Your admission
At Calvary Health Care Bethlehem we’ll make you feel welcome, whether your trip is planned or you’re arriving unexpectedly. Our friendly team will do everything they can to give you the best possible care.
If your General Practitioner or Specialist believes a Calvary Public Hospital should be involved in your ongoing treatment or care, they’ll either provide you with a referral or forward a referral to the Calvary admissions team.
- If you have a referral please ring the service specified and arrange an appointment.
- If your referral has been forwarded to Calvary our admissions team will get in touch to organise your appointment.
Patient Referral
For patients currently in another hospital requiring inpatient admission or admission to our Community service, your referral will be made by your health care provider detailing your current medical history and condition.
For people not currently admitted in a hospital, and based in the community, your referral will be made by your GP/Specialist including a detailed medical letter.
Health care provider, please click below for the patient referral form.
MR-015-Referral-for-Admission form_2023
Please note: The urgency of your appointment is determined by your General Practitioner or Specialist.
Calvary Health Care Bethlehem is part of Australia’s public health care system and offers hospital care to any Australian resident under Medicare arrangements. For advice on fees for patients ineligible for medicare, click here.
Public patients
Under Medicare you can be treated as a public patient, at no charge, by a doctor appointed by the hospital. You can choose to be treated as a public patient even if you are privately insured.
Private patients
If you choose to be admitted as a private patient, you can be treated by the doctor of your choice – providing that doctor has a right to practice at this hospital. An Admissions Officer will meet with you to discuss your level of coverage and policy details.
Regardless of whether you have private health insurance or don’t have private health insurance, the hospital will provide you with an estimate of expected hospital charges. Knowing how much your treatment will cost is called Informed Financial Consent. For more information visit the Private Health Insurance Ombudsman website:
During your stay we’ll provide you with safe and high-quality care, which reflects our values of Hospitality, Healing, Stewardship and Respect.
At every stage of your treatment, we’ll make sure you fully understand what’s happening, why it’s happening, and what will happen next.
Patient Brochure
To help prepare for you and your family for admission, Calvary has produced a guide for patients and visitors. You can download it below:
Use the expanding boxes below to learn more about your admission to Calvary Health Care Bethlehem.
We will send you information detailing the time and location of your admission appointment.
If you have any concerns before your appointment, or any issues on the day, please contact Calvary Bethlehem using the telephone number on your admission documentation.
Please review your admission documentation before arrival. You will be contacted by the hospital within a week prior to your admission to confirm.
Please be aware that on arrival there are a number of admission documents that we require you to sign. If you are unable to sign and require a nominated person to sign on your behalf, please arrange for that person to be with you on admission.
On the day of your admission please be sure to bring:
- Admission documentation
- Medicare card (if you have one)
- Health care, pension or concession card (if you have one)
- Health fund details (if you have private insurance)
- An up-to-date list of all of the medications you’re currently taking
- Any relevant doctors’ letters, reports or consent forms
- Any x-rays or other medical images
- General Practitioner’s (GP) contact details including name, address and contact number
- Physical and mobility aids
- A letter of Work Cover approval, Third Party or Public Liability claims (if applicable)
On the day of your inpatient admission please be sure to bring your
- All your medications in their original, labelled containers
- Nightwear, dressing gown, non-slip slippers, comfortable clothes and toiletries
Please note: During your stay at Calvary Health Care Bethlehem your property is your own responsibility and we do not recommend bringing any personal valuables.
Patient admission appointments take place at various locations. Please check your admission documentation for details.
What happens after your admission will depend on the reason for your visit, but we’ll keep you informed every step of the way.
When your admission is complete you’ll be fitted with an identification band to be worn at all times during your stay. The band is used to check your identity to ensure you receive the correct medications, tests and procedures.
During your stay you may move between ward areas on one or more occasions. Each time you pass from one clinical area to another a formal handover of your care will occur.
