The Gillard Government says it is committed to revolutionising the delivery of health care through the introduction of electronic health (e-health) and
Telehealth.

A spokesperson for the Minister Health and Ageing, Nicola Roxon, told Government News the department was investing about $470 million to introduce e-health across the health system, including the introduction of personally controlled electronic health records to be rolled out from July 2012.

“This investment will build upon the $392 million committed to modernise the health system by providing Medicare rebates for online consultations across a range of specialties for the first time,” she says.

“E-health will help prevent medication errors that cause an estimated 190,000 hospital admissions each year, costing $660 million and the eight per cent of medical errors caused by inadequate patient information.”

According to the spokesperson these investments will help those living in rural and regional Australia to access vital health care.

“It will save patients the time and expense of travelling long distances to see medical specialists, and will help them to see the right specialist sooner,” she says.

The plan to bring health records and telehealth to the public health sector has been backed by the Australian Nursing Federation (ANF).  Read More>>

Read the full report: Smart dose of technology [PDF]