The Australian Digital Health Agency has selected nine software companies to take part in a scheme to integrate the My Health Record with systems used by medical specialists.
The offer to the industry was made in May and involves up to $40,000 to add functionality to clinical software to encourage specialists to use the My Health Record in private practice.
The successful vendors are:
|
|
While some of the vendors already offer My Health Record functionality, the offer includes scope to focus on ways to make that functionality more useful.
It involves a co-design process with ADHA that will see the vendor retain their intellectual property.
ADHA chief operating officer Bettina McMahon told Pulse+IT in May that the offer is part of a bigger focus on digitising the specialist sector, as outlined in the agency's work program for the National Digital Health Strategy, in the next 12 months.
ADHA said in a statement that while many specialists already use My Health Record in public and private hospitals, having easy access to the system in their private clinics as well will ensure a more complete picture of a patient is available during specialist consultations and improve continuity across care settings.
Royal Australasian College of Physicians president Mark Lane said having real-time access would enable specialists to make more informed decisions about patient care and ultimately improve patient outcomes.
“Having seamless and secure access to My Health Record at the time of a consultation will help ensure specialists are equipped with as much information about a patient as possible when making a challenging clinical decision, such as recommending a course of treatment,” Associate Professor Lane said.
From PulseIT. Written by Kate McDonald on 04 July 2019.