My Health Record is an online summary of your key health information.
When you have a My Health Record, your health information can be viewed securely online, from anywhere, at any time – even if you move or travel interstate. You can access your health information from any computer or device that’s connected to the internet.
Whether you’re visiting a GP for a check-up, or in an emergency room following an accident and are unable to talk, healthcare providers involved in your care can access important health information, such as:
- allergies
- medicines you are taking
- medical conditions you have been diagnosed with
- pathology test results like blood tests.
This can help you get the right treatment. You don’t need to be sick to benefit from having a My Health Record. It’s a convenient way to record and track your health information over time.
You control your record
You can choose to share your health information with the healthcare providers involved in your care.
If you wish, you can manage your My Health Record by adding your own information and choosing your privacy and security settings. For example, you can:
- add personal notes about your allergies and allergic reactions, an advance care plan or custodian details
- set access controls to restrict who can and can’t see your health information
- review your own health information, and see the information your healthcare providers can see
- set up SMS or email notifications so you know when a healthcare provider first accesses your record.
Next time you see your doctor, ask them to add your health information to your My Health Record.
By allowing your doctors to upload, view and share documents in your My Health Record, they will have a more detailed picture with which to make decisions, diagnose and provide treatment to you. You can also ask that some information not be uploaded to your record.
My Health Record in practice - Dr Caroline Yates
Dr Caroline Yates explains how My Health Record will help to improve the flow of information between GPs and specialists, especially for her patients who are from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds.
Background information
My Health Record opt-out period
Between 16 July 2018 and 31 January 2019, Australians had the opportunity to decide if they wanted a My Health Record and to opt out if they didn’t want one.
Records have now been created for eligible Australians who didn’t opt out.
If you opted out of having a My Health Record and change your mind in future, you can register for one at any time.
Opt-out participation trial 2016
Just under 1 million Australians were registered for a My Health Record in 2016, during the Department of Health's opt-out participation trials.
These trials were held from March to October 2016 in the Nepean Blue Mountain region of NSW and Northern Queensland area. If an individual's address registered with Medicare was in a trial area at the time, they would have received a letter informing them they were going to get a My Health Record.
After the 2016 trial opt-out period ended, records were created for all individuals who did not elect to opt out.
Previous names of the My Health Record system
The My Health Record system was once called the Personally Controlled Electronic Health Record (PCEHR) and the eHealth record. It's possible that you may have registered under PCEHR or eHealth, and didn't know the name had changed to My Health Record.
