Healthcare IT Solutions Australia | Medical Software & Digital Health Excellence

Australia's healthcare system—combining universal Medicare coverage with private health insurance and world-class clinical care—requires sophisticated digital health solutions that integrate seamlessly with My Health Record, comply with TGA medical device regulations, and support AHPRA-registered practitioners across primary care, specialist medicine, allied health, and hospital settings.

With Australian digital health expenditure reaching AUD $4.8 billion annually and telehealth consultations growing 340% since 2020, healthcare providers need technology partners who understand the complexities of Medicare billing (MBS item numbers), PBS prescription management, private health insurance claiming, and the regulatory landscape governed by TGA, ACSQHC, and RACGP/ACRRM standards.

Why Australian Healthcare Organizations Choose Big0

Australian Healthcare Compliance Expertise

TGA Medical Device Regulations Deep expertise in Therapeutic Goods (Medical Devices) Regulations 2002 classification. Software as Medical Device (SaMD) classification (Class I, IIa, IIb, III), ARTG registration processes, conformity assessment procedures, and post-market surveillance requirements.

My Health Record Integration Conformance testing and accreditation for My Health Record system integration. HL7 CDA document upload (shared health summaries, discharge summaries, event summaries), secure messaging via Healthcare Identifiers Service (HI Service), IHI validation, and consumer access controls.

AHPRA Practitioner Verification Real-time verification of practitioner registration status with Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency. Integration for doctors, nurses, pharmacists, allied health practitioners. Automatic alerts for expiring registrations and professional indemnity insurance.

Privacy & Consent Management Compliance with Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) specific to health information. Explicit consent management, secure data storage in Australian data centers, patient access rights to health records, and breach notification procedures per OAIC requirements.

Australian Healthcare System Integration

Medicare & PBS Integration MBS item number billing for GP consultations, specialist referrals, diagnostic imaging, pathology. PBS prescription claiming, online claiming via Medicare Online, bulk billing capability, and Medicare benefit assignment.

Private Health Insurance Claiming Integration with Medibank, Bupa, HCF, NIB, Australian Unity via Health Industry Claims and Payments Service (HICAPS). Real-time eligibility checking, gap payment calculations, and automatic fund claiming for hospital admissions and allied health services.

Electronic Prescribing (eScript) Active Ingredient Prescribing as per PBS requirements, eScript token generation, secure prescription transmission to pharmacies, prescription history via Australian Prescription Delivery Service, and real-time PBS eligibility checking.

Secure Messaging Medical Objects integration for secure practitioner-to-practitioner communication. Pathology results delivery, diagnostic imaging reports, hospital discharge summaries, and referral letters compliant with healthcare secure messaging standards.

Medical Practice Management Software

General Practice (GP) Software Solutions

Comprehensive GP Practice Management Patient demographics and medical history, appointment scheduling with SMS/email reminders, clinical notes with SOAP format, prescribing with PBS drug database, immunization tracking, chronic disease management plans (CDM), and Medicare billing.

Clinical Decision Support Drug interaction checking (MIMS, AMH), clinical guideline alerts (RACGP Red Book), preventive health reminders (screening, immunizations), chronic disease management alerts, and evidence-based treatment protocols.

Recall & Reminder Systems Automated patient recalls for preventive health (cervical screening, bowel cancer screening, 75+ health assessments), chronic disease follow-ups, overdue pathology results, and medication reviews.

Pathology & Radiology Integration Electronic pathology ordering to major Australian labs (Sonic Healthcare, Healius, Australian Clinical Labs), automatic result delivery, abnormal result flagging, and diagnostic imaging referral to I-MED, Capitol Health, Queensland X-Ray.

Specialist Practice Software

Specialist Consultation Management Referral management from GPs, specialist consultation templates, procedure scheduling and tracking, complex billing (multiple MBS items, time-based billing), and specialist reports back to referring practitioners.

Allied Health Practice Software Tailored for physiotherapy, psychology, occupational therapy, speech pathology, podiatry. Treatment plans, progress notes, outcome measurements, Medicare CDM billing, DVA patient management, and NDIS claiming integration.

