Myhealth M-City Clayton — Local services in Melbourne

Edited to add: Both initial appointments with the doctors were booked as double appointments - for 30 minutes so this was not the issue. The one with Dr Heddi went for only half the time - make of that what you will.

After reading all the reviews, it is unfortunate that my experience here was as disappointing as it was. I just don’t think the doctors have the caring, compassionate personality and expertise to deal with mental health issues. I saw two doctors here - Dr Heddi and Dr Nathan.

The initial part of my first appointment with Dr Nathan was okay. However I don’t think there was that nuanced level of understanding that mental health issues and symptoms can manifest in different ways and extents for everyone. In our next appointment I thought it was important to bring this up as I think the cornerstone of a good doctor-patient relationship is being able to speak freely and openly and for everyone to be able to clarify their view or take accountability and apologise. I was just expressing how I felt and simply wanted to be met with empathy, kindness and active listening (also crucial in the relationship between doctor and patient). If there had been a misunderstanding, I was open to hear his perspective, not be brushed off. However, I felt dismissed by him when I did this, as I felt he essentially spoke over me and disregarded my feelings in the process, saying that ‘getting caught up in terminology’ was not important.

Simply hearing and validating how someone feels and understanding where they are coming from is such an important quality doctors should possess, and I feel he did not show these qualities. I also noticed this dismissiveness when I mentioned a physical issue which I specifically said was never properly investigated in the past - to which he basically said it wasn’t worth exploring or testing for, which in hindsight, is shocking (especially when considering the interrelation between physical and mental health). Finally, when I asked for a medical certificate, I expressed that the place I would hand it into was very pedantic and particular about how it should be worded, and would not accept it if it was worded any other way. I felt he got quite annoyed when I mentioned this, even though it was nothing to do with me. I don't feel it is appropriate to get annoyed with patients, especially when they are merely trying to comply with someone else's policies.

In my appointment with Dr Heddi I also did not feel like I was met with someone caring and empathetic. And empathy is so, so necessary when coming to a new doctor and opening up about mental health. I was asked about a lot of personal things and she just typed up my responses without showing empathy to my responses, or even making suggestions or plans to work on the things I talked about. I was also told that while she could offer support, “the work is all on me”. I felt this was quite unnecessary, as by reaching out to a new doctor I clearly was taking initiative to improve my circumstances.

I ultimately felt confused as I did ask both doctors about their experience working with mental health and according to them, they have seen many patients. The role of a doctor is not merely to refer on to a psychologist. It is not easy to reach out to a new doctor and discuss something so personal.

Overall, perhaps the doctors here are more suited to physical health issues than mental health. Perhaps things were felt/viewed differently on their end however I don't feel a space was created to have such open conversations. Empathy should not be rare in the medical profession, but...

I have been a patient with My Health M-city ever since I moved to Clayton. However, I am very disappointed with my GP Dr N** today. Since the first visit she always make it a thing that "we can visit this issue next time", "We can come out with the plan next appointment". So I stopped booking her and went to Dr Alex, who actually shows he cares and make care plan for my issue. However, I needed a script today and Dr Alex was fully booked. So I booked with Dr N and I feel so upset and neglected after the appointment. I reached myhealth at 12pm - 15 mins earlier for my appointment at 1215, and she only managed to see me at 1230 (I completely understand and I don't mind waiting), after telling her the reason of visit and hoping to get progress with the issue I had since last year. She gave me the script and a physio refer I asked for but want me to book another appointment in the next two days or next week to do my care plan for the other issue, and when I asked why we cannot do it today, she said "It needs time and we don't have time"; ''When you book the other appointment, we will only do thing for that issue and not doing any thing for other stuff". I feel really neglected as I took off to come to GP with thing that I hoping to get help, but she make it sounds like only one condition can be treat at a time when she doesn't even develop a care plan for me after almost 9 months! Even though she let me know that booking another session is bulk billed for my issue, but please respect patient time of taking off from work to see you. It is not all just about bulk billed or not. It's TIME too. I understand if this happen is because I have used up too much time of the appointment, However, when I stepped out from the room, it was 1239. I waited half an hour for a appointment that is less than 10 mins and the GP told me "we don't have time".

Addit: Thanks for your reply myhealth, however, as I clearly mentioned in the review. The time I SPENT with my GP that day was LESS THAN 10 mins including her spending about 2 mins explaining to me “we don’t have time” to go through the plan. I fully understand if I have been in the room for longer than the standard appointment duration. However, I DID NOT. and it almost feel like because she had accidentally spent longer than a standard time with other patient so has to play catch up during my appointment when I ALSO BOOKED for a standard 15 mins...

I’ve been seeing Dr Heddi for 5 years, and she is honestly the best GP I have ever seen. She is empathetic, caring, and very experienced with both physical and mental health concerns. I have had my child with her, and recommended my husband and close friends see her as well with glowing reviews from them also. She was the first person to notice the patterns and encourage me to get an assessment for an ongoing mental health issue, which has changed my life for the better. Thank you Dr Heddi for ‘seeing’ me when I needed it most.

I’ve also seen Dr Alex Mu and Dr Vincent Wei and they have been fantastic too - very thorough, understanding, and open to exploring issues with in-depth testing and consultations to discuss results.

The only thing I’ve noticed in the last 12 months or so is my experience with reception staff is a bit hit and miss. There isn’t a way to predict if you will have no trouble at all with consultations or questions over the phone, or if it will be a difficult time. In a recent example, I was put on hold for 15 minutes on the phone while someone was looking into how many repeats I’d been prescribed of a commonly prescribed medication which I’ve been taking for over 12 months, as I couldn’t locate my physical script. After explaining what information I needed twice, they asked if I wanted a referral letter to a specialist, and once I clarified again, they did not know what the medication was, required me to spell it twice, got frustrated when I corrected the spelling, and asked for my details 3 times while looking into it. Not sure if it’s a lack of knowledge of their information systems and what can be shared without an appointment, which training/experience may help with, or if it’s more a lack of genuine care for patient enquiries. Maybe I wasn’t communicating effectively that day, or they were having trouble understanding me. But even if it’s incredibly busy, it’s not nice for a patient to feel dismissed or unheard when making a simple inquiry...