This report shows the number of routine 'First' appointments for patients attending a Specialist Clinic during the reporting period.
Referrals are triaged upon receipt at the health service and are assigned a priority according to the clinical needs of the patient. It is recommended that routine patients receive an appointment within 365 days.
Note(s):
Data are lagged by one quarter.
A 'first' appointment is defined as the first time a patient sees a specialist or clinician within a health service. A patient may see more than one specialist or clinician but the appointment only counts towards a 'first' appointment if the patient was referred for that specialty by their GP or a specialist from outside the health service.
If a patient fails to attend a booked appointment without notice, the booked appointment will count as the 'first' appointment.
Victorian Health Services Performance