Booking an examination - Making an Appointment

Referrals & Bookings

All examinations, except mammography under the national breast screening programme, generally require a written referral from an authorised health practitioner (includes GP, Specialist, Dentist, Midwife, Physio, Chiropractor and Podiatrist).

Making the Appointment

Bookings can be made though the CRG call centre (phone 03 379 0770). They can also be made by completing and faxing a CRG referral form to our bookings centre  (fax 03 355 2173), following which our staff will contact you to arrange a suitable time.

Funding Categories

CRG performs radiology services for many different patient categories: 

Private patients:  They are the mainstay of our practice and always welcome.  Referrals are made by General Practitioners, Specialists, Midwives, Physios and other health practitioners. Private patients are responsible for all payments, although many will have private medical insurance, which often covers most or all of the cost.  If in doubt, please check with your insurer before your examination. We accept any referral form, although our own referral form is preferred.

ACC:  Patients referred under the ACC Regulations  (not "High Technology" procedures) are subsidised by ACC, but CRG charges a surcharge over and above the ACC payment. Please refer to the list of fees, to check the surcharge rate.  Referrals can be made by most health practitioners. Please use our usual form.  An ACC claim number is always required.

ACC "HIgh Tech":  Patients under the ACC "HIgh Technology" rules must be referred by ACC-authorised practitioners only, but they do not have to pay a surcharge.

The NZ Government:  This is usually through the Canterbury District Health Board and represents a partial or full subsidy for  various procedures under specific conditions, and in addition to the ACC regime as mentioned above. These include: 

  • Pregnancy Ultrasound:  Pregnancy scans receive a generous subsidy so long as they comply with specific indications.  These appear at the bottom of the Fee Schedule.  In most women, there is no extra charge, unless they request that images be emailed to them, or they want to be given a CD of images including 4D movie images or they wish to have their scan appintment in the evenings or weekends. Referrals are from midwives, specialists and General Practitioners. 

  • Community-Referred Contract:  CRG performs scans for patients referred by GPs under the Community-Referred Radiology Contract. There is no charge to patients who are accepted under this contract.  Clinical criteria have been established to ensure that publicly funded resources are available to those with the greatest need. Please check the criteria on the Health Pathways Website. There is a specific Community Referred Form to be used for CRR cases.  Please fax the completed form to the CRR Referral Coodinator on 0800 555 266. From the outset, and to ensure timely appointments for urgent cases, it is suggested that referrals for urgent Ultrasound and CT scans (ie CT Head and CT Urograms) be faxed directly to CRG on 371 7200, or phone 372 1406

  • Acute Demand Radiology Contract. This is another way patients can access CRG services.  It is for patients who might otherwise require urgent hospital referral.  It is administered via GPs and St John, volumes are limited, but there is no surcharge to the patient. Please use the specific Acute Demand Referral Form.   See more details here. 

Preparation

Some examinations require special preparation, which will be discussed with you at the time of making the appointment.  Preparations for specific examinations also appear under "Preparation for your examinations" on the back page of our referral form and in the services area of our website.

It is anticipated that referring practitioners will be able to be send referrals to us electronically in the next year or so.

Coronary CT Angiography

Special arrangements apply for CT Coronary Angiography.  Please download the specific CTCA referral form.  You can also download a Patient Information and Consent form.  Please complete and fax the referral form back to St Georges Radiology on 03 355 2173.  Our radiology and / or cardiology staff will review the form and contact the patient to discuss a convenient appointment.