Frequently Asked Questions – FAQs

Consultations are usually by appointment only. Booking ahead of time or phoning early on the day required will help to ensure an appointment.
Appointments can be made by ringing the surgery on 07 3245 9600, or at the reception desk. Appointments are unable to be made via this website or email at this present time. As you will understand, patients with appointments will get priority, except in emergency situations.

If you foresee your problem(s) requiring more complex care, or a longer time, please inform the reception staff so that a long consultation, or double appointment, can be booked.

If Dr Dowling is unable to see you urgently, you will be able to see another doctor at the practice.

Due to rising practice costs, Dr Dowling has ceased universal bulk-billing to Medicare. Please enquire at the time of your booking as to any cost that will be applicable to your consultation. Pensioners, including Aged and Disability pensioners, and current Health Care Card holders do receive a discounted fee. Usually children under 16 years of age, and entitled Veterans patients are bulk-billed. In cases of severe financial hardship, Dr Dowling may consider bulk billing on an individual basis.

Apart from Australian Veteran Card Holders, any patient presenting after 6.00pm Monday to Thursday, 5.00pm Friday and after 12.00pm Saturday and Sunday, without an appointment, will not be Bulk-Billed and so private fees are applicable. Please enquire upon presentation.

The fees for non-rebatable Medicare services are variable depending on the request. GST is usually applicable to these services, as there is no Medicare rebate available. Please enquire at time of booking. These services include phone script requests, insurance and medico-legal reports, recreational and work medicals, transport department medicals, travel advice and forms.

As a courtesy to other patients, please notify us at your earliest convenience, preferably least 24 hours in advance, if you need to cancel or reschedule an appointment.
If you are running late, please notify the surgery, to see if we can accommodate you at a later time, or to reschedule to a more convenient time.
Failure to cancel an appointment may result in a non-attendance fee being charged.

Emergencies will be given priority. All patients who require immediate attention can always be seen, either by Dr Dowling or one of the other doctors at the Capalaba Medical Centre. Patients, who present without an appointment, will be seen in accordance with the practice protocol.
For life threatening emergencies, remember dial ’000′.

Home visits are available only to patients who are current regular patients of Dr Dowling, and live in the local Capalaba area. These are only offered if the patient is unable to attend the surgery because of a medical condition, and not offered due to a lack of transport. These home visits are charged at various rates, depending on the time of day and the day of the week, and will not be bulk-billed.
In addition, please Dr Dowling does not carry Schedule 8 drugs, nor administer these drugs out of the surgery.

Weekend appointments are available as Dr Dowling takes part in a rotating weekend morning roster with other doctors at the surgery. Due to the high demand for weekend appointments Dr Dowling does not routinely bulk-bill these appointments.

Dr Dowling also shares in a rotating after-hours on-call roster with other doctors from CMC. When Dr Dowling is not available, the on-call registered nurse, if required, will contact the rostered doctor. If an after-hours home visit is deemed appropriate, a private, out of pocket, fee is payable.

Dr Dowling receives many phone requests from patients who wish to speak with him. Due to the time involved in handling each call, and the disruption to patient consultations, the nature of phone enquiries must always be discussed with the receptionist first. The receptionist will then communicate with the doctor who will advise of what action is to be taken. For your safety, and for medicolegal reasons, results will not be given over the phone, unless specifically requested.

For the email protocol please see information E-mail Communication Policy.

In the interest of good health care and safety, prescriptions can only be issued by consultation with Dr Dowling. Whilst this can sometimes be inconvenient, it is essential for safe practice. Requests for prescriptions that need to be monitored may require an office visit for follow-up and/or pathology investigations before being refilled.

A non-Medicare claimable fee will be charged if Dr Dowling completes the request without attendance.

Referral to a specialist or allied health-care professional requires a medical examination by your doctor so that a relevant and helpful letter can be written. Therefore, no referrals will be given without a consultation. This is for your safety, and for medico-legal reasons.

Dr Dowling practices at

Capalaba Medical Centre
189 Old Cleveland Road
Capalaba Qld 4157

Contact details are :

Phone : 07 3245 9600
Facsimile : 07 3245 1908
Contact Form : available here for your convenience.
EMail : david@dowling.net.au

Please review E-mail Communication Policy prior to sending any email or using the Contact Form.

Appointments can only made by phoning 07 3245 9600

To contact the other doctors at the Capalaba Medical Centre please see the CMC home page.

Dr Dowling’s Usual Schedule

Mon 8.15am-6pm
Tue 8.00am-4pm
Wed 9.45am-7pm
Thu 8.00am-6pm
Fri 8.30am-12pm (this may change)
Sat and Sun – once every four weeks
Public Holidays – Shares in roster

Full Schedule at This Link

Schedule Notes – CMC = Capalaba Medical Centre; TBA = To Be Advised
Although this schedule is updated frequently, changes may occur at short notice, and may not always be reflected accurately on this calendar.

For practice fees, Dr Dowling accepts cash, EFTPOS, VISA, and MasterCard.
If the service is bulk-billed a valid Medicare card, or Veteran Affairs card is accepted.

Dr Dowling and Capalaba Medical Centre has developed a policy to protect patient privacy in compliance with Australia’s privacy legislation. Although these requirements sometimes cause inconvenience to patients and staff, this policy must be observed. A signed consent form is required before information is shared with a third party. A copy of the Privacy Policy is available on request, or can be found on the Privacy Policy page.
Dr Dowling and the Capalaba Medical Centre participate in Australian and Queensland recall and reminder systems. As a result you may be contacted for clinically significant results or other significant findings.

Dr Dowling’s Email Communication Policy can be found here.
Please read this before communicating Dr Dowling via email or by his Contact Form.

Dr Dowling’s Web Site Terms of Use Policy can be found here.
Please review this policy at your convenience.

Dr Dowling’s Web Site Advertising Policy can be found here.