The AACP is pursuing the introduction of new items for prolonged consultation and review consultations for situations where patients of consultant physicians and paediatricians require significantly longer consultations than available under items 132 & 133. Currently there is provision for longer consultations for geriatric and psychiatric assessments only; however consultant physicians and paediatricians continue to manage patients with significant and complex care needs.

The MBS provides a range of attendance items however where a patient has multiple and significant complex medical conditions, it is important that the skill and time required to care for these patients is reflected in the items. This is a gap that the AACP is continuing to work to address and further discussions with the Department of Health are taking place.