Telehealth and Digital Health in Residential Aged Care 

Telehealth allows residents to consult with their GP, specialists and other health professionals without leaving the aged care home. When embedded well, telehealth can support timely clinical decision-making, reduce unnecessary hospital transfers and improve access to care. 

This page brings together practical resources to help residential aged care homes implement telehealth and digital health tools. 

On this page:

Telehealth

Staff training

Residential aged care staff can complete the Residential Aged Care Telehealth Training, a free program developed by a collaboration of Primary Health Networks across Australia. 

The training covers telehealth setup, workflow integration, governance and practical use during consultations. It includes short microlearning modules, scenario-based learning and troubleshooting guides. 

You can access the training in two ways: 

• Complete online via the ALIS learning platform.  

• Embed into your organisation’s Learning Management System (LMS) via resiagedcaretelehealth.training.  

Additional resources

• How to register and access the Residential Aged Care Telehealth Training via ALIS – step-by-step guide.
• Watch the program introduction video.

Staff training policy

A documented staff training policy ensures all relevant staff are confident supporting residents during telehealth consultations.  

At a minimum, your policy should outline: 

• When staff complete telehealth training (e.g. onboarding and regular refreshers). 

• Which training program staff are required to complete (such as the Residential Aged Care Telehealth Training). 

• Who is responsible for monitoring completion. 

Policies and procedures

These resources can support the development of telehealth policies and procedures within your residential aged care home. 

• Telehealth Policy & Procedures Guide (Template) — comprehensive ready-to-adapt template covering all key telehealth procedures, with supporting references and guidance to help you develop procedures.
• Telehealth Consultation Flowchart (Template) — a visual summary of the end-to-end consultation process, editable for use at your aged care home.
• Telehealth Consultation Checklist — step-by-step checklist for staff before, during and after each consultation.
• Preparing Telehealth Devices in Residential Aged Care — a quick reference guide.
• Telehealth Decision Tool (Safer Care Victoria) — guidance to help clinicians determine when telehealth is appropriate and when in-person care may be required.

Technology and equipment

• Telehealth Troubleshooting Guide — step-by-step fixes for common issues during consultations.
• Telehealth Platforms and Software Support – links to support pages for commonly used telehealth platforms.
• Telehealth Technology Support Template – IT support contacts and equipment register for your telehealth telehealth setup.

Healthdirect Video Call

Healthdirect Video Call is a secure video consultation platform supported by the Australian Government. It enables clinicians to conduct telehealth consultations using common devices such as computers, tablets and smartphones. 

In Victoria, Healthdirect Video Call is the preferred video consulting platform for publicly funded health services and may be used by GPs, specialists and other clinicians providing telehealth consultations to residents in aged care homes.

Resources to support implementation: 

• Introducing video telehealth to your aged care service — guidance on preparing your home and introducing video consultations. 
• Healthdirect Video Call Resource Centre — setup guides, troubleshooting support and technical information for providers. 
• Using healthdirect Video Call with a Visionflex Cart to attend a virtual emergency clinic appointment. 
• Using healthdirect Video Call with a Visionflex cart for staff with Video Call accounts. 
• Using healthdirect Video Call with a Visionflex cart with a link sent by a health service.

See our Telehealth webpage for more.

Resident and family resources

Resources to help explain telehealth to residents and families:

• What is Telehealth? video — short video to show residents and families. 
• How can residents be actively involved in consultations? video – for residents.
• How can families and carers participate? video – for families. 
• Facts about telehealth fact sheet. 
• Supporting residents during consultations fact sheet – for residents. 
• Ways of participating in consultations fact sheet – for families. 
• Visitor poster — benefits of telehealth.

Staff posters

• Best practice poster. 
• Get trained poster. 
• Comprehensive training poster.

Digital health

My Health Record

My Health Record allows authorised staff to view key health information for residents in one place. This can support more informed clinical decisions and better coordination of care. 

Information available through My Health Record may include medications, allergies, pathology results, immunisation history and advance care planning documents. 

For a quick overview of how My Health Record can support care in residential aged care, see the short video and flyer: 

• My Health Record benefits in aged care — short video. 
• Better connected care through My Health Record — flyer. 

For further guidance, you can also visit our My Health Record webpage. 

Getting set up

• ACCPA MHR Readiness Toolkit — guidance on registration, policies, roles and staff training. 
• Conformant software register — check if your clinical software connects to MHR. 
• National Provider Portal — access MHR if your software isn’t conformant. 

More registration resources: 

• MHR Organisation Registration Checklist. 
• OAIC Security and Access Policy template. 
• Registering your organisation eLearning module. 
• ACIITC Guidelines for MHR in Residential Aged Care.

For support to register with My Health Record, you can email the Australian Digital Health Agency (ADHA) at MHR.Registration.RAC@digitalhealth.gov.au.

Staff training

• The Australian Digital Health Agency (ADHA) provides e-learning modules, webinars and other training resources that can be completed at your own pace. 
• ADHA Aged Care Training — free online learning modules covering My Health Record for aged care staff. 
• ACCPA MHR Readiness Toolkit — Training section – guidance on conducting a training needs analysis and developing a training plan (page 9).

Further information

• Advance Care Planning and MHR. 
• 1800MEDICARE app — residents can view their own record.

Electronic National Residential Medication Chart (eNRMC) 

The electronic National Residential Medication Chart (eNRMC) is the digital version of the medication chart used in residential aged care homes. It allows prescribers to record medication orders electronically and supports safer medication management for residents. 

The eNRMC can help: 

• reduce transcription errors. 

• improve communication between prescribers, pharmacists and aged care staff. 

• support more efficient medication management processes. 

Resources to guide implementation: 

• eNRMC Aged Care Fact Sheet — overview of electronic medication charts and prescribing in residential aged care  

• Electronic Prescriptions — overview and getting started (Australian Digital Health Agency) https://www.digitalhealth.gov.au/initiatives-and-programs/electronic-prescriptions.

• Electronic National Residential Medication Chart (eNRMC) — information on electronic medication charts used in residential aged care.  

Electronic Prescriptions (eScripts) 

Electronic prescriptions replace paper prescriptions with a digital prescription sent directly to the pharmacy. This can streamline prescribing processes and reduce the need to manage paper prescriptions. 

• ADHA Electronic Prescriptions — overview and getting started