Dental Practice Management Comprehensive dental charting (tooth numbering, procedures), treatment planning with cost estimates, dental imaging integration, private health fund claiming (ADA item codes), payment plans, and recall systems for check-ups and hygiene.

Day Hospital & Surgical Management Pre-admission clinics and assessments, surgical scheduling and theater management, anesthetic records, consent management, discharge planning, hospital claims (private health, DVA, compensable), and infection control tracking.

Electronic Medical Records (EMR) & Electronic Health Records (EHR)

Hospital EMR Systems

Enterprise Hospital EMR Comprehensive patient electronic medical record across emergency department, inpatient wards, operating theaters, intensive care, and outpatient clinics. Real-time access to patient information, clinical workflows, and decision support.

Clinical Documentation Medical history and examination, progress notes, discharge summaries, procedure notes, consent forms, advanced care directives, and clinical handover. Templates for specialties (cardiology, oncology, orthopedics, etc.).

Order Entry & Results Management Computerized Physician Order Entry (CPOE) for medications, pathology, radiology, and procedures. Electronic result delivery, critical result alerts, cumulative results viewing, and clinical interpretation.

Medication Management Electronic medication charts, prescribing with formulary restrictions, drug interaction checking, allergy alerts, reconciliation at admission/discharge/transfer, and integration with pharmacy dispensing systems.

GP Clinical Software Enhancement

Best Practice Integration Customization and optimization of Best Practice primary care software. Custom templates, recall systems, clinical decision support rules, automation workflows, and reporting dashboards.

Medical Director Solutions Configuration and enhancement of Medical Director (now Helix). Integration with pathology providers, private hospital networks, and specialist communications. Custom reporting for quality improvement.

Zedmed Optimization Practice workflow optimization for Zedmed users. Billing automation, appointment management improvements, clinical documentation templates, and patient communication integration (SMS, email, patient portal).

Cloud-Based EMR Platforms

Modern Cloud EMR Development Cloud-native electronic medical record systems accessible from any device. Zero installation, automatic updates, multi-location access, and disaster recovery built-in. Hosted in Australian AWS or Azure data centers.

Mobile Clinical Apps iOS and Android apps for clinicians for point-of-care documentation, medication reconciliation, ward rounds, clinical handover, and secure messaging. Offline capability for areas with poor connectivity.

Patient Portal Integration Secure patient access to health records, test results, medications, allergies, immunization history. Appointment booking, prescription requests, secure messaging with practice, and health summary downloads.

Telehealth Platforms for Australian Healthcare

Video Consultation Platforms

Medicare-Compliant Telehealth Video consultation platforms supporting Medicare telehealth item numbers (91800-91896 series). Patient identity verification, consultation recording for medico-legal purposes, bulk billing capability, and integration with practice management systems for seamless claiming.

Specialist Telehealth Remote specialist consultations to regional and rural Australia. Store-and-forward capabilities (images, videos, diagnostic data), real-time video consultations, specialist reporting, and billing for specialist telehealth items.

Mental Health Telehealth HIPAA and Australian privacy-compliant platforms for psychology, psychiatry, and counseling services. Enhanced security, crisis protocols, outcome measurement tools (K10, DASS), and Medicare Better Access billing.

Remote Patient Monitoring

Chronic Disease Monitoring Remote monitoring for diabetes (glucose readings), hypertension (blood pressure), COPD (spirometry), heart failure (weight, symptoms), and anticoagulation (INR). Patient-reported outcomes, automated alerts for clinicians, and integration with clinical software.

Hospital in the Home (HiTH) Virtual ward platforms enabling early discharge with remote monitoring. Vital signs monitoring, medication adherence, video ward rounds, and escalation protocols. Used by major Australian hospitals for post-surgical care and intravenous therapy.

Wearable Device Integration Integration with consumer wearables (Apple Watch, Fitbit, Garmin) and medical-grade devices. Continuous glucose monitors, ECG monitors, activity trackers, sleep monitoring, and fall detection for elderly care.

Pharmacy Software & Prescription Management

Community Pharmacy Systems

Dispensing Software Integration Integration with major Australian pharmacy software (Fred Dispense, Corum, Minfos, Z Dispense). Real-time PBS claiming, script validation, drug interaction checking, and patient medication records.

