Partnership Pulse – Edition 5

The Agency recently supported 13 software vendors to integrate My Health Record and Residential Care Transfer Summary (RCTS) into their residential aged care software products. This now means that over 2000 Australian residential aged care homes have access to a My Health Record conformant software product.

The RCTS is designed to improve the timely, consistent and interoperable exchange of clinical information during transitions of care, supporting safer handovers and more coordinated service delivery. By enabling critical health information to be shared across care settings, the RCTS supports a more holistic view of an older person’s health and care needs, ultimately contributing to improved health outcomes and continuity of care. Since it first became available in April 2025, over 3200 RCTS documents have been uploaded to My Health Record. This number is anticipated to steadily increase as more Residential Aged Care Homes (RACHs) register for My Health Record.

To demonstrate the value of this new functionality, the Agency has released a Residential Care Transfer Summary (RCTS) Fact Sheet (PDF, 262.52 KB) via the Agency’s residential aged care webpage. The fact sheet provides clear guidance on the components of a RCTS and its benefits for consumers, carers and healthcare providers.

Aged care software vendors are already sharing the fact sheet with hundreds of RACHs. This broad distribution will enable aged care providers, their staff, residents and families to interact with the RCTS, supporting safer and more seamless information sharing across care settings. This strong early response also highlights the value of collaborative communication approaches to drive digital adoption and improve continuity of care for older Australians.

SNOMED International’s recent expansion of the Global Patient Set (GPS) represents a positive step toward improving global healthcare interoperability by broadening access to SNOMED CT for non‑Member countries and systems¹. However, for vendors developing, implementing, or supporting digital health solutions for the Australian market, SNOMED CT‑AU remains the recommended terminology.

SNOMED CT‑AU, provided by the National Clinical Terminology Service (NCTS) and available free of charge to Australian implementers, includes Australia‑specific content essential for local use. This includes the Australian Medicines Terminology (AMT) and other extensions that reflect Australian clinical practice and health system requirements. To ensure consistency and fitness for purpose across the Australian health system, implementers should continue to use SNOMED CT‑AU in preference to the GPS.

From a functional perspective, it is also important to understand that the GPS is not a full clinical terminology. The GPS is a curated list of active SNOMED CT International Edition concept identifiers and descriptions, designed to support basic code lookup and data exchange in non‑Member settings. It does not include the definitional relationships that underpin SNOMED CT’s clinical meaning (for example, relationships such as a disorder occurring in an anatomical structure). As such, the GPS operates as a lookup mechanism rather than a terminology capable of supporting clinical decision support, analytics, or semantic interoperability.

Australia is a SNOMED CT Member country, and the concept identifiers used in the GPS are identical to those already available within SNOMED CT‑AU. Consequently, use of the GPS provides no additional benefit for Australian implementations and would result in the loss of essential Australian‑specific content and terminology functionality.

For implementers developing products and services for use outside of Australia, adoption of the GPS may be appropriate. Implementers considering doing so should contact the NCTS.

For more information about the NCTS see: National Clinical Terminology Service - National Clinical Terminology Service or email: help@digitalhealth.gov.au

Reference:

¹ SNOMED International, SNOMED International significantly expands the scope of the Global Patient Set, SNOMED International, 12 March 2026, accessed 31 March 2026.

Faster Access to diagnostic imaging reports continues to support more timely access to health information through My Health Record and the 1800MEDICARE app. Consumers can now view X-ray reports for limbs as soon as they are uploaded, with other diagnostic imaging reports available after a 5-day access period.

This complements changes made in October 2025, providing consumers with access to most pathology results as soon as they are uploaded to My Health Record.

Share by Default Implementation

Implementation of the Share by Default legislative reforms is continuing.

Guidance resources are available to support healthcare provider organisations to identify whether the pathology and diagnostic imaging services must be shared to My Health Record by default. View the Share by Default scope interactive PDF to support your understanding of the Rules and how they apply in practice.

If your organisation prepares pathology or diagnostic imaging reports and has a genuine reason that it will not be able to start uploading to My Health Record by 1 July 2026, you can apply for an extension of time to comply. Information on eligibility and how to apply is available on our website.

Guidance materials for pathology providers, diagnostic imaging providers and requesting healthcare providers continue to be updated as implementation progresses with further information is available on the Share by Default webpage.

For healthcare providers: 

• Share by Default overview
• Guide for requesting providers
• Guide for providers that undertake pathology and diagnostic imaging services
• Are the services provided in scope? - an interactive tool
• Resources for your patients: Consumer fact sheet

For consumers: 

• Understanding better and faster access to health information
• Your questions answered: Fact sheet for healthcare consumers
• 1800MEDICARE app for convenient access to your health information, wherever you are. 

For more information, visit digitalhealth.gov.au or email help@digitalhealth.gov.au.

Should you require any additional resources, tailored messaging or have any questions, please contact your Partnerships team at communityengagement@digitalhealth.gov.au.

The Agency has released the Clinical Governance Performance Report 2024–25 (PDF, 3.36 MB), highlighting how we continue to embed the Clinical Governance Framework for Digital Health (PDF, 2.03 MB) across our programs, partnerships and internal practices. 

This year’s report shows how clinical governance is shaping national initiatives such as the Sharing by Default legislation, improvements to My Health Record, and culturally safe approaches to supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. It also reflects the growing contribution of our Chief Clinical Advisers, Clinical Governance Committee, Digital Health Advisers and staff who apply the Framework’s principles every day.

