Set Up to Care
Sources and further reading
Set Up to Care draws on published figures and guidance where it makes a factual claim. This page lists those sources chapter by chapter, with links, so you can read them for yourself. Figures such as Medicare rebates and survey results change over time; the date with each entry is when that source was read for the book.
Chapter 1 — An ordinary Tuesday
How much of a GP's week is non-billable work.
Brown, A., Enticott, J. and Russell, G. (2021). How do Australian general practitioners spend their time? A cross-sectional analysis of MABEL data examining 'non-billable workload'. Australian Journal of General Practice, 50(9), 661–666.
https://www1.racgp.org.au/ajgp/2021/september/mabel-data-examining-workload/
Burnout, and dissatisfaction with administration, among GPs.
Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (2025). General Practice: Health of the Nation 2025 (Figures 42 and 43).
https://www.racgp.org.au/FSDEDEV/media/documents/Health-of-the-Nation-2025.pdf
What unbilled time between consultations is worth to a GP each year.
Henderson, J., Valenti, L.A., Britt, H.C. et al. (2016). Estimating non-billable time in Australian general practice. Medical Journal of Australia, 205(2), 79–83.
https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2016/205/2/estimating-non-billable-time-australian-general-practice
Chapter 3 — A connected practice
Non-billable work as a share of a GP's week.
Brown, A., Enticott, J. and Russell, G. (2021). Australian Journal of General Practice, 50(9), 661–666 — as under Chapter 1.
https://www1.racgp.org.au/ajgp/2021/september/mabel-data-examining-workload/
The opportunity cost of administrative workload — more than fourteen million consultations a year.
Bonning, M. (2024). Witness statement to the Special Commission of Inquiry into Healthcare Funding (NSW), 23 July 2024, p. 14.
Administrative load as a reason GPs leave practice.
RACGP newsGP. Admin burden top reason GPs plan to leave practice.
https://www1.racgp.org.au/newsgp/professional/admin-burden-top-reason-gps-plan-to-leave-practice
Chapter 4 — The defensible record
How long clinical records must be kept.
Office of the Australian Information Commissioner. Access your health information — in the ACT, NSW and Victoria, seven years, or until a child turns 25; other jurisdictions differ.
Chapter 5 — The frictionless patient journey
Online booking and the reduction in no-show (did-not-attend) rates.
Mazaheri Habibi, M., Marashi, T., Tabahi, M. and Arab-Zozani, M. (2024). Evaluation of no-show rate in outpatient clinics with open access scheduling system: a systematic review. Health Science Reports, 7(7), e2202.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11231932/
Quintero-Ahumada, C., Ibrahim, A. and Reddy, S. (2024). Integrating telehealth into the primary care workday to improve access and continuity. Family Practice Management, 31(5), 12–16.
https://www.aafp.org/fpm/2024/0900/integrating-telehealth
HealthyA (2023). AI-driven triage and demand management at Priory Medical Group: a digital transformation case study.
Kammrath Betancor, P., Boehringer, D., Jordan, J., Lüchtenberg, C., Lambeck, M., Ketterer, M.C., Reinhard, T. and Reich, M. (2025). Efficient patient care in the digital age: impact of online appointment scheduling in a medical practice and a university hospital on the "no-show"-rate. Frontiers in Digital Health, 7, 1567397. In the private practice, patients who booked online missed fewer appointments than those who booked by other means; at the university hospital the pattern reversed, and SMS reminders were associated with fewer no-shows in both settings.
https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/digital-health/articles/10.3389/fdgth.2025.1567397/full
Chapter 6 — Charging what you're worth
The Medicare rebates used in the cost illustration (item 23; the psychology item under Better Access).
The amounts in the book are as at 1 July 2026; the current rebate is always the one on MBS Online.
MBS Online, item 23 (Level B). https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?type=item&q=23&qt=item
MBS Online, item 80110 (focussed psychological strategies by an eligible psychologist, in consulting rooms, at least 50 minutes). https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?type=item&q=80110&qt=item
MBS Online, explanatory note AN.0.78, Better Access Initiative. https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?type=note&q=AN.0.78&qt=noteID&criteria=AN%2E0%2E78
Services Australia, MBS billing rules for mental health services, the item tables by provider type. https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/mbs-billing-rules-for-mental-health-services?context=20
Chapter 7 — The confident biller
GP confidence with Medicare billing — three in four unsure, one in eight confident.
