DHR data project closed despite extension request

A freedom of information request has revealed that the $327m Digital Health Record (DHR) program has been tracking red, or not under control, for months after a decision to close the program and transition to business as usual.

Shadow Health Minister, Leanne Castley, said the DHR program had tracked red every month from January to May, after which program reports including project status reports on DHR stopped being produced.

“As at the last program report in May, DHR was still having difficulty with data quality and external reporting and had 35 open risks, 10 with a high rating.

“Other risks included slow access to the Clinical Record, insufficient clinical engagement, slow decision making, pathology results sent to the wrong doctors and cyber attack.”

Ms Castley also said a decision to close the entire DHR program from 24 March and manage outstanding work as business as usual was “premature”.

“In January the DHR Program Board meeting rejected a request to extend the program’s Business Intelligence and Data (BI & D) project - that part of the DHR program having problems with external reporting - until November 2023.”

“By February the BI & D project itself tracking red, trending worse and 77% compete, placing all delivery dates for core activity data risk. By May, it was still tracking red, trending worse and still stuck at 77% complete.”

“Months later data reporting is still a fiasco. The recent ACT Budget was missing 12 pages of 2022-23 strategic and accountability indicators for Canberra Health Services due to the DHR reporting debacle.

“ED and elective surgery wait times data has been unavailable, despite the Minister in February saying it was a ‘month or so’ away, that CHS was working towards restoring whole-of-organisation reporting before May, and in May saying a better dataset would be available ‘before too long’.

Ms Castley said ongoing problems with external reporting following closure of the DHR program were compounded by a lack of oversight and transparency.

“Incredibly, the Health Minister ceased receiving formal monthly program reports on DHR after transition to business as usual.

“The Minister was warned prior to go-live in Novermber 2022 about the high risk to external reporting but blames officials for not escalating their concerns. Now we have the revelation of yet another breakdown in oversight on this Minister’s watch,” Ms Castley concluded.