Indigenous Health reporting

The Department of Health collects data from Indigenous Health Services funded by the Indigenous Australians’ Health Programme (IAHP). Data is collected for two main data sets:

• National Key Performance Indicators for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander primary health care (nKPIs) are collected six monthly in January and July through the Health Data Portal. The nKPIs consist of 24 indicators covering maternal and child health, chronic disease management, and preventative health. The indicator set was endorsed by the Australian Health Ministers’ Advisory Council (AHMAC) in 2011 and data was first collected in June 2012. Detailed information about the nKPI data collection is available from the Department of Health; and
• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health organisations Online Services Report (OSR) is reported annually each July through the Health Data Portal. The OSR data collection focusses on the characteristics of, and activities and services provided by, Indigenous Health services to deliver one (or a combination) of health services to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Detailed information about the OSR data collection is available from the Department of Health.

These data sets contribute to the delivery of comprehensive and culturally appropriate primary health care services to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. They also enable the Department of Health to develop and manage evidence-based policy and programs aimed at improving health outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities. Data and reporting on the progress of health service provision also informs longer term strategic planning and shapes Commonwealth investment in Indigenous primary health care.

For more information about these data collections, email the Department of Health at: indigenousreporting@health.gov.au

Many of the reportable measures can be provided directly from Clinical Information Systems used by the reporting organisations. Detailed specifications for each reportable measure are provided in a specifications document. NPS MedicineWise assumed responsibility for the specifications document in December 2019. The document can be accessed here: 

A full description of each measure, including inclusions, exclusions and counting rules are detailed in this document. For each nKPI, there is also a link to the relevant page in the AIHWs Metadata Online Registry (METeOR). The Specifications also include the nKPI Condition Coding Framework. For further information please email info@nps.org.au

Commencing in 2019, NPS MedicineWise was contracted by the Australian Government Department of Health to validate the nKPI and OSR reports, using a control data set (CDS) to check the integrity of the report outputs. Four clinical information systems are validated – Best Practice (Bp), Communicare (Ccare) Medical Director (MD), and MMEx.

The results of each validation process conducted by NPS MedicineWise are presented in the format of a vendor scorecard accessible here:

• AIHW – National Key Performance Indicators
• Review of the two national Indigenous specific primary health care datasets: The Online Services Report and the national Key Performance Indicators