How to get referred to a private hospital in Melbourne

To have surgery at a private hospital in Melbourne, see your GP and ask for a referral to a specialist who operates there. Your specialist’s rooms then book the hospital, so tell them which one you’d prefer at your first consultation. A GP referral generally lasts 12 months. 

1. See your GP and describe the problem. They’ll decide whether you need a specialist and which kind. 
2. If you already have a hospital in mind, ask your GP to refer you to a specialist who operates there. 
3. See the specialist. They assess you and decide whether surgery is the right course. 
4. If surgery is recommended, ask which hospitals they operate at and what you will pay at each. 
5. Their rooms book the procedure and the hospital. Confirm your preference with them at that point.  

Start with your GP 

Your GP decides whether a specialist is the right next step and which kind of specialist you need. They’ll assess how long your issue has been going on, what makes it better or worse, what you’ve already tried, and any scans or test results you may have had or need to have. 

It’s perfectly natural to ask questions at this stage: Which specialists does your GP usually refer to? Do they operate at more than one hospital? Could I be referred to someone who operates at a hospital I have in mind? 

A referral doesn’t have to name a particular specialist, if you’d prefer to choose where to present the referral. If you would rather keep your options open, an open referral is a normal thing to ask for. 

What a referral covers, and how long it lasts 

A GP referral to a specialist generally runs for 12 months from the date you first see that specialist, not from the date it was written. Your GP can write a shorter period, or an indefinite referral if you need ongoing specialist care for a long-term condition. A referral from one specialist to another usually lasts three months. 

The referral covers a course of treatment for the condition it describes. Something new and unrelated needs a new referral. And without a valid referral you can still see a specialist, but Medicare will not pay a rebate on the consultation, so you would carry the whole fee yourself. 

How the hospital gets chosen 

Surgeons and specialists hold admitting rights at particular hospitals, and many hold them at more than one. When your specialist books your operation, someone on their staff will generally book the hospital and the date. If nobody raises it, that will be whichever hospital the practice usually uses. Sometimes a particular hospital is chosen because they need critical care services available due to your co-morbidities. 

So the moment that matters is your first consultation with the specialist. Two questions are worth asking there: which hospitals do you operate at, and what will I pay at each of them. 

Asking is a normal part of arranging your own care. The Australian Charter of Healthcare Rights, which applies across Australian health services, says you have a right to be included in decisions and choices about your care and to be given information you can understand. Choosing where you are treated is one of those choices. It is your decision to make, within what your specialist advises is clinically appropriate and where they hold admitting rights. 

What to weigh up 

Cost, in writing. Ask what you will pay and ask for it in writing before you commit to a date. The consultation in the specialist’s rooms is separate from the hospital admission, and by law private health insurance cannot cover outpatient consultations, so there may be a gap on that even if the surgery itself is fully covered. 

What your fund has arranged. Hospitals and health funds negotiate their own agreements, and what you pay can differ from one hospital to another with the same surgeon and the same cover. 

The shape of the stay. Some procedures are day surgery. Some need a night or more. Some hospitals run rehabilitation on site; others, Adeney included, are built around a ‘right-stay’ approach: a clinically appropriate time spent recovering in hospital, followed by support at home if needed.  

What the hospital does. Adeney covers a defined set of surgical and medical specialties rather than everything a large hospital offers. If your procedure sits outside that list, your surgeon will use a hospital that does it.  

Getting there. Travel, parking and whether the people visiting you can manage the trip are all reasonable things to factor in. 

Wait times for elective surgery 

In the public system you join a waiting list and are given an urgency category: Category 1 is recommended within 30 days, Category 2 within 90 days, Category 3 within 365 days. The Victorian Agency for Health Information publishes the numbers.  

At the time of writing, the waiting time in which 50% of patients were admitted for elective surgery in a public hospital in Victoria, based on 2024-25 data, was 28 days, with around 84 per cent of patients treated within the recommended time. By contrast, in NSW it’s 69 days and ACT is 54 days.  

Outside of the median, you may find that a Category 3 procedure such as a joint replacement can wait a good deal longer. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare publishes procedure-by-procedure figures if you want to look up your own. 

Privately there’s no central waiting list. Timing is arranged between you and your specialist, and it depends on their theatre lists and your own readiness for surgery. In practice this usually means weeks rather than months, though it varies by specialty and by surgeon. 