Importantly, the report demonstrates our commitment to transparency in how we govern digital health. By sharing our progress, lessons and challenges, we aim to support others across the health and care sector to adopt or adapt the Clinical Governance Framework for Digital Health in their own contexts. We encourage partners to explore the report and the updated clinical governance web pages, reflect on their own clinical governance practices and share their experiences as we continue to build a safe, connected and person‑centred digital health ecosystem together.

Provider Connect Australia (PCA) continues to mature as a critical piece of national digital infrastructure, simplifying how healthcare organisations manage and share business and practitioner information across the health system.

What’s coming in 2026–27 

Over 2026–27, the Agency will continue to enhance PCA by: 

• improving the user experience
• enabling direct provider management within the Health Connect Provider Directory (HCPD)
• expanding functionality for allied health providers

Allied health providers will be able to publish more detailed service information, including sub‑specialties, service types, and areas of clinical focus. This information will automatically flow to both the National Health Services Directory (NHSD) and the HCPD, improving service discoverability and helping Australians find the right care more easily.

Upcoming PCA release – May 2026

A targeted PCA release is scheduled for late May 2026, directly supporting the HCPD and the broader directory ecosystem.

Key enhancements include: 

• new visibility controls for organisations and practitioners, including role and contact level settings
• clearer notifications when directory information is linked, unlinked, published, or unpublished
• simpler onboarding and publishing processes for sharing data with PCA partners
• stronger integration with the NHSD, including richer service and practitioner data

These changes will reduce administrative effort, improve data quality, and strengthen the national digital health ecosystem.

Health Connect Provider Directory (HCPD)

The Health Connect Provider Directory is being delivered as part of the Foundation phase of the Health Connect Australia program. It will provide a trusted, interoperable source of provider information to support secure provider‑to‑provider communication and digital health interactions.

Over time, the HCPD will streamline digital workflows and support authorisation for services such as My Health Record, referrals, electronic requesting, and prescribing. Enabling safer, more efficient care delivery.

The directory will include all 970,000+ healthcare providers registered in the Healthcare Identifiers Service, with additional data sources such as the NHSD and Medicare planned to be integrated over time.

How the directory ecosystem fits together

The HCPD is designed to complement, not replace, the NHSD:

• NHSD remains the national, consumer‑facing directory 
• HCPD supports secure, professional health information exchange

A provider directory is a core foundation for Health Connect Australia, enabling health information to be shared safely, accurately, and at scale. It ensures the right information reaches the right provider, supports strong security and privacy controls, improves care coordination, and reduces administrative burden.

PCA plays a key enabling role by providing a single, streamlined way for organisations to manage their information once and share it consistently across both directories, supporting interoperability and reducing duplication across the system. 

Following the Agency’s media release and launch of the National Clinical Governance Committee for Digital Health (NCGC-DH) web page, interest in the work of this committee has grown rapidly.

The NCGC-DH was established to provide expert advice and support the safe and responsible use of digital health services and tools including emerging virtual care models and artificial intelligence enabled care.

Agency CEO Amanda Cattermole PSM said the development of the NCGC-DH marks a significant milestone in guiding the safety, quality and continuous improvement of digital health in Australia.

“By bringing together leading voices from across the health sector, we are prioritising that the future of digital health is clinically safe, effective, and centred on the needs of all Australians,” Ms Cattermole said.

“This committee will play a pivotal role in providing advice to government, shaping policy and practices as digital health technology evolves.”

The NCGC-DH is supported by three Expert Advisory Groups (EAGs) - Better and Faster Access EAG (BFA-EAG), Virtual Care and Telehealth EAG (VC-EAG) and Artificial Intelligence Enabled Care (AI-EAG).

The NCGC-DH met for the second time on 17 March 2026 with Chairs of the BFA-EAG and VC-EAG presenting outcomes from their inaugural meetings. BFA-EAG key discussions included:

• The proposed expansion of pathology tests available for immediate access by consumers through My Health Record
• Opportunities to expand Share by Default Rules to include other types of information, such as medicine information
• The draft Share by Default Monitoring and Evaluation Framework
• Share by Default provider and consumer guidance materials. 

VC-EAG key discussions included:

• Safety and quality considerations as virtual care models expand, including informed consent processes and safe prescribing practices
• Importance of consumer co‑design in virtual care and telehealth initiatives
• Ensuring that virtual care and telehealth services meet the diverse needs and varied digital health literacy of consumers.

The AI-EAG will hold its inaugural meeting on 13 April.

More information about the NCGC-DH membership, its terms of reference and communiqués from meetings 1 and 2 are available on the Agency’s website.

The Agency has launched a free digital health eLearning course for nursing and midwifery students. Developed in collaboration with La Trobe University, the Digital Health Foundations for Nursing and Midwifery: Competency Preparation for Placement course includes five modules covering digital professionalism, leadership and advocacy, data and information quality, information-enabled care, and technology in practice. 

By embedding digital health into education, the Agency is building a workforce that can focus more on delivering safe, high‑quality care. It strengthens clinical practice, supports better experiences for consumers, and helps drive the broader shift to a connected, digitally enabled health system.  

This course marks an important step in supporting Australia’s future nurses and midwives by ensuring they are better prepared to transition into placement and clinical practice in digitally enabled healthcare environments.

Universities and other institutions are encouraged to utilise this free 2-hour resource within nursing and midwifery degrees, with the course being specifically developed for first year prior to students’ initial clinical placement or for pathway entrants commencing in second year. A teaching guide is also available to support educators.

“As a nursing student, I found this course excellent in every aspect. The content was comprehensive yet accessible, perfectly structured for beginners, and clearly explained all key digital health concepts…This course has prepared me well for my upcoming clinical placements.” [quote from one of the course pilot participants]