Allied Health

Non-diagnostic hearing screening

Our services include non-diagnostic hearing screening assessments for children and adults from 4 years of age.

Dependant on the results of this screening process clients may be requested to attend a review hearing screening appointment (generally between 6-12 weeks) or will be referred for further hearing services provided by visiting audiologists from either Hearing Australia, Deadly Ears or private service providers.

Visiting Hearing Services

Hearing Australia – service available for people between 8 months - 26 years, pension card holders, Indigenous over the age of 50. Hearing Australia visit once per month for four days.

Deadly Ears program for Indigenous children aged 0-16 years who visit 4 times a year.

Clarity Hearing Solutions currently provide private audiology services.

The Cardiac Clinical Measurements unit provides diagnostic cardiac testing for inpatients and outpatients at Mount Isa Base Hospital. Appointments are conducted through a Telehealth service with a Cardiac Scientist and Cardiology Registrar from the Royal Brisbane & Women’s Hospital.

Upon arrival at the Outpatients Department, please check in at reception and take a seat in the waiting room.

Our services:
Access to these services requires a referral from your General Practitioner or a Clinician.

• Holter Monitoring
• Exercise Stress Testing
• Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring
• Electrocardiograms (ECG)

What to bring to your appointment:

• Appointment letter
• List of current medications
• Appropriate exercise clothing for stress tests
• Your Medicare card

The Nutrition and Dietetics Department provides a comprehensive service to inpatients and outpatients within the North West Hospital and Health Service, across the continuum of care. Patients are seen locally and via videoconference across the wider region.

We work closely with our community partners to provide dietetics and alongside our other allied health teams to service patients of all ages. Our team works with the food services department to provide inpatients with nutritious meals and snacks, and oversee clinical placements of students each year.

To see a dietitian please make contact with a member of the team by calling (07) 4744 4447.  

The occupational therapy department aims to provide high standard services to Mount Isa Hospital. We believe consumer driven goal setting, holistic care, evidence-based practice, quality improvement and education are important to the service.

Occupational therapy helps people to gain or regain the skills of everyday activities which are important for an individual’s safety, function and quality of life. Functional independence is a core concept and goal of occupational therapy and the following services are available:

• Assessing and treatment of functioning in daily activities
• Assisting with the development of goals and achievement of those goals
• Providing rehabilitation for conditions and injuries
• Conducting home visit assessments
• Prescribing aids and equipment to assist with independence
• Educating, advising and promoting health
• Recommendations for minor and major modifications
• Discharge planning
• Activity/ task modification
• Compression therapy
• Hand therapy and splinting
• Provision of work simplification and energy conservation techniques

Inpatient services

Occupational therapy services are available for inpatients admitted to Mount Isa Hospital as part of the medical and surgical ward, ICU, emergency department, paediatric ward and oncology/palliative care. We assist with facilitation of safe discharge from hospital by considering the home environment, functional independence and physical and cognitive ability. Referrals are triaged and patients are seen based on their needs. Services can include:

• Upper limb and hand therapy
• Fabrication and prescription of splints
• Home exercise programs, oedema and scar management for hand injuries and trauma
• Referrals for orthopaedic conditions
• Prescription of equipment (shower chairs, over toilet frames)
• Home assessment and recommendations
• Assessment and training of personal activities of daily living
• Education for energy conservation, falls prevention and work simplification
• Compression for vascular conditions
• Compression, exercise prescription and scar management for burns
• Encopresis

Hand Therapy Clinic

Assessment and treatment of a range of hand injuries including tendon repairs, fractures, finger dislocations, burns, nerve injury/repairs, multi-trauma, carpel tunnel syndrome, De Quervains tenosynovitis and Dupuytren’s contracture. Services include:

• Splint prescription and fabrication
• Oedema management
• Wound and scar management for the hands
• Exercise prescription to promote movement, strength and function
• Patient education
• Sensory assessment
• Desensitisation

Lymphodema Clinic

This clinic provides assessment, treatment and education for patients with primary or secondary lymphoedema.

• Compression therapy including multi-layered compression for reduction and garments for maintenance
• Skin care and precautions and education
• Scar management
• Energy conservation and participation in activities of daily living

General Occupational

• Follow up home visit assessment for clients discharged from hospital (within a two week period)
• Scar management and compression for burns
• Exercise program to maintain and facilitate movement following burns

Baby Development Clinic 0-2 years

This is a clinic for children with a history of prematurely, low birth weight and/or a complex medical issue.  A speech pathologist, physiotherapist, occupational therapist and dietitian are present for the clinic. 

The focus of the clinic is on assessment and education of the family to promote development and educate regarding possible difficulties the child may have. 

Contact Us

Amelia Cowley (Occupational Therapist) (07) 4744 1504
Hannah Russell (Occupational Therapist): (07) 4744 8185
Charmaine Nicols (Allied Health Assistant): (07) 4764 1227

Our service provides medicines management services for inpatients, outpatients and day admitted patients in the North West Hospital and Health Service including facilities located off-site.  A core function of the pharmacy department focuses on promoting the quality use of medicine principles and safe medication practices through:

• Patient medication dispensing
• Medication history taking, reconciliation and medication chart review;
• Patient education and medication counselling to inpatients and outpatients;
• Therapeutic drug monitoring service;
• Involvement in consultant ward rounds;
• Patient educations;
• Management of supply of medicines and claim of Section 85 (PBS) and Section 100 medicines;
• Support for indigenous health initiatives; and
• Training and ongoing education of staff and undergraduate students

Public hours of service:

8.30am – 12.30am and 1.30pm – 4pm

Outreach Service:

North West Hospital and Health Service has a dedicated outreach pharmacist, who travels around to all facilities within NWHHS including hospitals and health clinics. The regular visits allow clinical pharmacy input into patient care in these sites, a review of practices pertaining to the acquisition, storage and supply of medications and ensuring that these practices meet the requirements of the Queensland Health (drugs and poisons) regulations (1996).  These visits also allow the opportunity for the outreach pharmacist to provide education and training to staff in these facilities who are responsible for the medication management pathway.

