No Changes to Nurses' Health Assessment Items

The government has responded to calls from APNA and other health bodies to revise their explanation of the contribution of nurse time to MBS health assessment items.
The initial announcement which caused concern came via a Medicare alert last Monday which stated previous advice that “the time spent by nurses contributing to health assessments could be included with the medical practitioner’s time when choosing the time-based item to bill” was incorrect and, with immediate effect, only the time the billing medical practitioner spends with the patient would determine the choice of item number.
While the item descriptor has remained unchanged, the advice given on Monday had potential to undermine the critical role nurses play in health assessments.
APNA was flooded with calls from nurses, general practitioners, practice managers and others distressed by this advice.
Late last week the Department of Human Services made a clarification to the information on their website.
The government has advised that nurses and their general practice colleagues need not be alarmed and should continue to follow good clinical practice and bill accordingly, confident in this clarification from Medicare that the health assessment item descriptors have not changed.
"We acknowledge the government’s prompt response to the urgent calls for clarification from APNA and our colleagues in medicine, practice management and the media," said APNA President Karen Booth.
"We will continue to pursue with the Department the need to communicate better with peak bodies such as APNA on issues such as this, and will seek further explicit recognition of the role of general practice nurses in health assessments," Ms Booth said.