Service contact—group session indicator, yes/no/not stated/inadequately described code N

Identifying and definitional attributes

• Health, Standard 17/12/2021

Value domain attributes

Representational attributes

Collection and usage attributes

CODE 9    Not stated/inadequately described

This code is not for use in primary data collections.

Data element attributes

Collection and usage attributes

CODE 1   Yes

This code indicates care that has been provided to two or more patients by the same health-care provider(s) at the same time (including via telehealth).

A group must have two or more persons attending in the capacity of patients in their own right.

One service event is recorded for each patient who attends a group session.

Spouses, parents or carers attending the session are counted for the group session only if they are also participating in the service as a patient (see definition of a service event).

A group session may be delivered by more than one provider. This may be multidisciplinary care within one clinic appointment as part of a group, e.g. a group session jointly delivered by a physiotherapist and an occupational therapist.

In practice, this should be interpreted to mean that patients are receiving precisely the same services. For example:

• Patients may be part of a movement or hydrotherapy class where all participants are following the same intervention at the same time.
• Patients attending education sessions at chemotherapy or dialysis clinics are group sessions, if two or more people are receiving the same services at the same time.

CODE 2   No

This code indicates that care was delivered to the patient as an individual (including via telehealth). An individual service event is provided to one person by one or more health-care providers. For example:

• Where a clinician works one-on-one with several different patients in the same space over a period of time but each patient is following their own personalised program (for example, where several patients are scheduled to use the physiotherapy gym at once).
• Where multiple persons, such as several family members and carers, meet with a clinician to discuss one patient only.
• Patients attending for treatment at a dialysis or a chemotherapy clinic are receiving individual services.

For the purposes of activity based funding reporting, this data item can be derived from existing data elements.

Ambulatory specialised - This data element can be derived from Mental health service contact—session type, code N.

Ambulatory non-specialised - This data element can be derived from Non-admitted patient service event—group session indicator, yes/no/not stated/inadequately described code N.

Source and reference attributes

Independent Hospital Pricing Authority

Relational attributes