Health Identifiers: IHI Numbers & Validation

An Individual Healthcare Identifier (IHI) is a unique 16-digit number assigned to every person receiving healthcare in Australia. It is part of the national Healthcare Identifiers Service and is essential for accurate patient identification, ePrescribing, and My Health Record integration.

Validating IHI numbers ensures that patient demographic details match the official record held by Services Australia. This helps prevent errors in electronic prescriptions and secure messaging and supports compliance with Australian healthcare standards.

Contents

1. Step 1: Practice Configuration
2. Step 2: User Configuration
3. Step 3: Validate the Patient IHI
   • Automatic validation using Save
   • Validate using the Validate button
   • Automatic validation via Dashboard
   • Bulk validation via Patient Grid
4. Informational, Warning, and Error Messages
5. Further Reading

Step 1: Practice Configuration

Before validating IHI numbers, your practice must have a valid HI Certificate configured.

Ensure that you have completed all steps in the Practice Configuration - HI Certificates guide.

Step 2: User Configuration

Each logged-in user must have a valid HPI-I Number:

1. Go to More.
2. Click Settings.
3. Select Subscription Details.
    
4. Click Users.
    
5. Search for a user and tick the box.
6. Click the Edit User button.
    
7. Go to Identifiers.
8. Enter a valid HPI-I No.

9. Click Save.

   ✅ Tip: Another way to update the HPI-I Number:
   1. Click the Person icon
   2. Choose Profile
   

Step 3: Validate the Patient IHI

Pre-requisites:

• Practice has a valid HI Certificate uploaded.
• Logged-in user has a valid HPI-I entered in their Profile.
• Patient record has the following information entered:
  • IHI Number (Mandatory)
  • Family Name (Mandatory)
  • Date of Birth (Mandatory)
  • Sex (Mandatory)
  • Given Name (Optional)

Method 1: Automatic validation using Save

1. Open the Patient Record.
2. Go to Details.
3. Click Settings.
4. Locate the Identifiers section.
5. Enter the patient’s IHI Number.

6. Click Save.

   ✅ Note:
   • MediRecords performs an ID Number search on the IHI Number field when you click Validate.
   • If an IHI number is present in the patient record, it validates the patient's identity using the IHI Number.
   • If the IHI Number is blank, then validation will be run against the patient's Medicare & DVA information.

    

Method 2: Validate using the Validate button

1. Open the Patient Record.
2. Go to Details.
3. Click Settings.
4. Locate the Identifiers section.

5. Click Validate IHI.

    

Method 3: Automatic validation via Dashboard

1. Open the Patient Record.

2. Click Dashboard.

    

Method 4: Bulk validation via Patient Grid

1. Go to the Patients grid.
2. Tick the patient(s).
3. Click More.
4. Choose Validate IHI.

Informational, Warning, and Error Messages

• Success: IHI Number Status and Record Status updated.
• Failure: Toast message or error code displayed.
  • 01439: Invalid demographic details.
  • 01527: IHI not found.

Further Reading

• My Health Record (MHR): Practice & Provider Configuration
• Patient Settings Tab Quick Guide