Your family can accompany you through your admission and be ready for you when your procedure is completed or you are admitted to your ward accommodation.
Depending on your situation, your family may also be able to stay beyond visiting hours. But this should be discussed with a member of your care team.
Calvary Health Care Bethlehem is a smoke free zone.
Patients, families and visitors cannot smoke anywhere within 4 metres of the hospital grounds.
We can help
If you smoke, please inform your care team and also consider whether this is a good time to quit smoking.
If you would like to quit smoking, we can help
A hospital stay provides you with different routines and extensive peer support that can help you break your smoking habits and start to cope without cigarettes.
While you are a patient in Calvary, Nicotine Replacement Therapy and other forms of support can be provided to help you stop smoking.
We also offer ongoing support and assistance after you leave Calvary.
Find out more from the Quit Now website.
You have a right to receive safe and high-quality health services. Our Clinical Safety and Quality is benchmarked against National Clinical Safety and Quality Standards.
View the results for Calvary Health Care Bethlehem.
2023 Quality and Safety at Bethlehem
Did you know falls are the second leading cause of accidental injury and death worldwide?
Calvary protects and promotes the rights of each person receiving care.
We take any suspected breach of privacy very seriously. If you believe your personal information has been used in a manner inconsistent with the Calvary Privacy Policy, you can make a complaint.
You have a right to access your personal information, subject to some exceptions allowed by law, and to request a change to your information if you consider it inaccurate.
If you’d like to access your personal information or medical records please contact the Calvary Health Care Bethlehem Information Services Unit.
If your information has been archived, we may charge a fee for searching for and providing access to your information.
Freedom of Information Application Form
Freedom of Information – Information Sheet
Return your completed form to:
Health Information Services
Calvary Health Care Bethlehem
476 Kooyong Road
Caulfield South 3162
You won’t be discharged from Calvary Health Care Bethlehem until it’s safe for you to leave. Your safety will be assessed against:
- Your condition
- The availability of personal and social support
- Your residential situation
- Your mobility
- Access to communications if an emergency arises
Planning your discharge
Before your planned admission, or as soon as possible after an emergency admission, your care team will talk to you about a planned discharge date.
Upon discharge, you will be provided with a Formal Discharge Summary and your care team will provide information about any follow-up support for your continuing care.
We’ll give you a short-term supply of any new medications prescribed by Calvary.
1. Who is picking you up from hospital?
On your discharge day you’ll need to arrange to be picked up by a family member or friend before 10am.
Please let us know so we can discuss alternative options, including Calvary Community Care Hospital to Home.
2. Have you made a follow-up appointment with your Doctor?
You need to make a follow up appointment with your Doctor as advised by your care team.
3. Have you discussed your medication?
Please make sure you have discussed your discharge medication with your care team. A medication review will be arranged if necessary.
After leaving hospital you may have new medications to take. Please follow the instructions carefully and avoid making any mistakes with your medication. Visit NPS Medicinewise for more information, or call your GP to discuss your medications.
4. Do you need care when you get home?
When you return home, you remain an admitted patient, and will either be visited regularly by Calvary clinicians who deliver certain treatments in your home setting, or attend an outpatient clinic.
It’s a safe and efficient substitution for in-hospital care for a wide range of conditions.
Calvary Community Care can help discharged patients with transport home, cooking, grocery shopping, dressing, showering and household tasks.
Community Care can also provide 24 hour personal care, respite care, home maintenance and modification and safety products linked to 24/7 monitoring.
There may be a charge for Calvary Community Care services, or they may be provided partially or completely under a government assistance package.
If you have any compliments, complaints or suggestions, please let us know so we can improve our service.
You can do this by:
- Talking to any of our staff
- Providing feedback online
- Completing a feedback form available in all wards and in public areas at Calvary Health Care Bethlehem
- Writing to the GM or Director of Clinical Services
- Contacting the Victorian Health Services Commissioner