Patient Information

You can make an appointment for primary care service by calling (08) 6488 7429 or emailing us at info@ehcwa.com.au. Please note this will be an initial comprehensive optometric examination conducted by our student optometrist and supervised by an experienced clinician if we have not seen you before.

When we receive your referral from your healthcare practitioner, it is triaged to determine what clinic service you require, which usually takes around a few days. Once triage is complete, we will contact you to arrange your appointment. This is usually by phone call. A member of our team will talk you through your requirements and help you book an available appointment.

For the current opening hours of EHCWA, please refer to our Home page.

The primary care clinic operates four days per week. Some specialty services are only available on particular days. Our team will provide additional information relevant to you when making your appointment.

Most of our appointments are provided at no out-of-pocket cost to our patients. We bulk bill Medicare for consultations, but you do not need to hold a Medicare card to have an appointment with us. For treatment interventions not covered by Medicare, fees may apply.

EHCWA is conveniently located on the University of Western Australia Crawley campus at the corner of Edward St and Fairway. Directions, maps, and parking information are available on our About Us page.

On the day of your appointment, please bring your:

• Medicare card, if you have one.
• Current and old spectacles and/or copy of prescriptions.
• Your medical history and medication list.
• Your report from eyecare practitioners including optometrist and ophthalmologist, if you have one.
• Sunglasses – you may be receiving dilation drops in some of our clinics. Sunglasses can help lessen the effects of light sensitivities from the drops.
• If you wear contact lenses, wear your spectacles and bring your contact lenses unless advised otherwise.

Eye drops are used routinely for some of our services. There are normally two types of eye drops used:

• A local anaesthetic to numb the front part of your eye, used for tests such as eye pressure.
• A dilating drop (mydriatic) to enlarge the pupils of the eyes for an enhanced view of the back of the eyes.

The dilating drops cause blurry vision and affect your ability to read and drive for at least 2-4 hours after the examination, and in some instances up to 12 hours.

We do not recommend driving immediately after your appointment until your vision returns to normal.

We recommend that you organise someone else to drive you to your appointment or allow for time in your schedule to wait until you feel ready to drive.

We can provide a letter of attendance for your appointment and one for your caregiver if needed—just let reception know of your requirements when you arrive. Please note that a letter of attendance is not a medical certificate.

The appointment duration will depend on the type of clinic services you require. It may range from 30 minutes to 2 hours. Our reception team will provide you with additional information relevant to you when booking your appointment.

We are happy to issue a copy of your optical prescription at your request.

Our primary care teaching clinic only accepts bookings for individuals aged 14 and above. If your child is between 14 and 16 years old, an adult must be present throughout the entire appointment. Please keep in mind that all appointments at our teaching clinic are scheduled for 2 hours.

For children under the age of 14, please contact EHCWA at 6488 7429 or email info@ehcwa.com.au to arrange an appointment in our paediatric clinic.

Your OSHC health insurer will typically pay for eye checks billed with an MBS item number. You will be required to pay for the service upfront and receive a receipt with the MBS number. You can then claim the cost from your health insurer. In most cases, you will be able to claim 100% of the cost back. Please speak with your health insurer for more information.