Health Assessment
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The Australian Refugee Health Practice Guide provides evidence based comprehensive health assessment recommendations.
A Refugee Health Assessment is recommended to be commenced within 4 weeks after arrival. The MBS item number can be claimed within the first 12 months of arrival. Consent is required and the item numbers are the same as for all health assessments (703-707).
The purpose of the assessment is to develop a detailed history and undertake a physical examination of the patient to identify immediate and long term health care needs and to initiate treatment. Parents can also be intorduced to preventative health care in Australia, in particular immunisation, maternal and child health care and breast and cervical screening.
The health assessment should include:
- A detailed history
- Examination
- Problem list and
- Management plan
- Relevent investigations and recommended screening pathology .
A copy of the health assessment should be provided to the patient.
Summary of Recommended Pathology for refugee new arrivals including children (August 2025)
Offshore Health Assessment and online portal (HAPlite)
Includes information about:
- Immigration medical examination
- Departure health checks
- Health undertakings
- Referrals
- Health Alerts
- HAPLite
- Tip sheets for HAPlite
- Complex medical issues – specialised case management
Fact Sheets – Helpful Information for GPs
- Helpful information for GPs in Brisbane, Logan and Gold Coast
- Helpful information for GPs in Townsville
- Helpful information for GPs in Cairns
RACGP – Healthcare for people from refugee backgrounds and people seeking asylum
Resources to support Refugee Health Assessments
Helpful Information for GPs in Queensland
Refugee Health Assessment Template (2018)
- Assist the documentation of a refugee health assessment
- Contain prompts to cover the information that needs to be collected
- Contain tips on how to conduct a Refugee Health Assessment.
RACGP – Healthcare for people from refugee backgrounds and people seeking asylum
Recommendations for Comprehensive Post-Arrival Health Assessment for people from Refugee-like backgrounds – Australasian Society for Infectious Diseases (ASID) and Refugee Health Network of Australia Refugee Health Guidelines
Transfer of patient records for newly arrived humanitarian entrants (July 2019)
Resources about Cultural Sensitivity
Translated Resources for Patients
About the Refugee Health Assessment
Informed Consent
Metro South Health have developed videos in multiple languages about informed consent so that patients clearly understand the health problem and agree to what the health worker is going to do. View the videos here.
Glossary of terms – Seeing a Doctor, Specialist or health professional (Centre for Culture, Ethnicity and Health)
Translated pictorial fact sheets about ‘Collecting poop‘
Last Updated – 1 week