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The Healthcare Identifier (HI) Service and the My Health Record system require people working in Seed Organisations to be assigned to roles, which authorises them to carry out certain actions. The roles recognise the different responsibilities in an organisation from administration through to healthcare provision.

Understanding the Seed and Network organisations structures

Healthcare provider organisations participate in the My Health Record system either as a Seed Organisation only or as a Network Organisation that is part of a wider ‘network hierarchy’ (under the responsibility of a Seed Organisation).

A Seed Organisation is a legal entity that provides or controls the delivery of healthcare services. A Seed Organisation could be, for example, a local GP practice, pharmacy or private medical specialist. 

An example of a Network Organisation could be an individual department (e.g. pathology or radiology) within a wider metropolitan hospital. A network hierarchy operating in the My Health Record system consists of one Seed Organisation and one or more Network Organisations. 

The majority of Healthcare Provider Organisations in Australia are independent – for example, suburban GP practices, pharmacies, private health specialists, or allied health care organisations. They will most likely participate in the My Health Record system as an independent Seed Organisation, rather than part of a network hierarchy.

Your Seed Organisation will identify staff for two key roles – the Responsible Officer (RO) and the Organisation Maintenance Officer (OMO). An OMO can also be identified for a Network Organisation.

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Diagram of an example of a seed structure in a medical practice

Responsible Officer (RO): the officer of an organisation who is registered with the HI Service and has authority to act on behalf of the Seed Organisation and relevant Network Organisations (if any) in its dealings with the System Operator of the My Health Record system. For large organisations, the RO may be the chief executive officer or chief operations officer. For small organisations (such as a General Practice) the RO may be a practice manager or business owner.

Organisation Maintenance Officer (OMO): the officer of an organisation who is registered with the HI Service and acts on behalf of a Seed Organisation and/or Network Organisations (if any) in its day-to-day administrative dealings with the HI Service and the My Health Record system. Healthcare organisations can have more than one OMO if they wish. In General Practice, this role may be assigned to the Practice Manager, if you have one, and/or other senior staff who are familiar with the practice's clinical and administrative systems. Alternatively, the RO may take on the OMO role as well.

The following table summarises the functions that each of the RO and OMO roles may perform on the HI Service and the My Health Record system.

RoleHI ServiceMy Health Record System
RO
  • Register a Seed Organisation
  • Request a PKI certificate (or link an existing one) for the organisation
  • Maintain the HPI-O details with the HI Service
  • Maintain their own RO details with the HI Service (add or remove RO)
  • Maintain OMO details with the HI Service (add or remove OMO) for seed and network levels
  • Retire, deactivate and reactivate the HPI-O
  • Maintain links between the Seed Organisation (and any Network Organisation/s) and any Contracted Service Provider.
  • Authorise the addition/removal of HPI-Os
  • Adjust the My Health Record system Access Flags for participating organisations within their hierarchy (OMO at seed level can also do this)
  • Set HPI-O/HPI-I authorisation links (OMO can also do this).
OMO
  • Maintain their own OMO details
  • Register a network HPI-O for network levels below
  • Register OMO details for network levels below
  • Validate, link or remove linked HPI-Is to HPI-O(s) they are linked to
  • Publish HPI-O details in the Healthcare Provider Directory (HPD) for HPI-Os they are linked to
  • Request PKI certificate(s) (or link existing one) for organisation(s) they are linked to
  • If required, maintain a list of authorised employees within the organisation who access the HI Service.
  • Set and maintain Access Flags according to the organisational network hierarchy, in accordance with meeting the principles outlined in the My Health Record Rules
  • Act on behalf of the Seed and Network organisation(s) (that they are linked to) according to the hierarchy
  • Maintain accurate and up-to-date records of the linkages between organisations within their network hierarchy.

 

Other digital health roles and responsibilities

Healthcare Provider (HPI-I): a healthcare provider with a valid HPI-I is able to perform all functions within the MHR, except the administration functions that are managed by the RO or OMO.

Authorised Employee (HI Service): an individual within an organisation who requires access to IHI records and provider identifiers from the HI Service to assist with patient administration.

Authorised Employee (My Health Record system): a person authorised by a healthcare organisation to access the My Health Record system on behalf of the organisation. Authorised users may be individual healthcare providers and other local users who have a legitimate need to access the My Health Record system as part of their role in healthcare delivery.

The table below outlines the different roles, examples of the types of employees who may fulfil each role within a General Practice, and some of the actions which a person in that role is able to carry out.

RoleExample employee from general practiceIHI search and downloadMy Health Record Assisted RegistrationView My Health Record and download clinical documentsAuthor clinical documents for a My Health RecordUpload clinical document to My Health RecordManage organisation interactions with HI Service and My Health Record
Responsible Officer (RO)Business Owner     ✔
Organisation Maintenance Officer (OMO)Practice Manager     ✔
Authorised Employee  (HI Service only)Receptionist✔     
Authorised Employee (My Health Record system)Social Worker / Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health worker✔✔✔ ✔ 
Provider (HPI-I)GP / Registered Nurse✔✔✔✔✔ 

 

How the roles might be set up in your organisation

The diagram below illustrates how these roles might be set up for a Seed Organisation. If you plan to have a Network HPI-O hierarchy for your practice, then it is recommended to read the My Health Record Rules 2012 or learn about how to register your organisation to nominate people in your organisation for these roles.

For help completing these steps, visit our Contact Us page.

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