The Acacia patient health record system by NT Health has gone live in the Katherine Hospital.

The implementation is part of the first stage rollout of the A$259 million ($182 million) digital health record system, which is based upon InterSystem's TrakCare health information system. 

The Northern Territory government has built the Acacia system to replace six legacy systems across its public hospitals and to integrate a dozen more into a single digital ecosystem. Over two decades' worth of patient data from various systems and care settings have been migrated to Acacia.

WHY IT MATTERS

Aside from providing access to critical information, this Territory-wide PHR system will enable continuous and consistent care, especially for transient and vulnerable citizens, according to NT Health.

"This new system will mean a nurse in a remote clinic or a doctor on the intensive care ward of a major hospital can use Acacia which provides access to the same patient record in real-time, allowing instant access to details about previous care provided in other clinical settings," NT Chief Minister Natasha Fyles added. 

THE LARGER TREND

NT Health continues to digitise its systems and processes. Recently, a DHCRC-backed project was announced to study how digital tools could be improved to meet the specific needs of indigenous communities in the Northern Territory. Another similar project led by NT Health seeks to develop a clinical decision support tool to enable more accurate medicine prescriptions for patients with renal function problems.

In April, the health agency extended its contract with Alcidion so it could upgrade to the latest Miya Precision clinical decision support platform, which has since been integrated with the Acacia system.

In other news, New South Wales is also working to consolidate the disparate health record systems across its health ecosystem. Last year, it set aside up to $141 million ($106.3 million) for the Single Digital Patient Record System project, which seeks to unify various systems, including PAS, EMR, and LIMS, into one platform.