Secure Messaging
Secure Messaging enables healthcare providers to send and receive sensitive and confidential clinical information like referrals, reports, pathology and radiology requests, results and discharge summaries in a secure and encrypted environment.
Benefits of using Secure Messaging
- Integrates directly with clinical software systems
- Makes critical patient information is more readily available and accessible
- Reduces the chances of communication breakdown
- Records send and receive audit trails
- Enables providers to receive priority clinical information in real time.
General practices registered for the eHealth Practice Incentive Payment (ePIP), require the “practice to have a standards-compliant secure messaging capability to electronically transmit and receive clinical messages to and from other healthcare providers, use it where feasible, and have a written policy to encourage its use in place.”
Find more information about the ePIP on the My Health record website.
Resources and Fact Sheets
The ADHA has developed unique factsheets for allied health providers, GPs, practice managers and specialists regarding the set-up of secure messaging. Find more information about secure messaging on the Australian Digital Health Agency (ADHA) website.
Secure Messaging Vendors
HealthLink
Smart Forms
Healthlink Smart Forms is an e-referral solution integrated within Medical Director, Best Practice and Genie which streamlines the completion and submission of electronic referrals. Users benefit from capabilities such as pre-population, field validation and consistency checks, conditional visibility, intuitive layout, support for attachments, and ability to save and return to the draft referral at a later time.
Specialists and Referrals
Specialists and Referrals (SR) are now available via Healthlink in your Best Practice or Medical Director software.
Electronic Discharge Summaries
The Nepean Blue Mountains Local Health District (NBMLHD) uses HealthLink to securely deliver discharge summaries electronically, straight to your practice’s clinical software system.
To ensure that each of your Doctors are receiving electronic discharge summaries, please make sure that you update us with the details of any new GPs or GPs that have left your practice.
It is also important to make sure that your practice and GP details are correct with HealthLink.
For further advice or assistance with secure messaging, or if you are experiencing issues with receiving discharge summaries, please contact your General Practice Support Officer.
