How to refer patients
Dr Neela consults privately in Box Hill and in Mornington.
To refer an urgent patient, you can fax or email a referral to either Box Hill or Mornington, marked urgent. Dr Neela will triage all urgent referrals, and we do leave space for acute injuries or rapidly progressive skin cancers to be booked in every week. Contact details can be found here
Neela is always happy for GPs or other specialists to contact her directly. Please call or email the rooms if you do not already have her number. She is always happy to look at an X-ray or otherwise provide advice over the phone. Many hand injuries can appropriately be seen by a hand therapist in the first instance. We recommend Eastern Hand Rehab in Box Hill, and Peninsula Hand Therapy in Mornington.
If you are happy for your patient receive the next available appointment, then you can provide them with a referral and ask they make their own appointment.
Average wait times are around 3-4 weeks in Mornington and 1-2 weeks in Box Hill.
Conditions treated
Dr Neela is a fully qualified Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon, and specialty trained in Hand and Wrist Surgery. She enjoys treating skin cancers and general reconstructive problems, as well as the full range of traumatic, chronic and degenerative conditions affecting the hand and wrist
Plastic Surgery Conditions
Dr Neela is a fully qualified Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon, and enjoys treating skin cancers and general reconstructive problems. This includes the management of acute and chronic wounds; injuries and scarring involving the face, ear and other parts of the body; correction of prominent ears or split earlobes; brow and eyelid aging leading to visual field loss; and breast and abdominal procedures where a Medicare item number applies.
Dr Neela does not currently perform aesthetic (cosmetic) procedures where a Medicare item number does not apply, such as breast augmentation, aesthetic liposuction or face lift surgery. She also does not undertake revisional breast surgery such as removal of breast implants.
Please contact us and speak to the secretaries if you have any questions.
Hand Surgery Conditions
The range of conditions treated includes, but is not limited to
- Cuts, lacerations and crush injuries to the upper limb
- Tendon and nerve injuries
- Dislocations of the hand and wrist
- Skier’s/Gamekeeper’s thumb
- Scapholunate ligament injury
- TFCC injury
- Fractures of the hand and wrist
- Finger fractures
- Scaphoid and other carpal bone fractures
- Wrist fractures
- Long term consequences of upper limb fractures
- Nerve problems
- Carpal tunnel syndrome (median nerve compression)
- Cubital tunnel syndrome (ulnar nerve compression)
- Radial tunnel syndrome and PIN palsy
- Arthritis of the hand and wrist
- Basal joint arthritis of the thumb
- Finger arthritis, including joint replacement surgery
- Wrist arthritis
- Rheumatoid, psoriatic and other inflammatory arthritis affecting the upper limb
- Tendon transfer surgery following injury or nerve problems
- Tumours, ganglions and other lumps affecting the upper limb
- Major and minor limb amputation
- Secondary management of mutilating upper limb injuries
Dr Neela is experienced in advanced surgical techniques including endoscopic (keyhole) carpal tunnel release, small joint arthroscopy and microsurgery.
She has special interest in osteoarthritis of the hand and wrist, general wrist conditions, and is one of only a small number of surgeons in Melbourne to undertake keyhole carpal tunnel surgery.
Fees and rebates
Neela believes strongly in a fair and ethical fee structure which does not exploit or extort patients but reflects the cost of doing business and the expertise required to ensure the highest level of care. Her fees reflect this approach, and are set in such a way as to be accessible and fair.
Neela will never:
- exceed the AMA Schedule of Fees for procedures
- issue different invoices to a patient and their health fund
- engage in bill splitting or other unethical practices
- charge a ‘booking fee’ for a surgical procedure
- exceed the ‘Known Gap’ limits placed by health funds, even for long or complex procedures, subspecialised procedures, or joint replacements
- have a fee structure which asks patients to choose between different procedures for the same condition on the basis of different costs
Dr Neela adheres to the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons Code of Conduct, with particular regard to Section 7 Commercial and Financial Dealings, which can be found here.
Further information about fees can be found on the website here: Fees and Rebates
DVA patients are fully covered. Gold card holders are fully covered for all procedures both in the rooms and in hospital. White card holders may not be fully covered for all procedures.
WorkCover and TAC patients are fully covered if they have an active claim. Please note that there is a separate procedure for seeking approval for surgery.
Pensioners, HCC holders and children are billed at a discounted rate.
If your patients is experiencing significant financial hardship, then please note this on their referral.
Patients without private health insurance
Neela works in public hospitals because she believes that it is important that patients have access to high quality care regardless of their insurance status.
Neela is happy to see uninsured patients for an opinion, but there will normally be a fee for the consultation. She is then able to facilitate care at Eastern Health, depending on the specific need.
Neela is willing to offer surgery to patients who wish to seek care as a self-funded patient at a private hospital, if appropriate. Neela believes strongly in the importance of public health care. For urgent conditions, such as skin cancers or acute trauma, as well as for complex conditions requiring the use of plates or prostheses, Dr Neela will typically recommend care in a public hospital, because she strongly believes that Australians should not pay out of pocket for care that is appropriately covered by our universal health care system. She will always offer uninsured patients a public option first.
