TeleHealth Service

Telehealth has turned a phone or a laptop into a front door to health care. For many everyday needs, you can speak to a health professional without leaving home, and have any prescription sent straight to your pharmacy. Some pharmacies host or facilitate telehealth, joining up the consultation and your medicines in one smooth process.

What is telehealth?

Telehealth means a health consultation by phone or video rather than in person. It can connect you with a GP, a nurse, a pharmacist, or other health professionals. A pharmacy telehealth service typically helps you access a remote consultation, often using a private space or technology in the pharmacy, and then handles the practical follow-through: an electronic prescription sent to the pharmacy, medicines dispensed, and advice on how to use them. It is especially handy for people who are unwell, busy, remote, or without easy transport.

What it is good for

Telehealth suits many routine and follow-up needs: repeat prescriptions and medication reviews, minor and common illnesses, discussing test results, mental health check-ins, and follow-ups for stable ongoing conditions. Paired with a pharmacy, it shines when the outcome is a medicine: the prescription and the dispensing happen without you handling paper or making a second trip.

What it is not good for

Telehealth has real limits. Anything that needs a physical examination, a procedure, or hands-on assessment may require an in-person visit, and the clinician will tell you if so. It is not for emergencies. For severe symptoms, call Triple Zero (000); for urgent advice any time, call healthdirect on 1800 022 222. A good telehealth consult includes the clinician deciding whether you can be managed remotely or need to be seen.

How it works with the pharmacy

In practice, you have your phone or video consultation; if you are prescribed something, the clinician issues an eScript; the pharmacy dispenses it (often with delivery); and the pharmacist counsels you on the medicine. Some pharmacies facilitate the consult itself, while others simply receive the eScript that results from a telehealth appointment you arranged. Either way, the Active Script List and eScript tokens make it seamless to get the medicine where you want it.

Costs and access

Some telehealth consultations are bulk-billed or Medicare-rebated where eligibility rules are met; others are private and carry a fee. Ask up front what a consultation will cost and whether Medicare applies to you. For people in rural and remote areas, telehealth combined with pharmacy distance supply can be the practical link to care that would otherwise mean a long trip.

How it’s regulated in Australia

Telehealth consultations are delivered by registered health professionals under the same standards as in-person care, with Medicare arrangements set nationally, and electronic prescriptions are overseen by the Australian Digital Health Agency. Pharmacists involved are registered with the Pharmacy Board of Australia. Privacy of your consultation and information is protected under Australian privacy law.

Official sources

• Healthdirect: telehealth
• Australian Digital Health Agency: electronic prescriptions

Telehealth plus your pharmacy can join up care and medicines without a trip. Use the button below to find a pharmacy offering telehealth services near you.