Travelling For Surgery

• Review the procedure page for the surgery you are considering to ensure you understand the recovery, costs, possible rebates and possible outcomes.
• Send us a message below or call us on 4920 7700 letting us know that you are at outside Newcastle and would like to consider surgery with our surgeons
• We will then ask you to email us some photos to show your areas of concern
• Our team will then arrange a time for a $100 pre-consultation appointment with our Practice Manager to talk to you about the surgical journey, possible Medicare rebates and possible surgery dates and hospitals. We prefer this meeting is in person, but we can make alternative arrangements for women travelling from more than 5 hours away.

• Hotels: for patients being operated on at Charlestown Private, many patients stay at the Apollo Hotel which is located within a 5 minute walk, or the Mercure which is also very close.
• For Lingard Private, you may consider one of the hotels closer to the city, such as the Novotel or Rydges. Or the Merewether Motel is around a 10 minute walk from Lingard so ideal for longer stays if your partner is travelling with you.
• Other patients have found booking an Air BnB or Stayz rental has been an affordable option for longer stays
• How long to stay in Newcastle after discharge? For breast procedures we recommend 3-7 days after surgery (depending on size and complexity). For tummy tucks we recommend at least 14 days after the surgery. For combined procedures, such as a mummy makeover, we recommend 3 weeks in Newcastle after surgery. These time periods allow for time in hospital, initial recovery and appointments with our Practice Nurses.
• We also recommend a support person to travel with you. Not just for moral support, but to help you with carrying bags or getting meals etc.

• Our airport is the Newcastle Airport, based in Williamtown. It is known as NTL and on some airline websites will appear as Newcastle/ Port Stephens.
• Newcastle is also serviced by rail, including from Sydney. The Broadmeadow station has regional and local services and it approximately 15 minutes by taxi from our office.

Some travelling patients want a little extra help with discharge from hospital and visits during recovery. One service that specialises in this is Relax and Recover. Find out more about their services on our news post here.

• All consultations must be in person with Dr Moncrieff or Dr French after your appointment with our Practice Manager.
• After your personal consultation with our surgeon, you can book in a surgery date.
• The process from there can be done over phone and email until you arrive back in Newcastle shortly before your surgery.

• While you are in the recovery phase, you may want to limit physical activities
• However, if you come a few days earlier or you are feeling well before you return home, you may want to take advantage of the wealth of experiences the Hunter offers.
• You may want to visit the Visit Newcastle website and the Hunter Valley Wine Country website.
• Those sites detail everything from whale watching and beautiful beaches to visit to five star dining and wine tastings (the latter being more for your first visit for a consultation or for your support person as alcohol before or after surgery inhibits recovery!)

• We provide comprehensive instructions to help you manage your recovery at home which answer all the most frequently asked questions from our patients
• You should also ensure you have a GP you feel confident in who can assist with dressing changes (especially for larger procedures)
• We can arrange nurse check-ups by phone
• We do need to see you at least once (or twice for larger surgery) after you return home, so this should be factored into your surgery plans
• And we are just a phone call or email away to answer any of your questions once you are home!

We continue to monitor Covid cases across Australia closely and respond to government advice as needed.  During periods of extended state lockdowns we suspend interstate consultations (even via video) as the possible dates for surgery may be many months away. As a great deal can change in terms of your health and fees applicable to surgery can change considerably over several months, it is best have your consultation when surgery is possible within the following 3 months, hence our quotes are only valid for this period.

Please see updates on our dedicated Covid-19 page here.