eHealthNT

eHealthNT implementation is a joint initiative of the Australian Government's Department of Health and Ageing and the Northern Territory Government's Department of Health and Community Services

Information for Health Professionals

Consent to participate

Consent for information to be sent and viewed through the Shared Electronic Health Record is ongoing. At the time of registering to participate in the Shared Electronic Health Record, individuals consent to an initial health profile being sent to their record by their nominated health care provider who is registered with Shared Electronic Health Record. The health profile may be updated from time to time. The individual may withdraw this consent at any time or decide that information about an episode of care will not be sent to, or viewed in, the Shared Electronic Health Record. The individual may seek your assistance for this to occur.

Transmission of Information

The Shared Electronic Health Record uses HeSA's PKI and SSL encryption for the secure transfer of health information to ensure the highest standards in safety and privacy. Health data is sent and retrieved from the Shared Electronic Health Record using International Standard HL7 messaging.

Health professionals access

Health professionals can apply for access to the Shared Electronic Health Record by completing a registration form, which includes agreeing to comply with the relevant privacy protocol. The form is authorised by their manager and forwarded to the Shared Electronic Health Record Clinical Services Manager. In the case of Northern Territory Government health professionals, the Department of Health and Community Services Security Access Officer will authorise the form. Once approved, a user name and password is provided to the applicant and the Shared Electronic Health Record can be accessed through the local Clinical Information System or through a web page on the internet.

Health information

The health information in the Shared Electronic Health Record includes the following: adverse reactions, allergies, current medical diagnoses, current medications, NT public hospital discharge summaries for both admissions to a ward or the Emergency Department, immunisations, medical reports, primary care consultation summaries and recent pathology test and investigation results.

Continuum of Care

The Shared Electronic Health Record is focused on providing health professionals with immediate access to health information across the continuum of care for individuals, from their nominated health centre or GP and NT public hospitals.

Cost

There are no initial or ongoing costs to either the individual or the health professional to participate in the Shared Electronic Health Record. There may be infrastructure costs for computers and internet services if these are not already in the clinical environment.

Automation

The technical design of the Shared Electronic Health Record has resulted in a user-friendly interface for ease of use by health professionals. Integration into local Clinical Information Systems enables health professionals to send and view the information in the Shared Electronic Health Record with the click of a mouse.

At the end of a clinical consultation, or verification of a medical report, the health professional's own system will provide a prompt via a tick box to send the information to the Shared Electronic Health Record. At the click of a button a report will be sent to the record. If the tick box is not clicked the report will not be sent.

Participation in the Shared Electronic Health Record saves time and enables immediate access to important medical information at the point of care.