Even given a best-case scenario, where patients are already familiar with the HealthConnect system, Dr Tomlins estimates it will take an average of three minutes for GPs to obtain patient consent.
“Three minutes per patient over 30 patients per day is an extra hour and a half which we really shouldn’t have to spend,” Dr Tomlins says. “Having access to complete patient records will make some difference elsewhere, but in the initial phase GPs will be forced to spend a lot of time implementing the service.”
However, national director of E-Health Implementation Dr Brian Richards says during this initial implementation stage, hypothetical concerns will not be viewed. He says GPs will eventually play a key role in HealthConnect, but points out that the project will be rolled out slowly to ensure minimal impact on their operations.
“From 2000 to 2004 the Commonwealth, states, and territories were conducting research and evaluation through a series of trials which have been very useful,” Dr Richards says. “Feed-back from the trials has shown there are some models for data entry that are not sustainable, and we won’t be suggesting those models as the project is rolled out across the country.”
One of the key lessons Dr Richards has learnt during these pilots is the importance of convincing all stakeholders of the benefits of the program. His action plan at this stage is to under sell the benefits of the program, and keep his message as simple as possible.
“We’ve been surprised by how important word-of-mouth is in winning local support,” Dr Richards says. “There’s not a single key group—people such as GPs and pharmacists are all very influential and we need them to become champions of the program for it to work.”
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