HealthLink frequently asked questions

Secure messaging facilitates the delivery of clinical documents and other information between healthcare organisations.

Messages can be sent directly or through a secure messaging provider, ensuring efficient and secure communication across the healthcare system.  Visit the Australian Digital Health agency to learn more about Secure Messaging and its benefits.

Western Health is transitioning to HealthLink to enhance patient care and safety through accurate, timely, and seamless communication. 

Western Health aims to reduce the time and costs associated with tasks such as paper handling, distribution and duplication.

Through our transition to HealthLink as our SMD provider, we want to improve the efficiency of our operations. 

From 15 October 2024, clinical documentation sent via HealthLink includes:

• clinician letters
• cancer multidisciplinary meetings
• inpatient/Emergency discharge summaries
• pharmacy medication lists
• referral encounters
• referral outcomes
• outpatient appointments
• inpatient admissions
• inpatient discharges
• death notifications of inpatients and in emergency departments. 
   

If your clinic is located outside of Victoria, or your clinic’s patients have infrequent contact with Western Health, you will still need to be registered with HealthLink to receive correspondence from Western Health.

As a priority, you should also ensure all your clinic and GP details are up to date with the National Health Services Directory (NHSD).

For more information on the actions to take, refer to: HealthLink Secure Messaging Delivery for Clinical Correspondence. 

HealthLink’s system complies with the Australian Government’s SMD standards, ensuring that organisations using it meet the government requirements and regulations. 

Messages sent through the system are encrypted to ensure security, and users receive acknowledgements confirming successful message delivery. 

The transition to HealthLink commenced in October 2024 and is anticipated to be complete in early 2025.

Effective December 2024, PulseNet is no longer being used to send clinical documentation, such as mother/baby discharge summaries, endoscopy reports and cardiology investigations. 

These documents will transfer to HealthLink in early 2025. Until then, they will be sent via fax or File Share (email-based). 

All clinics and the individual providers operating in clinics must verify and update their details directly with the National Health Services Directory (NHSD).

Update your practice details and all providers operating at your GP practice in the NHSD, including fax numbers.

You need to do this receive electronic clinical documentation from Western Health. 

New registrations

Use the "Register Now" button on the HealthDirect website to complete the online form. 

Existing listings

Click "Suggest an Edit" on your clinic's page on the HealthDirect website and update your listing, including fax numbers, using the online form.

Provider Connect registered clinics

Update your details in Provider Connect Australia and choose to publish this to the NHSD as a business partner - these will flow through to the NHSD.

You can find the system requirements for Windows and MacOS on the HealthLink website, under ‘Help & Support / HealthLink Messaging System (HMS)’.

You can visit HealthLink website and click on the ‘sign-up’ area. You will be notified by HealthLink once your application is approved.The process of approval may take 3 working days.

For updates on existing account information, please email: [email protected]

GPs who are signed up to HealthLink can contact HealthLink on:

phone: 1800 125 036
email: [email protected].

There are several resources on the HealthLink website, under ‘Help and Support’. 

Support and resources are available on the HealthLink website. 

This might be due to incomplete set up of some practitioners at your clinic on NHSD and HealthLink. Follow the steps here to ensure all documents are received via HealthLink.

If you are up to date with the NHSD and HealthLink, the documents that you are receiving via fax or file-Share (email) are likely Phase 3 documents (mother/baby discharge summaries, endoscopy reports and cardiology investigations).

These transitioned to HealthLink in early 2025.

Complete the service update form on the NHSD and remove the doctor from your clinic listing. You will also need to unlink your clinics HealthLink EDI to the GPs provider number.

At every visit, WH patients are asked to confirm their GP details to ensure that the correct GP is listed, allowing clinical correspondence to be sent accurately.

If your clinic does not use Practice Management Software (PMS), or your PMS is incompatible with HealthLink, you will continue to receive Western Health clinical correspondence via electronic fax, provided your NHSD listing is up to date.  

If you require support transitioning to or adopting a PMS, contact the Northwest Melbourne Primary Health Care Improvement Team:
email: [email protected]
phone: (03) 9347 1188.

HealthLink provides technical support directly to subscribed clinics and clinicians. 

Our General Practice Integration Unit is available to assist GPs and Practice Managers with the Transition to HealthLink Improvement Project. For questions or help with clinical documentation:

email: [email protected]
phone: (03) 8345 1735.

Please contact our Medical Records team:

email: [email protected].

Once fully implemented, Western Health will only provide clinical correspondence electronically. It is critical that your details are up to date in the NHSD.