My Health Record

Guides and articles on My Health Record, from the team behind MedibandPlus.

All My Health Record Medical ID Medical Errors & How to Avoid Them First Aid Guides

A clinician with a tablet going through discharge instructions with a patient on a hospital bed

Coming Home From Hospital: The Discharge Checklist

Discharge feels like the end of the episode. Clinically it is a handover — and almost everything that goes wrong in the fortnight afterwards traces back to something that was not passed on.

Read the guide →

An older couple looking out over the sea, one seated on a walking frame

Why End of Life Planning Matters in Australia

People do this because the alternative is leaving a decision to a family member in a hospital corridor with no idea what you would have chosen — a burden they carry long afterwards.

A hand reaching for a bottle of allergy medication beside a glass of water and tissues

Food Allergy Week Australia: Awareness and Staying Safe

Awareness weeks are easy to nod at and forget. This one is worth using, because with food allergy the difference between a scare and a tragedy is often preparation done weeks earlier.

A hand holding a small globe against an open landscape

How to Protect Your Health While Travelling

The things that actually derail trips are duller than exotic disease: a policy that excluded a pre-existing condition, a medication confiscated at a border, or a hospital with no way to find out what you take.

A firefighter directing operations beside burnt-out debris after a bushfire

4 Steps to Help You Prepare for a Natural Disaster

Preparation is not about expecting the worst. It is about not having to make good decisions quickly while frightened — which is why the trigger for leaving should be decided now.

A stethoscope and pen resting on a printed medical record form

Online Medical Records for Chronic Conditions: What to Record

A responder can see your breathing and your pulse, but not your insulin pump, your blood thinner or the asthma attack that once put you in intensive care. Here is what each of five common conditions needs recorded.

Paramedics loading a patient on a stretcher into the back of an ambulance

Calling an Ambulance in Australia: When to Call 000 and What to Say

Call Triple Zero (000) when someone is unconscious, is having trouble breathing, has chest pain or is seriously injured. Here is exactly what the operator will ask, how to give your location, and what paramedics need to know about the patient.

A notebook on a desk with the handwritten question What do you need?

The First Ten Minutes: What Emergency Responders Look For

Paramedics hand you over at hospital using a fixed format. Six of its nine fields can be observed at the scene. Three — allergies, medications and background history — can only come from you, or from something you are carrying.

A clinician with a tablet talking a patient through her medical history

What is MedibandPlus? Online Medical Records & Medical ID Australia

MedibandPlus is an Australian online medical ID: a secure profile of your conditions, medications, allergies and contacts, unlocked by a membership number you carry. Here is what it stores, how a responder reaches it with no app and no login, and how it differs from My Health Record.

A medical ID wristband worn on a person’s wrist

Medical Errors in Australia: How to Protect Yourself

The widely repeated claim that medical error is the third leading cause of death is a US estimate that has been heavily criticised. The Australian evidence is more specific — and more useful.