There are a range of places you can go for multidisciplinary treatment, depending on your individual needs and treatment plan. This section provides an overview of your options, connecting you to important health services. Information is provided under the following topics:

• Accessing multidisciplinary treatment
• Which services suit my rehabilitation needs?
• How do I access a treatment service?
• How much does treatment cost?
• What if I have a complaint?

Accessing Multidisciplinary Treatment

You can seek multidisciplinary care from a variety of hospital and community settings depending on your changing needs. These are listed in Table 1.

Which services suit my rehabilitation needs?

Rehabilitation programs are based in hospitals and community health services across Victoria. Some of these services are general or 'mainstream' in nature while others are Parkinson's specialist services.

Mainstream rehabilitation can help you maintain your strength, mobility and independence.

Parkinson's specialist rehabilitation provides expert assessment and treatment plans tailored to your needs.

Parkinson's treatment plans often involve regular mainstream multidisciplinary appointments, combined with bursts of intensive specialised treatment to 'top up' your functioning at times when you need more help.

There are different levels of mainstream, specialist and expert multidisciplinary treatment available depending on your needs:

• Hospital inpatient facilities - can provide multidisciplinary care depending on your reason for admission.

  Public Hospitals

  Metropolitan Hospitals and Health Services

  Rural Hosptials and Health Services

  Private Hospitals

• Movement Disorder Clinics (PDF file 12MB)- provide expert Parkinson’s treatment. You can make use of this service to get your medication right and participate in intensive allied health therapies to improve your mobility, safety and independence.
  
• Other Specialist Outpatient Clinics (PDF file 2.13MB)- provide treatment for specialist areas. You can make use of these clinics to address particular problems e.g. falls or continence. In some limited circumstances, you can also access a hospital-based neurologist (be aware that places are limited, as most neurologists work privately). Find out more about neurologists here.
  
• Community Rehabilitation Centres (PDF file 2.13MB)- provide specialist rehabilitation to help improve your mobility using a range of allied health workers.
  
• Day Therapy Centres (PDF file 4.5MB)- provide a range of allied health therapies to keep frail and aged people safe and independent. Centres are located in the community and in aged care homes
  Note: Some centres also provide specialist Parkinson’s group education programs.
  
• Community Health Centres - often provide some allied health services. Fees are charged on a sliding scale and services vary between regions. Contact your local centre for more information.
  
• Private Practice Services - are provided by the range of medical and allied health professionals either at their clinic or through home visits.

Most people use a combination of these hospital and community services at different times depending on their needs. For instance, you may use a Movement Disorder Clinic to set up your personal treatment plan, and then maintain this with longer-term day therapy, community health or outpatient therapy. You may also return to specialist programs for ‘top-up’ bursts when you need them.

How do I access a treatment service?
Some services only accept people if they meet eligibility criteria, such as what area they live in. Often you will also need a referral to access a service. A referral is a written request for a service, usually from your GP or neurologist. Eligibility and referral processes vary between services, so contact the service you want to use for more details.

How much does treatment cost?
Treatment costs vary depending on whether you are using public, community or private services. Find out more about treatment costs here.

What if I have a complaint?
Hospitals and health services generally have patient advocates and complaints officers. You can also contact the Victorian Government Health Services Commissionerfor assistance.