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Health professionals: partner with healthdirect

healthdirect is Australia’s free, government-owned 24/7 service that helps people work out what to do next and connects them to the right care, first time. Healthdirect complements – not replaces – local care by guiding patients to self-care, pharmacy, general practice, urgent care, virtual GP or emergency services based on nurse-led clinical triage.

Website: www.healthdirect.gov.au
Clinician enquiries: www.healthdirect.gov.au/contact-us

At a glance (recent NSW results):

  • 61% of callers planning to attend ED were safely guided to lower-acuity care

  • 26% were supported to self-care

  • 62% of calls were after hours

  • 93% consumer satisfaction

Learn more

Clinical governance and scope

Nurses

Australian RNs trained in telephone triage.

Virtual GPs

Australian specialist GPs (RACGP/ACRRM fellows).

Records

With consent, an event summary is sent to the patient’s regular GP via secure messaging and may be uploaded to My Health Record.

Not a deputising service

Directing patients to healthdirect does not meet Practice Incentives Program (PIP) after-hours deputising requirements.

Keep your healthdirect listing up to date (NHSD)

The National Health Services Directory (NHSD) powers the consumer Service Finder and is used by healthdirect’s nurses and GPs to locate open services and refer patients. Accurate listings = safer navigation and more appropriate referrals.

Update options

Option A — Update via healthdirect

  1. Go to https://www.healthdirect.gov.au

  2. Search your service in Australian health services.

  3. If details are incorrect or missing, use the suggest an edit / update your listing prompts to submit changes.

Option B — Update via Provider Connect Australia (PCA)

  • Use PCA to update once and share across multiple systems (including NHSD).

  • Start at the Australian Digital Health Agency: https://www.digitalhealth.gov.au (search “Provider Connect Australia”).

What to keep current

  • Practice name, address, phone, email

  • Opening hours (incl. after-hours, public holidays)

  • Appointment types (in-person, telehealth/virtual)

  • Booking links (e.g., HotDoc/Healthengine)

  • Secure messaging endpoints (e.g., Argus, HealthLink, Medical-Objects)

  • Clinical services offered (e.g., urgent care criteria, scripts, wound care)

  • Accessibility (ramps, parking), languages, interpreter availability

  • On-the-day/after-hours arrangements and walk-in policies

Tip: Review listings whenever hours change, new clinicians join, or you switch booking/secure-messaging providers.

Watch the healthdirect webinar

Frequently asked questions

  • No. Listing in NHSD is free, and there is no charge to receive referrals from healthdirect.

  • No. healthdirect is a safety net and navigation service. It is not an accredited medical deputising service and cannot be used to claim PIP after-hours incentives.

  • With consent, our clinicians document an event summary and send it via secure messaging to the nominated practice. Summaries can also be uploaded to My Health Record to support continuity.

  • Yes — via a referred virtual GP consult when clinically appropriate. e-scripts can be sent to the patient’s mobile or directly to a chosen pharmacy’s email.

  • Registered nurses use evidence-based triage pathways plus clinical judgement. Red-flag presentations are escalated to 000 or advised to attend ED immediately.

  • Keep your secure messaging endpoint active and visible in NHSD, and ensure your practice inbox is monitored. Include a fallback address and a named contact.

  • You may see 1800 Medicare branding during transition periods. The service model remains the same.