A non-admitted patient service event is defined as an interaction between one or more healthcare provider(s) with one non-admitted patient, which must contain therapeutic/clinical content and result in a dated entry in the patient's medical record.

Counting rules:

1. All non-admitted services that meet the criteria of a non-admitted patient service event should be counted, and be counted only once regardless of the number of health care providers present.

2. Patients can be counted as having multiple non-admitted patient service events in one day, provided that every visit meets each of the criteria in the definition of a non-admitted patient service event.

3. Patient education services can be counted as non-admitted patient service events, provided that they meet the criteria included in the definition of a non-admitted patient service event.

4. Non-admitted services involving multiple health professionals are counted as one non-admitted patient service event.

5. Each patient attending a group session is counted as a non-admitted patient service event, providing that the session included the provision of therapeutic/clinical advice for each patient and that this was recorded using dated entry in each patient’s medical record. A group flag is included in the DSS to record this type of service event.

6. Telephone and other telehealth consultations can be counted as service events if they substitute for a face to face consultation, provided that they meet all the criteria included in the definition of non-admitted patient service event.  A telephone/telehealth consultation is only counted as one non-admitted patient service event, irrespective of the number of health professionals/locations participating in the consultation.

7. Services provided to inpatients (including services provided by staff working in non-admitted services who visit admitted patients in wards, or other types of consultation and liaison services involving inpatients) are not counted as non-admitted patient service events.

8. Travel by a health professional is not counted as a non-admitted patient service event.

9. All non-admitted services that meet the criteria in the definition of non-admitted patient service events must be counted, irrespective of funding source (including Medicare Benefits Schedule) for the non-admitted service. A funding source flag is included in the DSS.

10. For activity based funding purposes, services from stand-alone diagnostic services are not counted as non-admitted patient service events; these are an integral part of the requesting clinic's non-admitted patient service event.

11. Renal dialysis, total parenteral nutrition and home enteral nutrition performed by the patient in their own home without the presence of a health care provider may be counted as a non-admitted patient service event, provided there is documentation of the procedures in the patient's medical record.

Glossary items

Glossary terms that are relevant to this Data set specification are included here. 

Activity based funding

Independent Hospital Pricing Authority 2012. Tier 2 Non-Admitted Services Compendium. Independent Hospital Pricing Authority, Sydney. Viewed 8 March 2013, http://www.ihpa.gov.au/internet/ihpa/publishing.nsf/Content/non-admitted-care

Independent Hospital Pricing Authority 2012. Tier 2 Non-Admitted Services Definitions Manual. Independent Hospital Pricing Authority, Sydney. Viewed 8 March 2013, http://www.ihpa.gov.au/internet/ihpa/publishing.nsf/Content/non-admitted-care