Practitioners are free, within their scope of care, to determine:
- the appropriate clinical care they provide to each patient
- the specialists and other health professionals to whom they refer patients
- the pathology, diagnostic imaging, or other investigations they order, along with the provider of these services
- the clinically appropriate appointment type for each consultation, including telehealth
- how and when to schedule follow-up appointments with each patient.
All members of the clinical team are required to, within the boundaries of their knowledge, skills, and competence, comply with the professional and ethical obligations required by law and their relevant professional organisation. Information about relevant codes of conduct is available at the Ahpra website.
The aspects of clinical autonomy described in this criterion do not override requirements bound by training or registration. For example, a GP registrar may have limitations on the duration and scheduling of appointments imposed by their training requirements.