Healthdirect Australia Explained

Healthdirect
Type:Government-owned company
Industry:Health care
Location:Haymarket, New South Wales
Area Served:Australia
Owner:Commonwealth and state and territory governments

Healthdirect Australia, otherwise known as just Healthdirect and formerly the National Health Call Centre Network, is the national health advice service in Australia.[1] Funded by the Australian Government and all state and territory governments,[2] Healthdirect provides a number of 24/7 health helplines to all Australians.[3]

The Healthdirect website provides general health advice, a symptom checker which compares symptoms against clinical presentations, and a health directory which lists many primary, secondary and tertiary care services.[4]

History

In February 2006, the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) signed a Heads of Agreement to establish the National Health Call Centre Network (NHCCN).[5] The NHCCN commenced delivering services in July 2007, with its core service operating under a single national name, healthdirect Australia, and national phone number - 1800 022 222.In December 2012, the NHCCN changed its trading name to Healthdirect Australia, reflecting the organisation’s evolution from procuring and managing telephone triage services[6] to offering multiple services with integrated telephone and online channels. This was followed in November 2015 by the change of the registered name to Healthdirect Australia Limited. After a review of after-hours primary health care in July 2015, Healthdirect Australia began to operate locally tailored after-hours services and new GP advice and support lines.[7] Since March 2020, Healthidrect has been operating the National Coronavirus Helpline (NCH) providing telephone advice to the public. It has handled more than four million calls. [8]

Services

Healthdirect Australia's services include a helpline available 24 hours a day,[9] [10] an after-hours general practitioner (GP) helpline,[11] [12] the healthdirect website (which provides free health information),[13] [14] an app for mobile devices,[15] [16] and a Symptom Checker (a guided, online self-triage tool allowing visitors to initiate their health enquiry online).[17] [18] The Pregnancy, Birth and Baby service includes a telephone helpline and a website, providing support to families of children aged up to 5 years.[19] [20] Healthdirect services also include the National Health Services Directory (NHSD), [21] Video Call service [22] [23] [24] and COVID-19 services and tools.[25] [26] [27] [28]