If you don’t have private health insurance 

As a public patient, your surgery is free at the point of care. You don’t get to choose your surgeon, and you’re treated in order of clinical priority. For a lot of people that’s the right approach for them and there’s nothing wrong with taking it. Whether you’re treated privately or publicly, Australia’s standard of healthcare is some of the best in the world.  

Self-funding a private procedure means you pay for it and you choose your surgeon, your hospital and, within reason, your timing. At Adeney you get an estimate twice: once from your surgeon’s rooms covering their fees, and again from the hospital covering the hospital’s. The quoted amount is settled in full before or on the day of your admission. The estimates aim to be accurate, though the final amount can change if something unexpected comes up clinically. 

Adeney’s zero out-of-pocket model 

At Adeney, Medibank and Bupa members with eligible hospital cover won’t be charged anything extra at the point of care, for: 

• Surgeon and surgical assistant fees 

• Anaesthetist fees 

• Perioperative physician fees 

• Onsite radiology (I-MED Radiology Network) 

• Inpatient pathology (Melbourne Pathology) 

• Inpatient pharmacy (Slade Pharmacy) 

You might still pay an excess or co-payment, depending on your level of cover. Your fund sets that amount, not Adeney, so check your policy or call your fund directly if you’re unsure what applies to you. 

A few other costs can sit outside the arrangement, with either fund: 

• Prostheses that aren’t on the Government’s Prescribed List 

• High-cost medications that aren’t listed on the PBS 

• Treatment that’s cosmetic rather than medically necessary 

• Services your specific hospital policy doesn’t cover 

Before you’re admitted, your treating doctor and the hospital take you through informed financial consent, so you’ll know in writing what to expect. If anything about your own situation isn’t clear, especially around non-standard care or an unusual clinical circumstance, the safest thing is to ask your surgeon or Adeney’s team directly before your procedure. 

Asking for Adeney 

If Adeney suits you, there are two points where you can say so. At the GP stage, ask to be referred to a specialist who operates at Adeney. You can research this list ahead of time on the Adeney website. Later, when your specialist’s rooms are booking your procedure, tell them Adeney is where you would prefer to go.  

The hospital is at 209 Cotham Road in Kew, about nine kilometres from the Melbourne CBD and an easy trip from Hawthorn, Camberwell, Balwyn, Box Hill and Malvern. The 109 tram runs along Cotham Road between Port Melbourne and Box Hill, with stops either side of the hospital roughly a hundred metres from the front door. There is underground parking with entry from Adeney Avenue, and the first two hours are free. For all other information, check the hospital’s website, or you can ring patient services on 03 7049 5000. 
 

Common questions 

Do I need a referral to see a specialist? 

You need one for Medicare to pay a rebate on the consultation. You can see a specialist without a referral, but you would pay the full fee yourself. 

Do I need a referral to a private hospital? 

No. Referrals are written to specialists, not to hospitals. The hospital is chosen when your specialist books your procedure, based on where they hold admitting rights and what suits you. 

How long does a GP referral last? 

Generally 12 months from your first appointment with that specialist, unless your GP writes a different period on it. A GP can write an indefinite referral where you need ongoing specialist care. A specialist-to-specialist referral usually lasts three months. 

Can I ask to be referred to a particular surgeon or hospital? 

Yes. A referral does not have to name a specialist, and you can ask your GP to refer you to someone in particular. You can also raise the hospital directly with your specialist’s rooms when your procedure is being booked. 

How quickly can I have surgery in a private hospital? 

There is no central waiting list privately. Your timing depends on your specialist’s theatre lists and your readiness for surgery, and is usually measured in weeks. Ask the rooms for a realistic date when you are booking. 

Is surgery cheaper in a public or private hospital? 

As a public patient, surgery is free at the point of care. Privately you pay, and in return you choose your surgeon, your hospital and largely your timing. What you pay privately depends on your cover, your excess and the fees your doctors charge. 

Can I have surgery at Adeney without private health insurance? 

Yes. You will be given a written estimate from your surgeon’s rooms and another from the hospital, and the quoted amount is settled before or on the day of admission. 

Which health funds does Adeney work with? 

Adeney works with most Australian health funds. Zero out-of-pocket currently applies to eligible Medibank and Bupa members with hospital cover. Other funds are welcome on standard fee terms.