Attwooll, J. (2024). Three in four doctors not confident navigating Medicare: Poll. newsGP, RACGP, 12 January 2024.
https://www1.racgp.org.au/newsgp/professional/three-in-four-doctors-not-confident-navigating-med
The value of unbilled clinical work between consultations — ten to twenty-three thousand dollars a year.
Henderson, J., Valenti, L.A., Britt, H.C. et al. (2016). Estimating non-billable time in Australian general practice. Medical Journal of Australia, 205(2), 79–83.
https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2016/205/2/estimating-non-billable-time-australian-general-practice
Under-billing versus over-billing — 11.8% against 1.6%.
Harrison, C., Gordon, J., Henderson, J., Miller, G.C. and Britt, H. (2023). Under or over? General practitioner charging of Medicare. Australian Journal of General Practice, 52(4).
https://www1.racgp.org.au/ajgp/2023/april/general-practitioner-charging-of-medicare
Item 715 — the health assessment for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients — and its telehealth equivalent.
Department of Health, Disability and Ageing (October 2025). Medical Practitioners — Non-Referred MBS Telehealth Services (factsheet, PDF).
Pharmacists — Home Medicines Reviews and MedsChecks as claimable clinical services.
Pharmacy Programs Administrator. MedsCheck and Diabetes MedsCheck.
Pharmacy Programs Administrator. Home Medicines Review.
https://www.ppaonline.com.au/programs/medication-management-programs/home-medicines-review
The chronic condition management items — renumbered from 1 July 2025.
Department of Health and Aged Care, MBS Online. Upcoming changes to the MBS Chronic Disease Management Framework (factsheets, 2025).
The GP consultation tiers — Levels A to D — and the video equivalent that carries the same fee.
The book describes the item rules as the schedule stood in October 2026; the current descriptor is always the one on MBS Online.
MBS Online, item 23 (Level B). https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?type=item&q=23&qt=item
MBS Online, item 36 (Level C). https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?type=item&q=36&qt=item
MBS Online, item 44 (Level D). https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?type=item&q=44&qt=item
MBS Online, item 123 (60 minutes or more). https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?type=item&q=123&qt=item
MBS Online, item 91801 (video attendance, at least 20 minutes). https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?type=item&q=91801&qt=item
The chronic condition management items, and the MyMedicare condition on who may claim them.
MBS Online, item 965 (GP chronic condition management plan). https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?type=item&q=965&qt=item
MBS Online, item 967 (review of the plan). https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?type=item&q=967&qt=item
MBS Online, item 10997 (practice nurse or Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health practitioner service for a patient with a chronic condition). https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?type=item&q=10997&qt=item
Chapter 8 — Care beyond the consulting room
Remote monitoring — no general MBS item; the items that exist are tied to particular devices.
As at October 2026.
MBS Online, item 11719 (implanted pacemaker, remote monitoring). https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?type=item&q=11719&qt=item
MBS Online, item 11725 (implanted defibrillator, remote monitoring). https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?type=item&q=11725&qt=item
MBS Online, item 11736 (implanted loop recorder, remote monitoring — atrial fibrillation). https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?type=item&q=11736&qt=item
MBS Online, item 11737 (implanted ECG loop recorder, remote monitoring). https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?type=item&q=11737&qt=item
MBS Online, item 11607 (ambulatory blood pressure recording, 24 hours or more). https://www9.health.gov.au/mbs/fullDisplay.cfm?type=item&q=11607&qt=item
Continuous glucose monitors — subsidised through the NDSS rather than the MBS.
National Diabetes Services Scheme. Continuous Glucose Monitoring Products.
https://www.ndss.com.au/about-the-ndss/cgm-access/
The 2020 telehealth expansion: 281 temporary items; telehealth permanent from December 2021.
