SYDNEY – Australia’s government is embarking on an ambitious project to create a nationwide electronic health record platform that will be controlled by consumers.
The Personally Controlled Electronic Health Record (PCEHR) system, designed to span all of the nation’s health systems and enable patients to access and control their EHRs, was unveiled last year by Australia’s Department of Health and Ageing. The department is partnering with Accenture, Oracle and Orion Health, while Telstra, the nation’s telecommunications provider, will provide a cloud-based hosting model.
“Accenture is proud to lead Australia’s PCEHR effort, a key initiative for delivering efficient, insight driven healthcare,” said Brad Cable, who leads Accenture’s Health & Public Service unit in Australia, in a press release. “Patients will have greater control and access to health information, while providers have greater insight and context to make informed health decisions.”
New York-based Accenture was awarded the contract this week to design and implement the PCEHR system through its Connected Health Solutions platform. Oracle, based in Redwood Shores, Calif., will help the company in the management of patient records, while Orion Health, of Santa Monica, Calif., will manage consumer and clinician portals.
“Accenture has a demonstrated track record in the successful delivery of what is a very sophisticated system,” said Nicola Roxon, Australia’s Minister for Health and Ageing. “Singapore’s national electronic health record, announced earlier this year, was an important factor in our selection, as it shows a true understanding of what is required for an effective system.”
Unveiled last year, the two-year, $466.7 million project is designed to establish a registration-based system that will allow patients to control what is stored in their health records, manage access and connect records across the nation’s health systems.
