Telehealth On Demand connects patients with HotDoc GPs for same-day virtual care focused on low-complexity needs — such as medical certificates, repeat prescriptions, and general advice.

The service is designed as a safety net, not a substitute — providing timely access to care while keeping patients connected to their regular GP or practice.

With patient consent, consult notes can be automatically shared with the patient’s home practice, and patients are encouraged to follow up with their usual GP.

Telehealth On Demand can help you:

• Fill gaps in the schedule – GPs can see patients when they have a cancellation, or if there's a slot with no bookings
• Expand patient access – Provide care for simple issues outside your practice's usual operating hours
• Reduce admin load – No chasing payments or processing Medicare claims, Telehealth On Demand is privately billed and HotDoc handles payment collection

Keeping Practitioners' calendars up-to-date is essential for ensuring appointments are scheduled accurately and that practitioners are available to conduct these consultations. The Telehealth On Demand service is available both during business hours (8 am - 6 pm AEDT) and after-hours (6 pm - 8 am AEDT), with after-hours appointments billed at a higher service fee.

This guide covers the essentials of setting up HotDoc's Telehealth On Demand service. If you are doing this for the first time, you will be required to complete all sections below. This means your practice will need to: 

• Set up Practice Management Software appointment types with associated 'practice fees' for all offered Telehealth On Demand appointments.
• Have a payment provider set up in HotDoc, either Strip or Pin Payments.
• Configure both your practitioners and appointment types within HotDoc.

The Patient Experience

Booking a Consultation

1. The patient starts their booking from the homepage of their HotDoc account on the HotDoc website or app by selecting the Telehealth option. 
   
   The patient will always be shown options within their care team first. This includes a prompt to call the practice if they do not have any telehealth availability online.
    

   We will never show patients Telehealth On Demand options on your HotDoc practice or practitioner profiles.

2. The patient will then select a consult type.
   
   On this page, we clearly show the patient what the service is suitable for and not suitable for.
   
    

   Shown if the patient selects General Consultation

   
    

3. The patient will then answer a short series of screening questions to confirm their suitability and to help the participating Doctor provide a safe and high-quality Telehealth On Demand consultation.
   
   
   
    

   
    

4. The patient is required to accept the booking Terms and Conditions to proceed.
   
   
    

5. The patient enters their Medicare details so we can verify their ID.
    

   Telehealth On Demand is only available to patients who have a valid Medicare card.

   
   
   
   

6. The patient enters their contact details, including email, mobile number and address.
    

   
   

7. The patient is asked if they would like to share their consult notes with a nominated practitioner from their Care Team. 
   
   The patient can also choose to receive a copy of their own consult notes via email.
   
    

   To learn how we ensure that all patient notes are kept secure and private, please see:  How HotDoc protects patient notes

   Shown if the patient's GP was listed in the previous section

   Allows patients to access their own notes as well as, or instead of, their GP

   
   

8. The patient enters their payment details, which are captured securely. 
   
   They will then confirm their booking details and click Yes, pay now to proceed with the booking.
   
    

9. HotDoc matches the patient with a participating GP who has availability.
   
   

During the Consultation

1. The patient receives an SMS with a confirmation of their appointment. This will also let them know which phone number the Doctor will call from. 
   
   
    
2. GP calls the patient using the Dialler, which comes through to the patient like a regular phone call.
   
   
   
    
3. An automated message plays, informing the patient that this is the call for their Telehealth On Demand appointment. 
   
    
4. The patient is connected to the GP.
    

After the Consultation

1. Payment is processed automatically after the consultation is complete.
   
    
2. The patient receives a payment receipt and is invited to provide feedback on their consultation.
   
    
3. If the patient opted to receive a copy of their appointment notes, these are emailed through to them.
   
   The follow-up email always recommends that the patient books a follow-up appointment with their regular GP to promote continuity of care.
   
   
   
   
   If the doctor was unable to complete consultation notes, the patient will be notified via email: 
   
   
    

Minimum Requirements

In order to use Telehealth On Demand, there are some minimum requirements you must meet.

Practitioner Account 

Each practitioner using Telehealth On Demand is required to have a HotDoc practitioner account. 

How to create a User Account for Practitioner Sidebar

Sidebar

To use the Dialler, you will need to make sure that the installed Sidebar on the practitioner's workstation is running version 4.0.2-beta or above.

To see what version you are running on your server, hover your mouse over the HotDoc logo in the Sidebar:

If you are running a version lower than 4.0.2-beta, you will need to update your connector version. 
 

To update your Sidebar version:

1. Firstly, stop the HotDoc Services by opening Services on your workstation, navigating to HotDoc Manager and Updater service, then selecting Stop the service:
   
   
   
    
2. Download the HotDoc installer from this link.
   
    
3. Run the installer and follow the prompts (leave all defaults unless you require a different install directory)
   
    
4. When the installation is complete, the sidebar should automatically open up on the right-hand side of the screen:
   
   
   
   
5. If the Sidebar is not already logged in automatically, log in again using your Clinic User details.

Audio

Using TOD requires you to have a high-quality, reliable microphone and speakers (or a headset) so that audio is clear for both you and the patient. We recommend using USB or wired headsets over built-in laptop microphones for the best clarity and to reduce background noise.

Completing the Consult

Once you have enabled your practitioners for Telehealth On Demand and have ensured you meet the minimum requirements as per the list above, your practitioners can now commence Telehealth On Demand consultations!

 

Tips for your Telehealth On Demand consult

Alongside passing on this guide to the rest of your staff, we also have a few extra tips and recommendations.

1. For your first appointment, join the consult 5-10 minutes early to ensure your audio and connection are working as expected. 
    
2. Take some time to familiarise yourself with our privacy policy, should you or the patient have any queries.
3. Familiarise yourself with the information in these links:

• Telehealth On Demand Practitioner Code of Conduct
• Telehealth On Demand FAQs
• Practitioner Guide: Telehealth On Demand