New resources aim to support practitioners to manage health records

21 Apr 2023

To help practitioners better understand and meet their health record management obligations, seven National Boards have developed two new health record management resources.

The resources developed are available on Ahpra’s Resources page. The tools include:

• a summary of the guidance about record management given in the shared Code of conduct, and
• a self-reflective tool to help assess the adequacy of record keeping and management practices.

The one-page summary, Managing health records – Summary of obligations, aims to help practitioners meet their health record management requirements. It summarises the information in the Code of conduct (the code) about health record management requirements and brings all the guidance on record keeping and management from the code into a single document.

The Managing health records – Self-reflective tool is designed to help practitioners reflect on their record keeping and management processes. The interactive tool aims to help practitioners assess how they manage their health records and to identify opportunities for improvement.

Who is the guidance for?

The tools have been developed by the following National Boards for the relevant professions:

• Chiropractic
• Medical Radiation Practice
• Occupational Therapy
• Optometry
• Osteopathy
• Physiotherapy
• Podiatry

All registered health practitioners must keep good health records. Good records contribute to the continuity of healthcare and help keep the public safe.

National Board’s expectations about health records are outlined in their respective codes of conduct or ethics. In addition to these requirements, practitioners must also consider state, territory or Commonwealth legislation about health records and privacy that may apply.

The resources, along with several other resources covering a range of topics to support practitioner’s practice, are available on Ahpra’s Resources page.

For more information

• Read and download Managing health records – Summary of obligations.
• Read and download the Managing health records – Self-reflective tool.
• Find your Board’s code of conduct.
• Find other useful resources to support your practice.

Contact us

• For media enquiries contact (03) 8708 9200