Key messages
- Rural Urgent Care Centres are a key entry point into the Victorian healthcare system for people living in rural communities.
- Patients presenting to Rural Urgent Care Centres will be assessed to determine the best option for their care. These options can include:
- definitive care at a Rural Urgent Care Centre (care that meets all the patient’s clinical needs and is within the scope of the clinician and the health service)
- a recommendation to see their General Practitioner (GP)
- transfer to a higher level of care at a larger health service or a specialist/tertiary metropolitan health service.
- Under the Victorian Trauma System, there are 3 levels of descending care in regional areas:
- Regional Trauma Services which provide resuscitation and stabilisation and may provide definitive care. That is, care that meets all the patient’s clinical needs and is within scope of the clinician and the health service.
- Rural Urgent Care Centres which offer initial resuscitation and stabilisation before a patient is transported.
- Primary care services (PCS) which offer limited resuscitation before a patient is transported.
- Other urgent care services available to rural and remote communities include:
- Video call with Virtual Emergency Care
- Phone call with Nurse-on-Call Tel. 1300 60 60 24
- Phone call with Maternal and Child Health Tel. 13 22 29
Rural Urgent Care Centres
There are 70 Rural Urgent Care Centres across Victoria.
Rural Urgent Care Centres are staffed by registered nurses, who provide initial assessment and treatment for any urgent health concern.
The nurse may involve a General Practitioner (GP) or hospital doctor in the provision of care. This can happen over the phone, by video consult, or in person. A decision will be made whether care can be provided at the centre or whether hospital admission or transfer to another facility is required.
Fees may be incurred if the local GP is required to be called in and/or if related blood tests and x-rays are required. If a fee is to be charged, the patient will be informed before treatment.
If you require an ambulance transfer to another health service, this transfer will be covered by your Ambulance Victoria membership, if you do not have membership, you may be liable for the cost of the transfer.
Please note that Rural Urgent Care Centres are a different service to Urgent Care .
Rural Urgent Care Centres: Models of care toolkit
The Models of care toolkit informs the ongoing development of Rural Urgent Care Centre models of care and the way healthcare is delivered in the rural urgent care setting. The models of care are multidisciplinary and multifaceted. All models are required to meet the Victorian Government’s performance standards and clinical governance framework, which incorporate both quality and safety standards.
This resource will assist rural health services in the development and review of urgent care by describing the existing practices in Victoria’s Rural urgent care centres and highlighting key considerations for their implementation.
Regional trauma services
Visit our trauma services page for more information.
Reviewed 04 February 2025