Physiotherapy assists individuals to reach their best functional capacity. Physiotherapists services provide assessment, information, exercise advise and intervention to assist patients with cardiorespiratory, neurological, and musculoskeletal conditions.

Our services:

Our team provides services to both inpatients and outpatients. Physiotherapy staff are available at the Mount Isa Hospital from Monday to Friday, 8:00am – 4:30pm.

Some of our clinical services include:

• Mobility assessments and functional retraining
• Prescription and training in the use of mobility aids
• Falls prevention
• Post-operative management
• Management of respiratory conditions and symptoms
• Discharge planning
• Management of musculoskeletal conditions and pain
• Exercise prescription

Limited physiotherapy services are also available at:

• Cloncurry
• Julia Creek

Please contact Allied Health Reception on 4744 4447 for additional information.

Provides a podiatric clinical service for clients identified as being 'at risk' or 'high risk' of lower limb/foot complications/amputation(s) across North West Hospital and Health Service.

Our aim is to facilitate excellence in clinical service delivery through the provision of evidence based podiatric care, with a strong focus on support and client centred care.

Podiatrist role also includes:

• Provide education & health promotion to clients, carers and other health professionals on pedal health and wound management
• Maintenance and improvement of client mobility to strengthen their independence
• Education programs for hospital staff and community groups
• Professional consultancy, support and advice
• Inter-district professional support

Mount Isa Social Work Unit

The Social Work department encompasses both inpatient and outpatient care to all areas of the North West Hospital and Health Service as well as providing an outpatient counselling clinic on Monday and Tuesday afternoons.

• Counselling and support eg: emotional issues, financial concerns, relationship issues, grief and loss
• Advocacy
• Adult guardian and/or guardianship and administration tribunal
• Referrals to other organisations and agencies
• Advance Care Planning
• Practical difficulties (eg: accommodation alternatives, problem solving skills, illiteracy)
• Domestic and family violence
• Acute Sexual Assault
• Organisation and participation at family meetings
• Organise and participate in discharge planning
• Behavioural issues
• Psychosocial assessments
• Support with age care placement

Speech Pathology and Hearing

Speech Pathology is a health profession that involves assessment, diagnosis and treatment of individuals who are unable to communicate effectively. Communication disabilities are a result of problems with speech, using and understanding language, voice, fluency, reading and writing. People who experience problems with feeding and swallowing food and drink safely can also be helped by a speech pathologist.

Speech pathologists work with people and their families/carers, often as part of a multidisciplinary team with other health professionals, to provide individual treatment, group programs, home-based programs and resources for ongoing management of communication and swallowing difficulties. 

The Mount Isa Hospital speech pathology department provides a variety of outpatient and inpatient services, to patients across the lifespan.

Paediatric Outpatient Services (0-5 years)

• Assessment and therapy for children with delayed speech or language skills.
• Providing therapy programs for children and neonates who have feeding impairments or who are fussy eaters.
• Working with children who stutter.
• Assessment and therapy for children with global developmental delays, hearing impairment, cleft palate etc.
• Assessment and management for children and infants with a history of prematurity or at risk of developmental delay.

Adult Outpatient Services

• Assessment and management of communication and swallowing disorders as a result of stroke, acquired brain injury or degenerative disease e.g. Motor Neuron Disease, Parkinson’s disease etc.
• Giving advice and providing follow up regarding swallowing issues post radiation therapy or surgical management, for patients with head and neck cancer.
• Provision of alternative and augmentative communication options for patients with acquired or degenerative communication disorders.
• Diagnosing voice disorders and providing vocal rehabilitation.

Specialised Outpatient Clinics

The speech pathology department participate in a range of multidisciplinary outpatient paediatric clinics. These include:

Baby development clinic (0-2 years): This is a clinic for children with a history of prematurely, low birth weight and/or a complex medical issue.  A speech pathologist, physiotherapist, occupational therapist and dietitian are present for the clinic.  The focus of the clinic is on assessment and education of the family to promote development and educate regarding possible difficulties the child may have. 

Joint speech pathology and dietetic feeding clinic (0-5 years): For children with feeding difficulties, FTT or at risk of FTT, food aversions or fussy eating which may be associated with co-morbidities such as autism, cerebral palsy, allergies etc.

Inpatient Services

Speech pathologists working within Mount Isa Hospital provide preventative advice, comprehensive assessment and speech pathology intervention within the multi-disciplinary team.  The focus of clinical services at the Mount Isa Hospital is acute care for inpatients in the following areas:

• Emergency department
• Medical ward
• Surgical ward
• Intensive care unit
• Cancer care
• Paediatric ward
• Maternity ward

Normal working hours for inpatient clinical speech pathology services include Monday to Friday 8.00am-4.30pm.