In September 2019, healthdirect and The George Institute for Global Health launched a free online Risk Checker, an online evaluation tool to help Australian consumers check their risk of developing heart disease, diabetes or kidney disease.[29] [30]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Australian Government Directory by Portfolio - Healthdirect Australia . www.australia.gov.au . en . 28 September 2021.
  2. Web site: Get to know us . 2023-12-27 . about.healthdirect.gov.au.
  3. Sprivulis . P . Carey . M . Rouse . I . February 2004 . Compliance with advice and appropriateness of emergency presentation following contact with the HealthDirect telephone triage service. . Emergency Medicine Australasia . 16 . 1 . 35–40 . 10.1111/j.1742-6723.2004.00538.x . 15239753.
  4. Ng . Joseph Y. . Fatovich . Daniel M. . Turner . Valender F. . Wurmel . Jennifer A. . Skevington . Sally A. . Philipps . Michael R. . November 2012 . Appropriateness of healthdirect referrals to the emergency department compared with self-referrals and GP referrals . Medical Journal of Australia . 197 . 9 . 498–502 . 10.5694/mja12.10689 . 23121585 . 9916006 .
  5. Web site: Australian Government Department of Health, Primary and Mental Health Care. National Health Call Centre Network. www.health.gov.au. 27 July 2017. en.
  6. Dunt. David. Wilson. Robert. Day. Susan E.. Keleher. Margaret. Gurrin. Lyle. Impact of telephone triage on emergency after hours GP Medicare usage: a time-series analysis. Australia and New Zealand Health Policy. October 2007. 4. 21. 10.1186/1743-8462-4-21. 17927836. 2151763. free.
  7. Web site: Savira . Feby . Burns . Kara . Kalla . Mahima . Dushyanthen . Sathana . It's after-hours and I need to see a doctor. What are my options? . 2022-11-08 . The Conversation . 8 November 2022 . en.
  8. Web site: McDonald . Kate . 2022-02-23 . Digital Health Institute Summit 2022: How Healthdirect stood up the NCH in just two weeks . 2022-02-24 . Pulse+IT . en-gb.
  9. Web site: When is it OK to call an ambulance?. Lord. Bill. 1 August 2018. The Conversation. 2 November 2018.
  10. Web site: Riley . Katherine . Middleton . Rebekkah . 2024-06-26 . Planning a country escape these school holidays? 4 ways to avoid clogging up the emergency department . 2024-07-18 . The Conversation . en-US.
  11. Web site: Your Health. After-hours GP Helpline Now Available. Your Health. 26 August 2011. 28 July 2017.
  12. Li. Ling. Xiong. Juan. Byrne. Mary. Robinson. Maureen. Westbrook. Johanna. 2016. Healthdirect's After Hours GP helpline – a survey of patient satisfaction with the service and compliance with advice. Studies in Health Technology and Informatics. 227. Digital Health Innovation for Consumers, Clinicians, Connectivity and Community. 87–92. 10.3233/978-1-61499-666-8-87. 27440294. PubMed. Georgiou. Andrew. 28 July 2017.
  13. Book: Healy . Judith . Regulatory Theory: Foundations and Applications . Regulatory Theory . ANU Press . 2017 . 9781760461010 . 596 . Patients as regulatory actors in their own health care . j.ctt1q1crtm.46.
  14. News: Lewis. Sophie. Willis. Karen. Franklin. Marika. Don't panic! Healthy consumers look online for medical advice . 28 July 2017. The Conversation. 12 February 2014.
  15. Web site: McDonald . Kate . 2015-10-29 . App combines symptom checker, health info and service finder . 2017-10-18 . Pulse+IT.
  16. Web site: McDonald . Kate . 2018-07-19 . Healthdirect launches voice-activated flu app . 2019-07-23 . Pulse+IT . en-gb.
  17. Web site: Browne. Kate. Beyond Doctor Google. Choice. 28 July 2017.
  18. Web site: Tang. Clarice. At home with COVID? 5 easy tips to help you breathe more easily. 2022-02-10. The Conversation. 10 February 2022 . en.
  19. Web site: Nurse and Midwife Support. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby. Nurse and Midwife Support. 28 July 2017.
  20. News: Looking online for info on your child's health? Here are some tips. Scott. Karen. The Conversation. 2018-06-15. en.
  21. McDonald. Kate. NHSD to develop endpoint location, telehealth directories. Pulse+IT. 16 September 2012. 25 September 2017.
  22. Web site: McDonald . Kate . 2017-05-08 . Passion and pragmatism driving virtual health service in western NSW . 2019-07-02 . Pulse+IT . en-gb.
  23. Web site: Telehealth saves lives and time on the road in NSW. Browning. Jen. 2019-06-28. ABC News. en-AU. 2019-07-03.
  24. Web site: Healthdirect Australia partners with Coviu to power its video consulting service. 2019-09-02. Healthcare IT News. en. 2019-09-03.
  25. News: Seselja. ABC: Edwina. 2021-07-06. Feeling unwell? Here are the symptoms of COVID-19 and when to get tested. en-AU. ABC News. 2021-09-28.
  26. Web site: Wood. Nicholas. Britton. Philip. Coronavirus or just a common cold? What to do when your child gets sick this winter. 2021-11-29. The Conversation. 24 June 2020 . en.
  27. Web site: McDonald . Kate . 2021-11-29 . Integrated telehealth and remote monitoring solution for GPs caring for COVID-19 patients at home . 2021-11-29 . Pulse+IT . en-gb.
  28. Web site: Heath. Nicola. 2022-02-02. How to help a friend or relative with COVID. 2022-02-15. The Sydney Morning Herald. en.
  29. Web site: New test for nation's 'biggest killers'. O'Mallon. Finbar. 2019-09-17. The Canberra Times. en. 2019-09-17.
  30. Web site: New risk checker helps Australians tackle preventable diseases. 2019-09-16. The New Daily. en-US. 2019-09-17.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Healthdirect Australia".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.