DoHDA telehealth medicines record push

DoHDA's telehealth medicines record reform tightens data sharing across online clinics.

Wearable patch push

AusculPatch from the University of New South Wales shows a 3.2 gram patch that sits on the chest and tracks heart and lung vibrations. Measuring roughly 20 by 47 by 3 millimetres, it is designed to support remote monitoring as an alternative to the traditional stethoscope. Real world deployment will hinge on regulatory clearance and data interoperability between the patch data, electronic medical records and consumer apps. Australian health tech players should prepare for a shift toward consumer device data feeding EMRs and remote care, but standards and approvals will determine how quickly it scales.

Digital gaps

At the Digital Health Festival in Melbourne, the outgoing Chief Allied Health Officer flagged persistent barriers to digital participation for allied health workers. About 300,000 workers across health, education, justice and related services, yet roughly 30 percent rely on paper records. Awareness of Provider Connect Australia remains limited; only about half of allied health staff are connected to My Health Record, with around 65 percent not registered and about 27 percent unsure. Real time access to discharge summaries, patient histories and prescriptions remains rare, underscoring the friction in moving from paper to digital systems.

Interoperability push

Public consultation by DoHDA outlines a two track reform to bring online telehealth clinics under tighter oversight. A national medicines record would leverage e prescribing, the Active Script List and My Health Record to give prescribers a complete medicines view. Online telehealth providers would be required to upload medicines information to My Health Record, with reforms targeted for finalisation by year end. For industry, the consequence is higher upfront costs and interoperability investments, but patients gain safer, more complete medicine histories.

Aged care reform

The AMA calls for a substantial overhaul of GP care in residential aged care homes to tackle fragmented access caused by funding gaps, regulatory barriers and poor interoperability. It urges GP led multidisciplinary teams including general practice nurses, pharmacists, geriatricians, psychiatrists and allied health to coordinate assessments and decisions while letting residents retain their usual GP. If reforms stall, fragmentation continues and avoidable hospital admissions rise; digital interoperability remains a bottleneck and costs climb.