PBS & RPBS Claiming Automated claiming to Medicare for Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme and Repatriation PBS prescriptions. Real-time claiming, safety net tracking, concession card validation, and claim reconciliation.

MedsCheck & Clinical Services Support for pharmacy clinical services: MedsCheck, Diabetes MedsCheck, Home Medicines Review (HMR) coordination, staged supply, dose administration aids, and vaccinations (including COVID-19, influenza).

Compounding Software Specialized software for compounding pharmacies. Formula management, batch tracking, ingredient inventory, expiry date monitoring, compounding worksheets, and TGA compliance documentation.

Hospital Pharmacy Systems

Inpatient Medication Management Hospital pharmacy systems integrated with EMR. Medication orders from wards, pharmaceutical review, preparation and dispensing, ward stock management, controlled drug tracking, and billing.

Clinical Pharmacy Support Antimicrobial stewardship, therapeutic drug monitoring, dose optimization for renal/hepatic impairment, pharmacokinetic dosing, and adverse drug reaction monitoring.

Pathology & Diagnostic Imaging Software

Pathology Laboratory Information Systems (LIS)

Comprehensive Laboratory Management Sample reception and accession, work lists and barcode tracking, quality control and calibration, result entry and validation, reference ranges, and critical result alerts.

Pathology Ordering & Results Electronic ordering from practices and hospitals, automated sample labeling, result delivery via Medical Objects and HIPS, integration with My Health Record, and bulk reporting.

Molecular & Genomic Testing Specialized modules for genetic testing, molecular pathology, next-generation sequencing results, and genetic counseling reports. Integration with National Pathology Accreditation Advisory Council (NPAAC) requirements.

Radiology Information Systems (RIS) & PACS

Radiology Workflow Management Appointment scheduling for imaging, patient registration, modality worklists (CT, MRI, ultrasound, X-ray), examination protocols, and reporting workflows.

Picture Archiving & Communication Systems (PACS) Medical image storage and viewing, DICOM integration with imaging modalities, advanced visualization (3D reconstruction, multiplanar reformats), image sharing with referring doctors, and cloud PACS solutions.

Radiologist Reporting Voice recognition for dictation (Dragon Medical), structured reporting templates, CAD (Computer-Aided Detection) integration for mammography and lung nodules, peer review workflows, and discrepancy management.

Australian Healthcare Compliance & Standards

TGA Medical Device Software Classification

Class I (Low Risk) Software used for administrative purposes, patient data storage without clinical decision support, appointment scheduling. Self-certification by manufacturer, inclusion in ARTG.

Class IIa (Low-Medium Risk) Software providing clinical decision support (drug interaction checking, diagnostic assistance), patient monitoring without direct intervention. Conformity assessment by manufacturer with post-market surveillance.

Class IIb (Medium-High Risk) Software for diagnosis or treatment decisions, dose calculation for radiation therapy, surgical planning. Third-party conformity assessment, comprehensive clinical evaluation, risk management per ISO 14971.

Class III (High Risk) Software controlling life-supporting devices, implantable device programming, autonomous treatment decisions. Full quality management system audit, clinical investigation, and TGA approval.

HL7 Standards & Interoperability

HL7 v2 Messaging Patient demographics (ADT), order entry (ORM), results delivery (ORU), scheduling (SIU). Used for hospital system integration, pathology results, and radiology reports.

HL7 CDA Documents Clinical Document Architecture for My Health Record: Shared Health Summaries, Event Summaries, Discharge Summaries, eReferrals, and Specialist Letters. XML-based structured documents.

HL7 FHIR Modern RESTful API standard for healthcare interoperability. Patient, Observation, Medication resources. Increasingly adopted for new Australian digital health initiatives and patient-facing applications.

Clinical Quality & Safety

Australian Commission on Safety & Quality in Health Care (ACSQHC) National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards compliance. Medication safety, clinical handover, falls prevention, pressure injury prevention, and healthcare-associated infection surveillance.

Clinical Governance Frameworks Incident reporting systems (IIMS, RiskMan), clinical audits and quality improvement, credentialing and scope of practice, clinical indicator reporting, and accreditation support (ACHS, AGPAL).

