Key messages
- Urgent Care Centres are a key entry point into the Victorian healthcare system for people living in rural and regional communities.
- Patients presenting to Urgent Care Centres will be assessed to determine the best option for their care. These options can include:
- definitive care at a Urgent Care Centre (care that meets all the patient’s clinical needs and is within the scope of the clinician and the health service)
- a recommendation to see their General Practitioner (GP)
- transfer to a higher level of care at a larger health service or a specialist/tertiary metropolitan health service.
- Under the Victorian Trauma System, there are 3 levels of descending care in regional areas:
- Regional Trauma Services which provide resuscitation and stabilisation and may provide definitive care. That is, care that meets all the patient’s clinical needs and is within scope of the clinician and the health service.
- Urgent Care Centres which offer initial resuscitation and stabilisation before a patient is transported.
- Primary care services (PCS) which offer limited resuscitation before a patient is transported.
- Other services available to rural and regional communities that provide urgent care services include:
- Video call with Virtual Emergency Care
- Phone call with Nurse-on-Call Tel. 1300 60 60 24
- Phone call with Maternal and Child Health Tel. 13 22 29
Urgent Care Centres
There are 71 Urgent Care Centres across rural and regional Victoria.
Urgent Care Centres are staffed by urgent care nurses, who provide initial assessment and treatment for any urgent health concern.
The nurse may involve a General Practitioner (GP) or hospital doctor in the provision of care. This can happen over the phone, by video consult, or in person. A decision will be made whether care can be provided at the centre or whether hospital admission or transfer to another healthcare facility is required.
Fees may be incurred if the local GP is required to be called in and/or if related blood tests and x-rays are required. If a fee is to be charged, the patient will be informed before treatment.
If an ambulance transfer to another health service is required, this transfer will be covered by the patient's Ambulance Victoria membership. If they do not have membership, they may be liable for the cost of the transfer.
Please note that Urgent Care Centres in rural and regional Victoria and Urgent Care Clinics have different operating models. All Urgent Care Clinics are free and GP led. Urgent Care Centre offerings can vary. The list of the Urgent Care Centres can be found on the Better Health .
Models of care toolkit
The Models of care toolkit informs the ongoing development of Urgent Care Centre models of care and the way healthcare is delivered in the rural and regional urgent care setting. The models of care are multidisciplinary and multifaceted. All models are required to meet the Victorian Government’s performance standards and clinical governance framework, which incorporate both quality and safety standards.
This resource will assist rural health services in the development and review of urgent care by describing the existing practices in Victoria’s rural and regional Urgent Care Centres and highlighting key considerations for their implementation.
Regional trauma services
Visit our trauma services page for more information.
Reviewed 21 August 2025