Home Services Family planning

Family planning, in both directions.

Preventing a pregnancy, planning one, or working out whether something is going wrong. All three are family planning, and all three start with a longer appointment.

Open Monday to Friday, 8:30am – 5:00pm. No referral needed to see a GP.

Medicare Bulk Billing Practice

We are a Medicare Bulk Billing Practice. Standard consultations are bulk billed for eligible patients with a valid Medicare card.

Family planning: parents and a young child drawing together at a table at home
Whether you are planning a pregnancy, preventing one, or deciding what comes next.
  • Bulk billedMedicare-eligible consultations, with a valid Medicare card
  • Longer appointmentsAsk reception when you book if you have a list
  • No referral neededBook straight in with any of our GPs

We are a Medicare Bulk Billing Practice

Now Accepting New Patients

Walk-ins Welcome

Shop 12, 297–299 Brisbane Water Drive, West Gosford NSW 2250

Open Mon–Fri 8:30am – 5:00pm

Family planning

Two very different appointments, one heading.

For some people family planning means finding contraception that actually suits their life. For others it means getting ready to try, or working out why it has not happened yet. Both benefit from a longer appointment than a standard fifteen minutes.

The preconception visit in particular is one of the most useful appointments in general practice and one of the least booked — because most people do not know it exists.

A preconception visit covers

  • Supplements, and what is right for your situation rather than off a shelf.
  • Your vaccination history, since some vaccines are given before and others during pregnancy.
  • Reproductive genetic carrier screening, covered by Medicare as a one-off test.
  • Any regular medicines, which are often better reviewed before rather than after.
  • Conditions like diabetes, blood pressure or thyroid, which are easier to settle beforehand.
  • Anything on your mind — how long you have been trying, a previous loss, family history.

What it covers

What we can help with.

Tap a card for the detail.

Every option

Contraception

Contraception

Long-acting options, the pill, the ring, the injection and emergency contraception. What suits depends on your history, your plans and what you actually want to think about day to day.

A few months ahead

Preconception visit

Preconception visit

The appointment to book before you start trying. Book a long one and bring your questions — there is more to go through than most people expect.

Medicare covered

Carrier screening

Carrier screening

A once-in-a-lifetime blood test looking at whether you carry the gene for cystic fibrosis, spinal muscular atrophy or fragile X. Most people who carry one have no family history at all.

Both partners

Fertility

Fertility

Roughly half of fertility problems involve a male factor, and it is often the last thing looked at. If you have been trying a while, both partners are worth looking at.

Support and answers

Pregnancy loss

Pregnancy loss

Miscarriage is common and rarely explained properly. We can talk through what happened, what it means for next time, and whether anything is worth investigating.

Also family planning

Deciding not to

Deciding not to

Permanent contraception, and the conversations that go with it. A referral where that is the direction you want to go.

How it works here

Getting the most from the appointment.

How long before trying should I book?

A few months is ideal, because some things take time — vaccination timing, medication changes, and carrier screening turnaround. Even four weeks out is worth doing.

Should my partner come?

For preconception and fertility, yes if they can. Half of the picture is theirs, and it saves repeating everything.

Is carrier screening worth it?

That is a genuine decision rather than a default. We can explain what it looks at, what a carrier result would mean and what your options would be, and you can decide from there.

Is it bulk billed?

Medicare-eligible consultations are bulk billed with a valid Medicare card. Carrier screening has been covered by Medicare since November 2023 as a once-per-lifetime test.

Questions

Family planning questions.

What happens at a preconception appointment?

A longer consultation covering supplements, your vaccination history, any regular medicines, reproductive genetic carrier screening, and any conditions worth settling before pregnancy. What is right for you depends on your own history, so it is worked out in the appointment.

When should I book a preconception visit?

Ideally a few months before you start trying, because vaccination timing, medication changes and carrier screening all take time. Even four weeks ahead is worth doing.

Is reproductive genetic carrier screening covered by Medicare?

Yes, Medicare has covered a once-per-lifetime test for cystic fibrosis, spinal muscular atrophy and fragile X since November 2023, for anyone planning a pregnancy or in early pregnancy. If a result comes back as a carrier, your partner can be tested under Medicare as well.

We have been trying for a while. What should we do?

Book a longer appointment, and bring your partner if they can come. Roughly half of fertility problems involve a male factor, so both sides are worth looking at.

Can you help after a miscarriage?

Yes. We can talk through what happened, what it means for a future pregnancy, and whether anything is worth investigating. Book a longer appointment.

This page is general information for people in the Gosford and Central Coast area. It is not advice about your situation and it does not replace a consultation. If you are worried about a symptom, book an appointment or call us on (02) 4311 3800. In an emergency, call 000.

Book a longer appointment.

Whether you are planning to, planning not to, or wondering why it has not happened. All Medicare-eligible consultations are bulk billed for patients with a valid Medicare card.

Open Monday to Friday, 8:30am – 5:00pm · Shop 12, 297–299 Brisbane Water Drive, West Gosford · Serving Gosford, West Gosford, Point Clare, Narara, Wyoming, Springfield, Tascott, Koolewong, East Gosford, Erina, Green Point and Lisarow.

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