Primary Care and Digital Health Support - May 2026

Provider Connect Australia (PCA™) makes it easier for general practices to securely share and maintain accurate business information with key healthcare partners.

By registering your practice and publishing your details, you’re helping build a more connected health system—supporting better communication, improved interoperability and stronger continuity of care for patients.

PCA™ streamlines how information is shared across healthcare providers, directories, and organisations. With standardised, automated updates, it reduces administrative burden and helps ensure your practice details remain accurate and current.

As your PHN, we encourage you to connect with us through PCA™—a secure and efficient way to keep your information up to date

Register for Provider Connect Australia

There are four key steps for PCA registration:  

1. Read the pre-registration checklist 
2. Register your organisation  
3. Set up your organisation 
4. Maintain organisation details  

Login to PRODA to get started.

For more information, please go to the Digital Health Agency website or contact the Primary Care and Digital Support team at [email protected].

My Health Record continues to play a central role in strengthening communication across Australia’s healthcare system. For general practice, it offers a practical way to access and share important patient information, supporting safer and more informed clinical decisions.

Why it matters in general practice

In a busy clinical setting, having timely access to accurate patient information can make a significant difference. My Health Record brings together key health information, helping GPs build a clearer picture of their patient’s history, even when care has been provided across multiple settings.

Healthcare providers can access information such as:

• Shared health summaries
• Discharge summaries
• Prescription and dispensing records
• Pathology and diagnostic imaging reports

This supports continuity of care and reduces the risk of missing critical information.

Key benefits for your practice

Using My Health Record in general practice can:

• Improve clinical decision-making with up-to-date patient information
• Reduce duplication of tests and investigations
• Help prevent adverse medication events through visibility of allergies and medications
• Support better coordination with hospitals, specialists, and allied health providers
• Provide access to immunisation history and other key records

Benefits for patients

Patients also gain greater visibility and control over their health information. This can lead to:

• Faster access to care, particularly in emergencies
• Less need to recall complex medical histories or medications
• Increased confidence in managing their own health
• More informed conversations with their GP

Importantly, patients can choose what is uploaded and who can access their record.

Accessing the system

General practices can connect to My Health Record via:

• Conformant clinical software (viewing and uploading)
• The National Provider Portal (view-only access)

Ensuring your practice is registered and using conformant software allows you to fully integrate My Health Record into everyday workflows.

Better and Faster Access

Recent updates have improved both the availability and timeliness of information in My Health Record.

Better Access (Sharing by Default)

New legislation means pathology and diagnostic imaging providers are increasingly required to upload reports to My Health Record by default.

This helps ensure important clinical information is available to a patient’s care team when it’s needed, supporting more coordinated care.

Exceptions apply where:

• A patient requests not to upload
• There are concerns for patient safety or wellbeing
• Technical issues prevent upload

Faster Access (Timely Results)

Patients are now able to see many results sooner:

• Pathology
  • Most results available as soon as uploaded
  • Specialised tests (e.g. genetic or anatomical pathology) delayed by 5 days
• Diagnostic Imaging
  • Limb x-ray reports available immediately (from March 2026)
  • Other imaging reports available after 5 days (reduced from 7 days)

These changes mean patients may review results earlier—creating opportunities for proactive follow-up and communication from general practice.

What this means for your practice

Together, these changes support:

• More complete and reliable patient records
• Earlier visibility of results for both patients and providers
• Improved patient engagement and shared decision-making

Further Information and Resources are available by clicking on the below links.

• Australian Digital Health Agency website
• Guide for Healthcare providers that request tests
• Consumer resources
• Download the ‘Now uploading pathology reports to My Health Record’ poster
• Download the ‘Now uploading diagnostic imaging reports to My Health Record’ poster

The second quarterly Bulk Billing Practice Incentive Program payments may include reassessments to correct underpayments or overpayments that were not included in the previous payment, such as:

• Late or amended claims  
• A change in a practice's eligibility  
• Administrative error. 

For more information view the BBPIP Updates Newsletter.

The IAR Guidance (IAR) and Decision Support Tool (IAR-DST) is designed to establish a national, standardised approach to conducting initial mental health assessments and support general practitioners and other health professionals to recommend the most appropriate level of care for a person seeking mental health support.

The IAR and the IAR-DST are an Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Aging initiative bringing together information from various sources, including Australian and international evidence and advice from various leading experts.

Please refer to National Training Workshop Schedule for sessions in May and June 2026.

As we approach National Palliative Care Week (10–16 May), it’s a timely opportunity to support earlier conversations and planning in palliative care.

HealthPathways SA provides practical, locally agreed guidance to support clinicians at the point of care—including in palliative care.

The Palliative Care pathways are designed to help general practitioners confidently assess, manage, and support patients with life-limiting illness. They combine evidence-informed guidance with local referral options, helping clinicians navigate what can often be complex and sensitive care.

These pathways support:

• Symptom management and clinical decision-making
• Identifying when a palliative approach is appropriate
• Advance care planning conversations
• Accessing local services and referral pathways

By integrating clinical guidance with local service information, HealthPathways helps reduce variation in care and supports more coordinated, patient-centred decision-making.

Available pathways include:

• Emergencies in Palliative Care
• Last Days of Life
• Pain Medications in Palliative Care
• Palliative Care Patient
• Symptom Management in Palliative Care
• Palliative Care Referrals
• Advance Care Planning

As part of National Palliative Care Week, we encourage general practices to explore these pathways and incorporate them into routine care—supporting earlier conversations, better planning, and improved experiences for patients and families.

