VIC.GOV.AU | Policy and Advisory Library

Doctors in Secondary Schools

Policy last updated

3 September 2025

Scope

  • Schools
  • School councils

Date:
January 2020

On this page:

Policy

Policy

This policy provides the operational guidance and requirements for schools participating in the Doctors in Secondary Schools program.

Summary

  • Schools participating in the Doctors in Secondary Schools program must adhere to the Operational guide (DOCX) (staff login required)External Link . The guide sets out requirements for:
    • roles and responsibilities of the school program lead
    • school council responsibility for entering into a licence agreement with the partnering medical centre
    • management of the program’s infrastructure and cleaning requirements.
  • Schools and their partnering medical centre must work together to deliver the most effective service that meets the health and wellbeing needs of students.
  • The consent and confidentiality requirements for students participating in the program are set out in the Guidance tab.

Details

The Doctors in Secondary Schools program funds general practitioners (GPs) and practice nurses (PNs) to attend 100 Victorian government secondary schools up to one day a week to provide primary healthcare to students.

For more information on the program, visit the Doctors in Secondary SchoolsExternal Link webpage.

All secondary school students enrolled in a participating school can access an adolescent-health trained GP, if they provide the required consent for the services. Participating schools, students and their parents/carers will not incur any out-of-pocket expenses for student consultations with the GP.

For further information on health and wellbeing for students in Victorian government schools, please refer to: Health Care Needs.

Operational guide

The Operational guide (DOCX) (staff login required)External Link provides an outline of the high level requirements that schools must follow when implementing the Doctors in Secondary Schools program.

Schools are required to develop locally appropriate procedures and protocols to guide the implementation and management of the program.

Schools must also follow the department’s consent and confidentiality requirements (in the Guidance tab) when implementing the Doctors in Secondary Schools program.

The program recognises that:

  • any student who wants to see the GP will be permitted to book an appointment
  • the GP will decide whether the young person is mature enough to consent to medical treatment or whether parent/carer consent is needed – as is the case with all GPs in the community
  • the right for a young person’s health information to be kept confidential will be respected unless the disclosure is with the consent of the young person or it is otherwise permitted by law – as is the case with all GP practice in the community.

Information for parents and students is available in the Consent and Confidentiality Policy in the Guidance tab.

School program lead

Schools must appoint a leading teacher or assistant principal as a School Program Lead (SPL) to hold overall responsibility for program coordination for their school. Participating schools are funded the equivalent of a 0.2 FTE Leading Teacher Entry Level pay rate through the Student Resource Package for the SPL’s time spent on the program.

Further information about the funding for this position is available in the Student Resource Package – Targeted Initiatives policy. A SPL’s key roles and responsibilities include:

  • providing leadership in the school regarding the implementation of the program
  • supporting the GP and PN to deliver primary health care to students
  • collaborating with the PN to ensure effective management of the service including making of appointments and supporting maintaining students’ confidentiality
  • understanding and applying the consent and confidentiality requirements that apply to the GP, the PN and the school and, where required, support the GP/PN to obtain consent from parents
  • integrating the GP and PN service into the school’s broader health and wellbeing programs
  • supporting the GP and PN to work collaboratively with the department’s Area-based Health, Wellbeing Specialist Support Staff, including Secondary School Nurses
  • providing education and leadership around parent/school community involvement in the program
  • ensuring compliance to relevant privacy legislation and providing a child safe environment in accordance with the Child Safe StandardsExternal Link and Mandatory Reporting requirements
  • building a positive relationship with the local medical centre and facilitating partnerships with community health providers for the benefit of students.

Further information on how to run a high-performing program is available in the best practice guide on the Resources tab.

Contractual requirements

While no funding or payment is exchanged between participating schools and medical centres, schools must have a licence agreement with their partnering medical centre to authorise GPs and PNs to work on school grounds. This is the responsibility of the school council.

The school licence agreement is available on the Resources tab.

Further information is available in the Operational guide (DOCX) (staff login required)External Link .

Infrastructure

Participating schools are provided with modern fit-for-purpose GP consultation facilities, as set out in the Operational guide (DOCX) (staff login required)External Link .

