department of
health and community services

media release

20,000th Registration to the ehealthNT Shared Electronic Health Record – Ceremony in Alice Springs

Wednesday, 23 April 2008

Partnership between Aboriginal Health Services and the Department of Health and Community Services.

The roll-out of the Shared Electronic Health Record – a major eHealthNT initiative that is linking up the health system – will deliver the 20,000th consumer registration in Alice Springs at an event at Central Australian Aboriginal Congress.

The NT is recognised as leading the nation in implementing eHealth and the 20,000th registration, to occur in Alice Springs, is the highest in the country.

Representatives from Congress, Tangentyere and individual Indigenous Territorians will relate the improvements the Shared Electronic Health Record is having on Aboriginal health in Central Australia. Demonstrations of the system in action will also be available.

The Shared Electronic Health Record shares important consumer health information securely across health providers to deliver better health care, particularly in emergency presentations or where patients access multiple health providers.

The new system means that at the push of a button health providers are now able to access important consumer health information, like medication or allergy records, when it is needed and is replacing the transmission of paper-based records.

The implementation has focused on registering Indigenous Territorians in the first phase based on research showing that communication barriers between different sectors providing care to Indigenous Territorians was resulting in hospital re-admissions, duplication of services and self-discharges, all leading to potential health risks.

The next phase will see the trial implementation of the Shared Electronic Health Record in 3 GP clinics in Darwin later this year.

Where: Central Australian Aboriginal Congress
25 Gap Road, Alice Springs

When: Thursday 24 April at 9.30am

Media contact: Sonia Peters 0401 119 550