Australia
New Zealand
Working in partnership with the Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing (Department), HealthLink has launched phase one of a nationwide rollout to integrate the Initial Assessment and Referral Decision Support Tool (IAR-DST) for Mental Health into general practice software. The integrated IAR-DST SmartForm now enables General Practitioners (GPs) to complete mental health assessments using the IAR-DST directly within their practice management systems (PMSs).
The IAR is an evidence-based framework designed to support high-quality mental health care in primary care settings across Australia. It provides a structured and consistent approach to assessing people presenting with mental health concerns, supporting health professionals to determine the most appropriate level of mental health care a person will need across five levels of care within the Australian stepped care model.
For general practice, the integrated IAR-DST for Mental Health SmartForm will offer a more standardised referral process, less disruption to existing workflows and the ability to save assessment outcomes securely within the patient record. The HealthLink SmartForm integration is intended to improve GP usability and uptake in primary care whilst supporting interoperability, consistent data capture and patient privacy.
The integrated IAR-DST for Mental Health SmartForm is available nationwide through supported practice management systems including Best Practice, MedicalDirector Clinical and Helix, Genie, Medtech Artia, Shexie Platinum, Zedmed and Communicare. Practices not using a supported system can access the SmartForm through the MyHealthLink Portal. The MyHealthLink Portal is a web-based portal designed to enable smaller medical practices and individual healthcare providers to utilise HealthLink SmartForms.
Phase two, planned for later in 2026, will introduce an in-context SMART on FHIR application, initially launching within Best Practice’s PMS, allowing clinicians to complete the IAR-DST directly within the patient record. Outcomes can be written back into the PMS and used to trigger appropriate referral workflows, such as Medicare Mental Health referral services.
By using SMART on FHIR, the solution is designed to be extensible to other FHIR-enabled systems over time, reducing the need for custom integrations and supporting future national digital health initiatives.
“HealthLink’s new integrated IAR-DST for Mental Health SmartForm aligns closely with the Department’s objectives, leveraging standards-based technology, existing GP software partnerships, and proven eReferral infrastructure to support national scale – without adding complexity for clinicians”, says Jean-Christophe Meunier, National Manager at HealthLink.
“The opportunity to deliver these national digital programs, tools and services across the Australian health sector demonstrates the true value of HealthLink’s decades long investment in its platform capabilities and infrastructure. HealthLink handles the complexity of system-to-system interactions on behalf of practices, delivering trust, reliability and continued success as clinical systems evolve”, says Sahif Ali, Product Director at HealthLink.
The IAR-DST for Mental Health SmartForm delivers an integrated, consistent and streamlined assessment for better patient outcomes. The integrated SmartForm delivers faster, streamlined workflows through pre-populated data, helping GPs make confident and consistent referral decisions directly within their PMS.
GPs are encouraged to complete the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing’s national training module prior to first use. Please enrol in the IAR eLearning module for health professionals using the enrolment form here.