Schools are responsible for cleaning and maintenance of these facilities, including the provision of appropriate waste disposal bins. Refer to Facilities cleaning and maintenanceExternal Link on the Guidance tab for additional information.

Relevant legislation

Guidance

Background

The law is clear on consent for medical treatment by a general practitioner (GP), as it relates to minors:

  • Students who are not mature minors cannot give consent to their own medical treatment.
  • Students who are mature minors or 18 years and over can consent to their own medical treatment.
  • Mature minors are students who are under the age of 18 years who have sufficient maturity and cognitive and emotional capacity to understand the nature and consequences of seeking and obtaining health care, as determined by the GP. Refer to Mature Minors and Decision Making.

In the case of the Doctors in Secondary Schools programExternal Link , as in ordinary practice in the community, the GP is responsible for assessing if a young person is a mature minor with respect to the issue for which they are seeking medical treatment.

For the purposes of this policy, confidentiality refers to the ability of young people to ensure information discussed with the GP within the Doctors in Secondary Schools program is not shared with others unless it is with the consent of the young person or it is otherwise permitted by the law.

It is recommended that schools provide students and their parents/carers with the program’s consent and confidentiality factsheets at the beginning of each school year.

Detailed factsheets for parents/carers and students are available in the Resources tab.

  • Any student who wants to see the GP will be permitted to make an appointment. The GP will decide if the young person is mature enough to provide consent to any medical treatment for the presenting issue.
  • In the case of students who are deemed not to be mature minors, the GP will then seek consent from the parent or carer prior to any treatment from the GP.
  • Students who are deemed to be mature minors can provide their own consent to the GP consultation and treatment.
  • There are many situations where GPs would prefer parents and carers to be involved, and in these cases, the GP will work with the young person to encourage parent or carer involvement.
  • If a parent or carer expressly states at any time during the school year that the GP in the school should not treat their child then the following procedure will be followed:
    • Generally, all secondary school aged students will be considered mature enough to make a decision to see the GP and the GP will then decide whether the student is a mature minor for the purposes of seeking medical treatment for the presenting issue.
    • If the School Program Lead (SPL) decides that the student is not a mature minor for the purposes of making an appointment with the GP, the SPL will inform the GP that the parent or carer of that student has not consented to the student attending the GP. If the student seeks to make an appointment with the GP at any future time, the SPL will reconsider whether the student is, at that time, a mature minor for the purposes of making an appointment. The SPL and principal can seek advice from Legal Division if necessary by emailing legal.services@education.vic.gov.au or calling 03 9637 3146.
    • Where a SPL is in doubt about whether the student is a mature minor for the purposes of making an appointment to see the GP, they should consult with relevant school staff. They must also consult with the GP (without disclosing the student’s identity, unless they have consent). In most cases, it will be in the best interests of the student to allow the student to make an appointment and the GP can then make an assessment about maturity for treatment.

Detailed factsheets for parents/carers and students are available in the Resources tab.

Confidentiality policy

Under the Doctors in Secondary Schools program, the right for a young person’s health information to be kept confidential will be respected unless the disclosure is:

  • with the consent of the young person or
  • otherwise permitted by the law.

In the case of mature minors, the following exceptions to the GP's duty of confidentiality will apply:

  • the young person consents to the disclosure
  • the disclosure is necessary to lessen or prevent a serious and imminent threat to any person’s life, health, safety or welfare. For example, the young person is at imminent risk of harming themselves or others
  • the disclosure is necessary to prevent a serious threat to public health, safety or welfare. For example, the young person has a notifiable disease
  • there is another legal requirement for the disclosure. For example:
    • the GP forms a belief on reasonable grounds that a child is in need of protection from physical injury or sexual abuse. This is a mandatory report
    • there is an emergency, and it is necessary to contact Victoria Police or ambulance services to attend to the emergency
    • the GP has received a subpoena to produce documents in a court proceeding, and the information and documents are disclosed to comply with this obligation.

For students who are not considered mature minors, the following process will apply:

  • health information will be shared with a parent or carer
  • health information may be disclosed to a third party if permitted by law or with the consent of the parent or carer.

