The Northern Territory government has completed the second stage rollout of its new patient health record system.

Following its first implementation at Katherine Hospital, the A$259 million ($182 million) Acacia system is now also in use at the 30-bed acute care Gove Hospital.

Moreover, the PHR system is being rolled out in renal services across the Top End region, which includes Darwin, Katherine, Kakadu, and Arnhem Land. It was initially deployed in four renal dialysis sites late last year and is now coming to more sites in central Australia early this year.

"Staff on site now use Acacia to capture same-day data on dialysis treatments," a media release noted.

WHY IT MATTERS

NT's Acacia system will allow a clinic nurse in a remote Aboriginal community or a doctor in an intensive care ward in Darwin to access the same patient record in real time, and know what care has been provided in other care settings. 

Our hardworking doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals are able to access information on patient allergies, alerts and medications making treatment decisions faster and with less risk… Having a Territory-wide electronic patient database will allow NT Health to better support our transient and most vulnerable Territorians," explained NT Chief Minister Natasha Fyles.