WellSouth and Habit Health are continuing to host ACC GPMRI Referral Training sessions across our network. Further queries please contact gpmri@wellsouth.org.nz.

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Description

What it is:

The General Practitioner referred Magnetic Resonance Imaging (GP MRI) programme enables GPs and Nurse Practitioners to have the right tools to manage injured patients in a timely and effective way.

The GP MRI programme enables patients who have a knee, lumbar spine, or cervical spine injury that meets clinical criteria to be directly referred for an MRI.

By removing the need for patients to visit a specialist before they can get an MRI, there should be faster access to high-tech images. Both patients and clinicians will benefit from this faster access. This allows primary care practitioners and radiologists to more quickly plan a patient’s next steps to deliver better value care.

Who can provide the GP MRI programme:

This can only be provided by general practitioners who are vocationally registered medical doctors, medical doctors or nurse practitioners working in a general practice setting. You must have completed a GP MRI training programme to refer.

A Registrar can be included as long as they complete the GP MRI training programme, and work in a practice with a GP MRI trained general practitioner available to oversee their work.

Locum GPs – are encouraged to complete the training so that they can make referrals when working in a practice for a GP who has also completed the training but is on leave or on days off. Referrals by a locum doctor can be made once they have completed the GP MRI training programme.

GP MRI Training Programme:

WellSouth and Habit Health are hosting further in person training sessions.

The training sessions will start at 5:30pm with a light supper, the formal training session will start at 6:00pm and is expected to finish at 8:30pm. The training will include further explanation of the Clinical Guidelines (these are attached) and hands on instruction around the assessment of the three body regions as well as a presentation from a radiologist. An explanation of the referral process via the WellSouth Portal, quality assurance auditing and claiming via the WellSouth portal will also be included.

Exclusions - General Practitioners with Special Interest (GPSIs) and in most cases UCCs are not eligible to provide this service. This is because GPSIs can already access MRI services for clients, and UCCs, in general, do not have enrolled populations so are unlikely to have a need to access this service. The exception in UCC is where the service is being delivered under ACC’s Cost of Treatment Regulations (CoTR) to an ACC client who is not enrolled with a PHO.

Physiotherapists are not currently eligible to provide this service. 

Further queries please contact gpmri@wellsouth.org.nz