Following the current successful Bowel and Cervical Screening Roadshow, Country SA PHN are now targeting general practices and Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations (ACCHOs) with a recall system that aims to increase bowel and cervical cancer screening rates. General Practices and ACCHOs can use GoShare’s proven technology to educate patients on the importance of participating in the Bowel and/or Cervical Cancer Screening Programs.

General practices are utilising recall for the following groups:

• Bowel Screening 50+
• Bowel Screening 45-49 incorporating the 45-49 Health Assessment
• Bowel Screening 715
• Cervical Screening – patients with a cervix aged 25-74 

All practices will receive training and support, and the program is funded in full by Country SA PHN. Other resources will be provided to promote in the waiting room.

Please see the expression of interest form

Practices consistently report the Emergency Response Planning Tool (ERPT) as easy to use, comprehensive, and valuable for both accreditation and business continuity. It provides practical reassurance during disruptions such as power outages, fire, relocation, or service interruptions.

Practice managers highlight the importance of PHN funding in making the resource accessible and sustainable, particularly given current workforce pressures in general practice.

Currently in country South Australia 40% of practices published with the last 15 months (2025-2026) while 15% have never published and another 4% haven’t published since 2021, or earlier. As well as publication it is important to focus on all plans being reviewed in the last 12 months. 

Enhance your ability to manage complexity and support patients earlier in their care journey.

Join this free, interactive program designed for health professionals wanting to strengthen their palliative care skills in primary care. Delivered by SAPMEA, the ECHO program connects you with an expert panel through case-based learning and practical discussion.

What you’ll gain:

• Practical symptom management strategies
• Confidence in identifying palliative care needs earlier
• Skills for navigating complex conversations
• Approaches to better support patients and families

Open to all health professionals.

Expert panel includes Dr Gerry Considine, Dr Chloe Furst, A/Prof David Holden, Dr Peter Allcroft, Dr Chirag Patel, Linda Mervart, Jason Gabriel, Brianna Kinnear and Liz Wright.

Monthly sessions on Tuesdays, 6.30pm – 7.30 pm via Zoom:

• 2 June - Pain Management in Palliative Care
• 30 June - Respiratory Failure & Breathlessness Management
• 4 August - Dementia and a Palliative Approach
• 8 September - Framing Hard Conversations

Register or learn more

Funded by Country SA PHN and Adelaide PHN through Greater Choice for At Home Palliative Care – an Australian Government Initiative.

The Mastering Skin Cancer Diagnosis & Excision Techniques workshop, delivered by SAPMEA as part of the Education Services program commissioned by Country SA PHN, was held in Port Augusta on the 11th of March. This workshop was a hands-on session aiming to provide primary care work force in the region with the ability to improve skills around identifying key characteristics of various types of skin cancers and managing the excision of more difficult lesions.

This workshop was an overwhelming success with 100% of participants that gave feedback stating they would recommend the session to a colleague and over 60% stating they intend to change practice as a consequence of participating in the workshop.

Country SA PHN thanks SAPMEA for their ongoing work in the education space for the regional primary care workforce.

Twenty-six GP Registrars, Interns and Medical Students from the Lower Eyre Peninsula attended an inaugural meet and greet event at the Port Lincoln Hotel. The collaborative event hosted by Country SA PHN in partnership with The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) and Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) provided an opportunity for attendees to network and learn about the roles and services of each organisation.

The evening commenced with an Acknowledgment to Country delivered by Country SA PHN Board Member Antoinette Liddell. The Mayor of the City of Port Lincoln Diana Mislov, formally welcomed attendees and outlined council initiatives aimed at addressing workforce challenges, including housing and childcare. Presentations followed from Jane Longmire (RACGP), Rohan Watts (ACRRM) and Dr John Williams, newly appointed Medical Educator for RACGP.  Nicole Linsell, Chair of the Lower Eyre Local Health Cluster, provided an update on the Cluster’s community work, before a concluding presentation on CSAPHN activities were delivered by Primary Care Support Officer Jane Cooper.  

The Primary Care and Digital Support Team at Country SA PHN hosted a face-to-face Practice Manager Network meeting in Mt Barker on Tuesday, 31^st March. The event was well attended by practice managers from the Adelaide Hills region and was facilitated by Deepika, Primary Care Support Officer.

The program included a presentation from the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP), providing an overview of the RACGP 6th Edition Accreditation Standards for general practices. Kevin Wisdom-Hill, CEO from Summit Health also joined the session to speak with practice managers about regional initiatives and ERPT. Our colleagues, from Country SA PHN, shared updates on the IAR tool, Health Pathways and digital health initiatives. The session concluded with a wellbeing activity for practice managers, contributing to the overall success of the event. 

Meet Our Medical Student: Alice Esposito.

You may have already seen Alice, our 3rd year Flinders University medical student, around the clinic — and she’ll soon be starting co-consulting with our GPs, so you may notice her a little more during your visits.

Alice grew up in Hobart, Tasmania, before moving interstate to pursue study. Before entering medicine, she completed a Bachelor of Health & Medical Sciences at the University of Adelaide and spent time working as a disability support worker — an experience that strengthened her passion for healthcare and community centred work.

Outside of study, Alice enjoys being outdoors, catching live music, reading, cheering on the Tillies and the Hawks, and is even reteaching herself bass guitar.

Alice has really enjoyed living and studying rurally and hopes to continue her career in rural medicine. She’s keeping an open mind about specialty pathways — but has a soft spot for paediatrics and loves working with kids.