More Progress in e-health Consultation and Engagement

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7 July 2011

Two important milestones in the development of Australia’s e-health system have been met with the key appointment of the National Change and Adoption Partner and the release of the Personally Controlled Electronic Health Record System: Legislation issues paper.

“E-health records will drive safer, more efficient and better quality healthcare for Australians. It is one of the important elements of national health reform,” Minister Roxon said.

“Patients will no longer have to remember every immunisation, every medical test, and every prescription as they move from doctor to doctor.

A consortium headed by McKinsey and Company has been selected to lead the national change and adoption process as Australia moves to introduce Personally Controlled Electronic Health Records (PCEHR) next year.

“The National Change and Adoption Partner will help educate and support the training and information needs of the health workforce who will use the system,” Minister Roxon said.

“The consortium will plan, design and develop training, guidance and tools in collaboration with clinicians and software providers. It will also provide change management support for clinicians including at the 12 lead implementation sites.

“From 1 July 2012, Australians will be able to choose to have a personal eHealth record, giving individuals a level of control over their health information never previously available.

“For doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other health professionals, PCEHRs will help transform Australia’s health system, improving the security of patient information and allowing for better clinical assessments and more efficient, effective treatment.”

“The Commonwealth is investing up to $29.9 million for this important contract for e health implementation.

The Gillard Government is also releasing today for consultation the Personally Controlled Electronic Health Record System: Legislation issues paper. This follows the Concept of Operations document previously released for consultation.

“The paper canvasses a range of comprehensive measures, including new original legislation and proposed changes to legislation, to safeguard personal health information.

“People need to have confidence in the safety and security of their medical information, and strong legislation will be at the heart of this protective framework.

“This current consultation is focused on achieving clear, complementary and workable legal arrangements to support implementation of the PCEHR system.

“It is proposed that health information within the PCEHR system will be protected through a combination of legislation, governance and security and technology measures,” said Minister Roxon.

The Change and Adoption Partner consortium led by McKinsey and Company also includes PricewaterhouseCoopers, Hill & Knowlton, Workstar, Event Planet, Ocean Informatics, Alfred Health, Salmat and the Australian General Practice Network (AGPN).

Submissions made on the Personally Controlled Electronic Health Record System: Legislation issues paper will inform the drafting of legislation around the PCEHR system. Draft legislation will later be released for a further round of public consultation before introduction in Parliament later this year.

The legislation issues paper may be viewed, and submissions made, at www.yourhealth.gov.au, for a period of four weeks until 5pm Wednesday 3 August 2011.

For all media inquiries, please contact the Minister's Office on 0409 945 476