Cat 1 · 30 days
appointment within 30 calendar days. - New onset, suspected or recently diagnosed rheumatoid arthritis - Active established rheumatoid arthritis requiring escalation of management
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Rheumatology · Refer Your Patient
Rheumatoid Arthritis
Copied from the official Gold Coast Health condition page (27 Aug 2026). Hospital triage assigns the official category. Live source: Refer Your Patient — Rheumatoid Arthritis.
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Cat 2 · 90 days
appointment within 90 calendar days. - Known rheumatoid arthritis on established conventional or biologic/targeted synthetic DMARDs (b/tsDMARDs)
Cat 3 · 365 days
appointment within 365 calendar days. - No category 3 criteria
Essential referral information
Referral will be returned without this. If a mandatory test cannot be obtained, say so in the referral.
- Onset of inflammatory arthritis symptoms, timing of evolution and rate of deterioration - Number and location of swollen, tender joints and other examination findings - Duration of early morning stiffness (greater or less than 30 minutes) - Anti-CCP and Rheumatoid factor (RF) - If on a b/tsDMARD (Specialist only prescribed medication) please state the timeframe for renewal, and last renewed - FBC, E/LFTs CRP, ESR
Out of scope / wrong door
- There are currently no out of scope conditions for this service.
Parent service: Rheumatology
Send outpatient referrals to
- Smart Referrals preferred (Best Practice or Medical Director)
- Medical Objects GQ42150009Z (lookup qh → QHEALTH, GOLD COAST HEALTH OUTPATIENT)
- HealthLink EDI Qldgchsd
- Fax (07) 5687 4497 — Booking and Referral Centre
- Post: Booking and Referral Centre, Gold Coast University Hospital, 1 Hospital Boulevard, Southport QLD 4215
- Clinic enquiries 1300 559 083
HealthPathways
Sign in for localised assessment and management. HealthPathways does not send the referral. Register: gchealthpathways@health.qld.gov.au