Australian Healthcare Success Stories

Telehealth Platform for Rural GP Network - Regional NSW

Developed comprehensive telehealth platform for network of 45 GP practices across rural NSW and Queensland. Video consultations, secure messaging, electronic referrals to specialists, and integration with local Practice Management Systems (Medical Director, Best Practice). Delivered 28,000 telehealth consultations in first year, reducing patient travel by estimated 4.2 million kilometers. Medicare billing integration for telehealth item numbers 91800-91896. Patient satisfaction 94%, GP adoption 87%.

Hospital EMR Implementation - Private Hospital Group, Melbourne

Implemented Cerner Millennium EMR across 8 private hospitals in Victoria and NSW. Emergency department module, inpatient EMR with nursing documentation, electronic medication management (eMeds), CPOE, radiology/pathology integration. Integration with private health insurers via HICAPS, Medicare claiming for medical benefits, theater management, and clinical handover. Medication errors reduced 68%, clinical documentation time reduced 35%, length of stay decreased 0.8 days. Investment: AUD $24 million over 3 years.

Pharmacy Management System - Multi-Location Chain, Queensland

Custom pharmacy management system for 32-location chain across QLD. Integration with Fred Dispense, automated PBS claiming, inventory management across locations, clinical services tracking (MedsCheck, vaccinations), customer loyalty program. Real-time stock visibility reduced excess inventory by 23%, clinical services revenue increased AUD $680,000 annually, prescription dispensing errors reduced 55%.

Mental Health Telehealth Platform - National Service

Built secure telehealth platform for national mental health service providing psychology and counseling. Video consultations with enhanced privacy controls, outcome measurement (K10, DASS, PHQ-9), treatment plans, secure messaging, and crisis protocols. Integration with Better Access billing (Medicare items 80000-80020). Platform delivered 125,000 consultations annually across all states, waitlist reduced from 6 weeks to 10 days, patient outcomes improved with 67% reduction in distress scores.

Healthcare IT Development Pricing

Practice Management Software

GP Practice Management System: AUD $150,000 - $450,000 - Patient management and demographics - Appointment scheduling and recalls - Clinical notes and prescribing - Medicare billing and claiming - Pathology/radiology integration - Basic patient portal - 12 months support

Specialist Practice Software: AUD $120,000 - $320,000 - Specialist consultation templates - Referral management - Complex billing (time-based, multiple items) - Procedure tracking - Specialist reporting - Integration with hospital systems

Allied Health Software: AUD $80,000 - $220,000 - Treatment plans and progress notes - Outcome measurement tools - Medicare CDM and DVA billing - NDIS claiming integration - Appointment management - Client portal

Hospital EMR Systems

Department-Specific EMR: AUD $350,000 - $1.2M - Emergency department or - Operating theater or - Intensive care unit - Clinical documentation - Order entry and results - Integration with hospital systems - 12 months support

Enterprise Hospital EMR: AUD $3M - $18M - Full hospital deployment (100-500 beds) - All departments and specialties - CPOE and medication management - Clinical decision support - Integration ecosystem - Data migration - 24-36 month implementation - 2 years support and optimization

Telehealth Platforms

Basic Telehealth Platform: AUD $85,000 - $220,000 - Video consultation capability - Patient scheduling - Medicare billing integration - Practice management integration - Basic security and compliance - 6 months support

Advanced Telehealth Suite: AUD $250,000 - $650,000 - Multi-specialty support - Remote patient monitoring - Store-and-forward capabilities - Wearable device integration - Advanced analytics and reporting - Mobile apps (iOS and Android) - Full HIPAA and Australian privacy compliance

Patient Portal & Mobile Apps

Patient Portal: AUD $65,000 - $180,000 - Secure patient access to records - Appointment booking - Test results viewing - Prescription requests - Secure messaging - Health summary downloads - Integration with practice software

Mobile Clinical Apps: AUD $120,000 - $350,000 - iOS and Android native apps - Clinical documentation - Medication management - Clinical handover - Secure messaging - Offline capability - EMR integration

