If It Sounds Too Good to be True
01 Dec 2017

- Do your homework on the organisation offering the job. A quick Google search may turn up valuable information about the company offering the position, or other companies with a similar structure.
- Don’t assume that an agency is responsible for doing due diligence in relation to the legalities around the job being offered.
- Each individual doctor is responsible for ensuring they are appropriately trained and registered for the role they accept, and for assessing whether the tasks within the role are clinically indicated for the purposes of billing to Medicare.
- Don’t accept any role which requires you to hand your provider number over to an organisation so they can bulk bill screening services, or any other services which are not clinically indicated or do not meet the MBS descriptor.
- Regardless of where you work, each doctor should know exactly what is being billed to their provider number.3
References
- Medew J, Spooner R. Doctors Sound Alarm on Controversial ‘Strokecheck’ Results.
- Medical Board of Australia. Guidelines for Registered Medical Practitioners Who Perform Cosmetic Medical and Surgical Procedures.
- Ferrie N. Staying on the Right Side of Medicare.

My Career Journey with Dr Nick Coatsworth
Dr Nick Coatsworth is an expert in health policy, public administration and a practising infectious diseases physician. He held a national role in the Australian response to COVID-19 as Deputy Chief Medical Officer of Australia, becoming one of the most recognised medical spokespeople during the pandemic. Nick engaged the Australian community through a variety of media platforms most notably as the spearhead of the national COVID-19 vaccination campaign. Dr Micheal Gannon, Obstetrician & Gynaecologist, sits down with Dr Nick Coatsworth to discuss Nick's medical career journey, and what insights and advice he has for junior doctors. MDA National would like to acknowledge the contributions of MDA National staff, Members, friends and colleagues in the production of the podcast and note that this work is copyright. Apart from any use permitted under applicable copyright law, you may not reproduce the content of this podcast without the permission of MDA National. This podcast contains generic information only, is intended to stimulate thought and discussion, and doesn’t account for requirements of any particular individual. The content may contain opinions which are not necessarily those of MDA National. We recommend that you always contact your indemnity provider when you require specific advice in relation to your insurance policy or medico-legal matters. MDA National Members need to contact us for specific medico-legal advice on freecall 1800 011 255 or email advice@mdanational.com.au. We may also refer you to other professional services.
09 Jun 2022

Career complications and contending with uncertainty
Among the many challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic for junior doctors is how to respond to medical training impacts and career uncertainty. In this podcast, Dr Caroline Elton (a psychologist who specialises in helping doctors)and Dr Benjamin Veness (a Psychiatry registrar) share advice for coping with medical training and career delays, disruptions and unknowns.
10 Aug 2020