Pathology and diagnostic imaging reports

This can be communicated via your practice software by checking the ‘Do not send reports to My Health Record’ tick box. Most clinical information systems have this functionality, a full list of conformant systems can be found on the Australian Digital Health Agency website here.

Alternatively, patients can mark a tick box on the paper request form to request that their report is not uploaded to My Heath Record, or the request can simply be written as a note on the form. A request to not send a report to My Health Record will apply to all tests included in an eRequest or on a paper form.

Test results will not be uploaded to a patient’s My Health Record where existing State or Territory legislation prohibits the disclosure of sensitive information without the patient’s express consent. Information about which reports are covered by this in different States and Territories is available here. 

If a test result has already been uploaded to a patient’s My Health Record patients can apply access controls to remove the document, restrict access, or hide it from view. Information on privacy and access controls can be found here.

While patient consent is not required to share reports to My Health Record, it is considered good clinical practice to advise a patient and their authorised/nominated representatives that their test reports will be uploaded, particularly if this information might be considered sensitive.

Patients also need to be provided with the option to not have a report uploaded.

Practices can communicate information on pathology and diagnostic imaging report uploads to My Health Record by:

• including information in existing practice documents such as the practice privacy policy and patient registration forms
• adding details to the practice website, patient newsletters and social media channels

The RACGP has developed a Privacy policy template for general practices to adapt, to meet their obligations under the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs). The template should be used as a guide and it is important each practice adapts its content to their individual procedures.  

When a request is created from a patient record within your CIS, an eRequest is automatically sent to the selected pathology provider. A paper request form is printed at the same time. The paper request form contains a barcode that can be scanned by the pathology provider, and patients can choose to attend a different provider should they wish to do so.

If you would like to begin using eRequesting, you must first ensure that your practice is using a compatible CIS and that your preferred pathology providers can receive eRequests from their software. The next step is to contact your preferred pathology providers to have eRequesting set up between your system and theirs. Once the functionality has been switched on, eRequesting happens automatically.

Pathology providers can upload eRequested results to a patient’s My Health Record which are available to view immediately after upload by the requesting GP and other healthcare providers accessing the patient’s My Health Record.

It is important to note that all pathology reports, whether paper-based or generated via eRequesting functionality, will always be sent directly to the requesting GP using the existing processes in place.

The Australian Digital Health Agency's Pathology and diagnostic imaging providers uploading to My Health Record webpage contains an up-to-date list of the general practice CISs and providers able to participate in eRequesting.

RACGP

• eRequesting for pathology and diagnostic imaging – Information for GPs
• Pathology and Diagnostic Imaging reports in My Health Record on-demand webinar

Australian Digital Health Agency

• Diagnostic imaging and pathology providers uploading to My Health Record
• My Health Record online training
• Clinical software simulators and demonstrations