Australian National Audit Office (2023). Expansion of Telehealth Services. Auditor-General Report No. 10 of 2022–23, 19 January 2023.
https://www.anao.gov.au/work/performance-audit/expansion-telehealth-services
The telehealth eligibility rule, the MyMedicare pathway and the Better Access redesign (from 1 November 2025).
MBS Online. November 2025 News: Summary of MBS changes for 1 November 2025.
https://www.mbsonline.gov.au/internet/mbsonline/publishing.nsf/Content/news-251101
ClinicComply (2026). Telehealth Medicare Billing 2026: New MBS Items, 80/20 Rule, MyMedicare — a practitioner-facing summary of the same changes, including the removed mental health items and the 80/20 and 30/20 thresholds.
https://www.cliniccomply.com.au/blog/telehealth-medicare-billing-compliance-guide-2026
Remote monitoring in heart failure reduces hospitalisations by 20–30%.
Ramgobin, D., Vo, M., Golarmari, R., Jain, R. and Jain, R. (2022). Congestive heart failure clinics and telemedicine: the key to reducing hospital readmissions in the United States. Cardiology Journal, 29(6), 1013–1019 — citing Tse et al. (2018), a meta-analysis of 31,501 patients: telemonitoring reduced hospitalisation rates by 24% over six months and 27% over twelve.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9788733/
O’Connor, M., Asdornwised, U., Dempsey, M.L., Huffenberger, A., Jost, S., Flynn, D. and Norris, A. (2016). Using telehealth to reduce all-cause 30-day hospital readmissions among heart failure patients receiving skilled home health services. Applied Clinical Informatics, 7(2), 238–247 — one home-health agency; 30-day readmissions fell from 19.3% to 5.2% over three years.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4941836/
The share of Australians using telehealth, 2024–25.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Medicare-subsidised GP, allied health and specialist health care across local areas — trends over time (drawing on the ABS Patient Experiences survey).
Chapter 10 — The AI-augmented practice
Patient consent when an AI scribe is listening.
Australian Journal of General Practice, May 2025. Is AI A-OK? Medicolegal considerations for general practitioners using AI scribes.
https://www1.racgp.org.au/ajgp/2025/may/is-ai-a-ok-medicolegal-considerations-for-general
AHPRA's guidance on using AI in healthcare.
Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency. Meeting your professional obligations when using Artificial Intelligence in healthcare (updated 22 August 2024).
https://www.ahpra.gov.au/Resources/Artificial-Intelligence-in-healthcare
The RACGP's guidance on AI scribes.
Royal Australian College of General Practitioners. Artificial intelligence (AI) scribes (updated October 2025).
How the TGA treats AI software under the medical device rules.
Therapeutic Goods Administration. Artificial intelligence (AI) and medical device software regulation (updated 5 February 2026).
Chapter 11 — Earned trust
What registration with My Health Record obliges a practice to do.
Australian Digital Health Agency. My Health Record participation obligations.
The My Health Record legislation, including the Share By Default Rules for pathology and imaging.
Australian Digital Health Agency. My Health Record legislation and governance.
Pathology and imaging reports shared to My Health Record by default from 1 July 2026.
My Health Record (Share by Default) Rules 2025 (F2025L01569), Federal Register of Legislation.
https://www.legislation.gov.au/F2025L01569/asmade/2025-12-12/text/original/pdf
Who sees an uploaded result, and when — the five-day patient-access delay for sensitive categories.
Australian Digital Health Agency. Better access to health information.
The Essential Eight.
Australian Signals Directorate, Australian Cyber Security Centre. Essential Eight explained.
The MediSecure breach, 2024.
RACGP newsGP. Nearly 13 million Australians impacted by MediSecure breach.
https://www1.racgp.org.au/newsgp/professional/nearly-13-million-australians-impacted-by-medisecu
The cost of a healthcare data breach.
IBM. Cost of a data breach: the healthcare industry.
https://www.ibm.com/think/insights/cost-of-a-data-breach-healthcare-industry
The Snapshot
The free five-minute Digital Health Maturity Snapshot referred to in How this book works, Chapter 2 and the appendix: