How practices use Refera

Who this page is for: practice owners and managers deciding whether Refera fits the way their front desk works. Every practice, person and referral below is made-up. None is a Refera customer.

Whatever the specialty, the job is the same: see what arrived, what has been done and what still needs doing. Referrals arrive by Microsoft 365 email or fax-to-email, sit in one shared list in arrival order, and keep the referrer’s own words and a history nobody can quietly edit. Staff still book in the system they already use.

Dermatology: one inbox, many GPs

Made-up example: Riverbend Dermatology, the practice in Refera’s demo.

Riverbend receives letters from dozens of local GP clinics, by email and by fax-to-email into the same Microsoft 365 inbox. Before Refera, two receptionists worked from the shared mailbox and a spreadsheet.

• Every letter lands in one list, oldest first. The Needs info filter shows letters missing a detail, such as a Medicare number, without changing the order.
• The GP’s words stay the GP’s. When a letter says “would appreciate review within two weeks”, Refera shows that sentence in quotes with the GP’s name. It does not score it or move the referral up. The dermatologist decides clinical priority.
• A person decides on duplicates. A re-sent letter can be marked as a possible duplicate. Staff decide what to do; Refera never merges records on its own.

Orthopaedics: letters with attachments, several surgeons

Made-up example: Harbourline Orthopaedics, three surgeons and a shared front desk.

Referrals come from GPs and physiotherapists, often with imaging reports attached.

• Attachments are noted, not interpreted. Refera records each attachment’s name, type and page count beside the letter. Reading the imaging is the surgeon’s job.
• Surgeon and booking are separate. Staff assign each referral to a surgeon by name; that records whose list it is on. Which receptionist books the appointment is a separate choice, visible to the whole team, so nothing falls between the two.
• Bookings stay in the practice system. After booking in the practice’s own system, staff record the system and appointment time in Refera as evidence. Refera keeps no second diary.

Allied health: a small team, a busy phone

Made-up example: Saltbush Physiotherapy, two physiotherapists and one receptionist.

Most referrals arrive from GPs, and patients often phone before the letter has been read.

• Find the caller fast. The receptionist searches by surname, date of birth or the number the patient is calling from, then opens the referral while still on the phone.
• One price, every user included. Practice is A$139 a month ex GST for the whole team, with the first 50 referrals free and no card needed to start.
• Simple roles. The owner holds the agreement and billing. The receptionist works the list as Staff and secures their own sign-in with a passkey or authenticator.

What stays the same everywhere

• Refera is administrative only. It performs no clinical triage and never ranks referrals by urgency.
• Nothing is sent to a patient or referrer without a named person approving it.
• HealthLink, Gmail, direct fax lines and upload are coming soon. Today, referrals arrive by Microsoft 365 email and fax-to-email delivered as email.

Related

• Tips for the front desk
• Request practice access
• Pricing

Administrative process-state only - Refera performs no clinical triage.