Getting started with My Health Record

The Australian Digital Health Agency has developed a suite of educational resources for GPs - including training simulators, summary sheets, eLearning modules and webinars - on how to perform tasks and practice using My Health Record before introducing it into their day-to-day practise. 

Registering your practice

To use My Health Record with patients, healthcare providers and their healthcare organisation must complete a number of steps, including:

• Registering for the My Health Record system. Your organisation will be provided with a Healthcare Provider Identifier - Organisation (HPI-O)
• If your healthcare providers do not know their Healthcare Provider Identifier - Individual (HPI-I) number they need to contact AHPRA 
• Creating a My Health Record policy
• Obtaining a NASH PKI certificate

The My Health Record website also provides an overview of implementing My Health Record in your healthcare organisation.

My Health Record practice policy

Rule 42 of the My Health Records Rule requires healthcare provider organisations to have, communicate and enforce a written Security and Access policy in order to register, and remain registered, to use the My Health Record system.

The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner website provides guidance on meeting these legislative requirements, along with a policy template that practices can use. 

Creating roles and responsibilities within the practice

Practices are required to have a person/s who identified as the Responsible Officer (RO) and an Organisation Maintenance Officer (OMO) in their practice.

• An RO oversees the practice’s legal compliance and sets up procedures to facilitate compliance with My Health Record legislation. For organisations such as a general practice, the RO may be the business owner or the practice manager.
• An OMO is responsible for implementation and compliance monitoring of My Health Record policy, and for maintenance of the policy within the practice.

A practice can only have one RO but may have multiple OMO’s.

The Practice Incentives Payment eHealth Incentive (ePIP)

• The ‘Practice Incentives Program eHealth Incentive’ (ePIP) provides remuneration to practices for conducting various digital health activities, including participation in My Health Record.
• There are a number of requirements practices must meet in order to receive ePIP payments – more information on the eligibility requirements can be found here.
• The requirement related to My Health Record is the upload of Shared Health Summaries. Practices must upload Shared Health Summaries for a minimum of 0.5% of the practice’s standardised whole patient equivalent (SWPE) count of patients per PIP payment quarter.