Finding Family-Friendly Telehealth Providers in Australia

Finding a telehealth provider for your family is a very personal choice, similar to choosing your family doctor. As the telehealth landscape has undergone rapid change in the last few years, it is worth considering your needs and examining family-friendly online options more closely. Several factors will influence your choice, including cost, location, wait times, and special needs.

Depending on your children’s ages and medical history, as well as your existing GP clinic’s availability for telehealth, you may want to find a provider that specialises in paediatric health, a comprehensive after-hours service, or a local telehealth service also offering visits or in-person appointments after hours. Here is how to identify strong online healthcare options:

Check that any service you consider is registered with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) [1] before vetting their staff’s qualifications. Some providers offer consults exclusively with nurse practitioners (NPs), others with registered doctors or GPs, and still others with a mix of the above. Shorter qualifications do not necessarily mean they are less suitable, but for kids’ needs, it may be best to have access to a specialised paediatric nurse or a GP. If you go with a provider offering specialised nurses and doctors, they may not be a suitable choice for all your adult family members.

It is also important that the provider has access to your medical history, so you should choose one that directly bulk-bills and registers your consultation in My Health Record [2], ensuring greater continuity of care. Of course, finding a local GP for your family who also offers extended telehealth hours may be the best choice.

Ensuring affordability for your online doctors’ visits means checking the following:

• Does the provider offer bulk-billed sessions for all or some of your needs? Some offer 24/7 bulk billing; others only after-hours, and some only for infants/under-16s or specific needs.
• Do you need to attend a face-to-face consultation every 12 months to ensure cover? This is the case for some providers. It may also be worth checking with your private health insurer, as many policies cover at least part of the cost of telehealth.
• If the provider offers no bulk billing, what is the cost for appointments? Do they offer monthly subscriptions or an affordable premium service?

Vetted providers on MediCompare have already got a ranking assigned to them, but you may want to check online user reviews and pay particular attention to whether they tick the following boxes:

• 24/7 access or extended business hours with 7 days a week virtual consultations: Especially if you have younger children, you may find yourself reaching out for telehealth support after hours more often than not.
• High quality verified by consistently high ranking: Look beyond user reviews on the provider’s own website and check trustworthy comparison sites, or use MediCompare’s tools.
• Short wait times: When you are juggling your family’s needs, contacting the doctor often needs to happen quickly and hassle-free. Many providers offer access within 15 to 30 minutes, which may be best suited to your family’s needs.
• Means of communication: If the provider requires you to download their app or use a specific browser, make sure you have this installed before you need it.

Regardless of whether the provider offers separate accounts for each family member or allows you to register only one name per email address, it is important to set this up in advance. If possible, register your credit card details and Medicare card numbers to speed up access to consults when you need them.

Once you have decided whether you want to register with a comprehensive telehealth provider with a family focus, use a specialised paediatric telehealth service for your child, or try out a local GP or statewide government-funded solution, the following options are worth checking out.

While most comprehensive telehealth providers, especially premium services, offer services for children as well as adults, there are a few that stand out as good family-friendly telehealth options.

• Abby Health: Almost entirely bulk-billed, with a patient-centric approach and open 7 days a week, this provider has consistently positive user feedback.
• Instant Consult: Provides fast response times and bulk billing for young children, plus affordable telehealth consults for parents.
• TeleDoc: Online GP consultations with a focus on family health and free infant consults as well as other bulk-billed services.
• Our Sage: Online GP consults at low to moderate prices available during extended opening hours to help you manage family health needs from medical certificates over scripts to more complicated needs via video consult.
• InstantScripts: Fast and affordable 24/7 access to scripts, medical certificates for work, school, and uni and partnered with Priceline Pharmacy for dedicated support for parents.
• Private Medical: Highly rated, very comprehensive premium telehealth provider covering all your family health needs via dedicated GP consults.

As mentioned above, these are a particularly suitable option if your family is looked after well through your GP (perhaps with telehealth) and is looking for an additional child-focused telehealth option or has children with more specific needs.

• Cub Care: Offers after-hours specialist paediatric care.
• Telebaby Australia: Focuses on infant care.
• Children’s Health Hub: Offers a range of paediatric specialists.
• Early Start Australia: Provides telehealth for children's allied health needs.

You can also use the government’s Healthdirect Service Finder or explore state-based options, like Children's Health Queensland or the specialist and nurse-led virtualKIDS in NSW. 13SICK is another free government-funded option for after-hours telehealth service that also offers home visits in some areas. If you’re unsure what’s available in your area or state, check with your local GP.

Finally, there are specialised mental health services that offer online support for your family’s needs, such as the Gidget Foundation and PANDA (for perinatal mental health), Kids Helpline/ Headspace (for young people and families), and Lifeline (24/7 crisis support), as well as Someone.Health (bulk-billed online psychologists), to mention just a few.

This article is for informational purposes only and is no substitute for professional medical advice. Please choose your provider with care. Always consult your doctor or a qualified health professional regarding any health-related questions or concerns.

[1] https://www.ahpra.gov.au/
[2] https://www.digitalhealth.gov.au/initiatives-and-programs/my-health-record