Ongoing Costs

SaaS Subscription: AUD $50-$300 per clinician per month Hosting (Australian AWS/Azure): AUD $2,000-$15,000/month Support & Maintenance: 15-20% of development cost annually TGA Compliance & Updates: AUD $25,000-$80,000 annually

Healthcare IT Technology Stack

Frontend Technologies

• React + Next.js: Modern web applications for patient portals
• React Native: Cross-platform mobile apps (iOS and Android)
• Vue.js: Alternative framework for clinical applications
• Angular: Enterprise healthcare applications
• Swift/Kotlin: Native mobile development when required

Backend Platforms

• Node.js + Express: RESTful APIs for healthcare applications
• Python + Django: Complex clinical logic and ML integration
• Java Spring Boot: Enterprise hospital systems
• .NET Core: Integration with existing Windows-based healthcare software
• GraphQL: Efficient data querying for complex healthcare data

Healthcare Interoperability

• HL7 v2: Traditional messaging (MIRTH Connect, Rhapsody)
• HL7 FHIR: Modern healthcare APIs (HAPI FHIR server)
• DICOM: Medical imaging (dcm4che, Orthanc)
• CDA/CCD: Clinical document exchange
• SMART on FHIR: Patient-facing apps

Australian Healthcare APIs

• Medicare Online: Bulk billing and claiming
• HICAPS: Private health insurance claiming
• My Health Record API: Document upload and retrieval
• HI Service: Healthcare identifier validation
• Medical Objects: Secure messaging
• PBS API: Prescription and benefit checking
• AHPRA API: Practitioner verification

Databases & Storage

• PostgreSQL: Relational data for patient records
• MongoDB: Unstructured clinical documents
• Redis: Session management and caching
• AWS S3/Azure Blob: Medical image storage
• TimescaleDB: Time-series data (vital signs, monitoring)

Australian Cloud Hosting

• AWS Sydney: Healthcare-grade hosting (ap-southeast-2)
• Azure Australia: Government and enterprise healthcare
• Australian data centers: NextDC, Equinix for data sovereignty
• Disaster recovery: Multi-region Australian replication

Security & Compliance

• Encryption: AES-256 at rest, TLS 1.3 in transit
• Authentication: OAuth 2.0, SAML SSO
• Access control: RBAC (role-based), ABAC (attribute-based)
• Audit logging: Complete audit trails per APP 11
• Penetration testing: Annual security assessments
• Business continuity: RPO <1 hour, RTO <4 hours

Healthcare Software Development Process

Phase 1: Discovery & Compliance Assessment (3-5 weeks)

• Clinical workflow analysis and shadowing
• User persona development (clinicians, administrators, patients)
• Australian regulatory requirements (TGA classification, privacy)
• Integration requirements (practice software, Medicare, HIE)
• Security and compliance framework design
• Clinical safety assessment

Phase 2: Design & Clinical Validation (4-8 weeks)

• User experience design for clinical efficiency
• Workflow optimization with clinician input
• Clinical decision support logic design
• Interface design (HIPAA aesthetics for trust)
• Prototype development and clinician testing
• Clinical governance approval

Phase 3: Development & Integration (12-24 weeks)

• Backend development (APIs, business logic)
• Frontend development (web and mobile)
• HL7/FHIR integration development
• Australian healthcare API integration (Medicare, HICAPS, MHR)
• Clinical decision support implementation
• Security implementation and testing

Phase 4: Clinical Validation & Testing (6-10 weeks)

• Unit and integration testing
• Clinical usability testing with end users
• Security testing and penetration testing
• Performance testing under load
• TGA compliance validation (if SaMD)
• My Health Record conformance testing (if applicable)

Phase 5: Deployment & Training (4-8 weeks)

• Staging environment deployment
• Clinical user training and super-user development
• Pilot deployment (limited practices/departments)
• Feedback collection and refinement
• Production deployment
• Post-go-live support (4-8 weeks hypercare)

Phase 6: Post-Market Surveillance (Ongoing)

• Incident monitoring and reporting
• Clinical safety monitoring
• TGA post-market surveillance requirements
• User feedback and enhancement requests
• Regular security updates
• Compliance monitoring (APP audits, TGA audits)