It is also important to note that parents and carers will have access to their child’s health information (including date of visit and medical practitioner’s name) through Medicare for children under 14 years of age who are listed on their Medicare card, without the consent of the child.

For more information, please visit the Doctors in secondary schoolsExternal Link or email doctors.in.schools@education.vic.gov.au with any questions.

Facilities cleaning and maintenance

Cleaning Doctors in Secondary Schools clinic facilities

Schools must keep the GP consulting rooms and adjoining facilities to a standard of cleanliness in line with the standards outlined in the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) standardsExternal Link .

Schools may choose to expand the brief of existing school cleaning contractors to clean Doctors in Secondary Schools clinics. For schools in regional areas, the cost of cleaning is covered by an equivalent increase in the Student Resource Package (SRP). For schools in metropolitan areas, cleaning is administered centrally by the Cleaning Reform Team, which includes cleaning of program facilities.

Schools must provide 2 waste disposal bins suitable for biohazard waste. Several companies handle bulk biohazard waste, as it needs to be disposed of according to Environmental Protection Agency legislative requirements and the RACGP standards.

The cleaning responsibilities for the school GP consulting room are not expected to be burdensome for schools as they are only used for a limited time each week. Schools accessing the facility for other uses when the GP is not in attendance must ensure cleanliness standards are not compromised because of additional use of the facility.

For more information, please refer to the Cleaning policy.

Maintenance of Doctors in Secondary Schools clinic facilities

Participating schools receive an increase in their funding for building maintenance through the SRP. Schools are requested to address maintenance issues with program facilities as they would for standard building maintenance issues.

Duress alarm systems

Facilities are equipped with duress alarms, which can be activated whenever there is an emergency or if an individual feels unable to handle a threatening situation at the clinic site.

Refer to Appendix 8 in the Operational guide (DOCX) (staff login required)External Link .

School responsibilities

It is the responsibility of the school to be familiar with the process and adhere to the duress alarm policy and related procedure.

The school office/administration manager is responsible for the annual test run of the Duress Alarm system. All staff onsite at the time of the test are to actively participate. A record of each Duress Alarm system test is to be recorded in the regional OHS Activities Calendar and the school’s Emergency Management Plan record.

The school’s office/administration manager must also ensure that school staff who are at the school reception office:

  • are competent in the use of the Duress Alarm system
  • arrange training for new GPs, PNs and school staff in the use of Duress Alarm at the beginning of their appointment to the school.

When a Duress Alarm is activated:

  • the alarm will activate a blue flashing strobe light in the school reception office, and in the PNs room or program administration area. A phone call should be made by school office administration staff to the GP or PN to ascertain the cause of the activation
  • if safe to do so, school staff are to assist/support the GP or PN as necessary by visiting the clinic site
  • if not safe to visit the clinic site, remain inside a secure area
  • the alarm will not notify Victoria Police. Instead, school administration staff and the department’s Security Unit will be notified
  • school staff are to ring Victoria Police on 000 if necessary
  • the Security Unit will phone the school and ask staff if they require Victoria Police. If Victoria Police are not required, the Security Unit will ask for a name (school staff member) to close off the Duress Alarm from the alarm monitoring system.

If the Duress Alarm is activated accidentally:

  • the Duress Alarm should be reset by the GP or PN, seeking support from school staff if required
  • the Security Unit should be contacted on 1800 126 126 to advise of the false alarm, and for the Duress Alarm to be closed on the alarm monitoring system.

IT support

SPLs are the first point of contact for IT support and facilitate communication between the GP or PN and school Specialist Technicians (ST) to resolve any IT issues the GP or PN may experience with their program-issued laptop.

The ST can assist with laptop issues including password, MS Office configuration and internet connectivity. The SPL should connect the GP or PN and the ST if support is required. GPs, PNs and Primary Health Networks should not contact the school ST directly for IT support.

Given the part-time presence of both GPs, PNs and STs on school sites, the SPL may be required to facilitate the support provided by the ST where appropriate.

Where issues need to be escalated, the SPL can email the department’s central Doctors in Secondary Schools team at doctors.in.schools@education.vic.gov.au with a description of the issue, who is experiencing the issue and the ST or medical centre IT analysis if conducted.

Resources

Resources

Reviewed 27 February 2020