There are some simple steps that can be taken to ensure your patients make the most of their entitlement.
Educate them on their entitlement:
If a patient is expected to lose their hair, then you can discuss the option of getting suitable headwear and/or a wig at any time before or during their treatment. For men the choice of headwear is an easy one … and many women opt to go for hats over wigs too. But, being a division of Simply Wigs, we would always like ladies to consider their options carefully before making a decision, as if they spend their subsidy on headwear, then there will be less or even nothing (if they use their full entitlement) to subsidise the cost of a wig if they later decide they want one.
This discussion is usually had during Patient Education and Orientation before treatment commences.
However, patients are often overwhelmed in the early stages of diagnosis and treatment, and so they often need reminding of the service either once treatment has commenced or during their sessions with psychologists, social workers, radiation technicians, support services etc.
Provide them with the appropriate Medical Certificate:
To qualify for a subsidy, patients need to submit a letter signed by a Hospital Specialist, GP or Healthcare Professional in addition to a claim form that they complete and sign.
The certificate must include:
- Patient details including NHI and date of birth – a patient label is ideal
- Cause of hair loss – e.g. chemotherapy, radiotherapy, surgery, hormone treatment or a medical condition such as alopecia, trichillotomania, lupus
- And the words “This is a temporary condition” OR “This is a permanent condition” as appropriate.
It needs to be current (dated within the last 6 months) and signed by the Healthcare Professional on Facility Letterhead. The Ministry of Health only accepts original signed certificates; any replicas including emails, faxes, scans or photocopies cannot be submitted.
Example of Proforma certificates can be found in the Forms Folder in your area.
Help them to access our service
Getting free headwear via a cashless transaction is now possible through this website www.hat-tricks.co.nz.
Patients just need to follow the claim process on our Home page.
Alternatively, we can provide a mail order service where we select the pack based on preferences the client provides, but with no particular items guaranteed. Please Contact us if you need us to provide you with some of our paper patient forms :-)