen as some RPBG consultants only provide a fortnightly or monthly clinic.

However, if you have discussed a case with a particular consultant or registrar, please include the name of the doctor you spoke with on the referral.

Following feedback that patients enjoy video and phone Telehealth appointments and the associated benefits, Royal Perth Bentley Group (RPBG) encourages the use of Telehealth to all outpatients where clinically appropriate.

Some of the benefits include:

  • saving time from not having to wait in clinics
  • reduced travel commitments – particularly important for regional and remote patients
  • convenience of an appointment from a location of your choice
  • avoiding the need to attend clinic appointments in person
  • physical distancing, which reduces infection risk for immunocompromised people, as well as for patients and healthcare workers during the COVID 19 pandemic.

While both video and telephone Telehealth appointments are available, patients are encouraged to opt for video appointments where possible. Visit the Video Call page to learn more.

Referring patients

When referring patients:

  • please discuss with your patients their preference for a video or phone appointment.
  • If they wish for appointments to be provided by video or phone, please indicate this on the referral.
  • Please include the patient’s email and mobile phone on the referral as this will assist in booking video and phone appointments.

GPs are welcome to use the “My Outpatient Appointment: Is a phone or video appointment suitable for me?” checklist and share it with their patients.

If you or your patient would like you to also be present at their video or phone appointment, and you are able to do so (pending confirmation of time), please also include this in your referral. The RPBG Telehealth team will endeavour to book appointments to suit you and your patient to attend at the same time. The patient can physically attend your practice for the appointment (which is helpful if a clinical examination may be required), OR your patient and you can attend virtually from different locations.

For more information about RPBG Telehealth Outpatient Services, please contact 9224 2417 or RPH.Telehealth@health.wa.gov.au.

The below services accept referrals sent direct to site, not through CRS.

Allied health and nurse led services at BHS are available for people living within the RPH and BHS general catchment map (PDF 400KB) (City and Inner South) areas – send referral to: BHS.OutpatientReferrals@health.wa.gov.au

Contracted Medical Practitioners

Contracted Medical Practitioners (CMPs) are specialists who practise privately and also have access to public surgical lists within the East Metropolitan Health Service.

These specialists require a named referral to their private rooms for an initial outpatient consultation.

Referral to one of these CMPs may result in shorter waiting times for patients and referrals should be sent directly to the specialist's rooms.

Visit the East Metropolitan Health Service Contracted Medical Practitioners webpage for more information.

For Country patients please consider a local service, view resources on the AHCWA MAPPA website (external link).

Useful links

Bentley Hospital and Royal Perth Hospital (RPH) commenced secure messaging to deliver most outpatient clinic letters to GPs in June 2021.

Key points:

  • If you currently receive secure electronic discharge summaries from Royal Perth Hospital, we have your correct details. No action is needed.
  • If your contact details or list of doctors working at your practice require checking or alteration, please telephone 9224 3673, fax: 9224 2348 or email on RPH.GPN.Coordinator@health.wa.gov.au
  • If we do not have secure messaging details and we have your fax number, we will fax the letter instead, because this will still reach you sooner than snail mail.
  • Where a letter appears to have been successfully transmitted by secure messaging or fax, a hard copy of that outpatient letter will NOT be mailed.
  • Where we do not have your secure messaging code or fax number or the letter is not able to be transmitted, the letter will be sent by post.
  • Letters from clinics that do not have this facility will continue to be mailed for now (unless manually faxed if urgent).
  • If you receive an outpatient letter for a patient who does not attend your practice, please contact the RPH Medical Typing Unit by telephone on 64775299, fax on 6477 5271 or by email on rph.clinicletters@health.wa.gov.au(include patient name, DoB, medical record number, speciality and date of letter).
  • Most RPH and Bentley outpatient letters as well as outpatient and inpatient pathology and imaging results are also now uploaded to the patient’s My Health Record.

Please check your patient’s My Health Record for information needed before requesting from medical records, pathology or imaging.
For previous outpatient referral letters or results that are not available on the My Health Record, please contact the Health Records Management Department on Phone 9224 2071 or 9224 271 or Fax 9224 1125. A faxed request on the GP practice letterhead is preferred. The fax must include:

    • full patient name
    • date of birth
    • medical record number (if known)
    • information requirements
    • patient signature (not required if the requesting practice is listed on RPH systems as the patient's current GP).

Contact us

  • If your contact details or list of doctors working at your practice require checking or alteration:
    Phone: 9224 3673
    Fax: 9224 2348
    Email: RPH.GPN.Coordinator@health.wa.gov.au
  • If you receive an outpatient letter for a patient who does not attend your practice:
    Phone: 6477 5299
    Fax: 6477 5271
    Email: rph.clinicletters@health.wa.gov.au
  • For previous outpatient letters or results that are not available on the My Health Record, please contact the Health Records Management Department (as outlined above):
    Phone: 9224 2071 or 9224 271
    Fax: 9224 1125.
Last Updated: 18/10/2022