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Practice Incentive Program
(PIP)
What
is the Practice Incentive Program?
It is a payment provided to a general practice that is accredited or working
towards accreditation for comprehensive, quality care to their patient’s. It is
a blended payment that focuses on aspects of general practice that contribute to
quality care.
Does
the payment depend on the size and location of a practice?
A rural loading is paid to practices in rural and remote locations. PIP payments
are mainly dependent on practice sizes in terms of patients seen rather than on
the number of consultation performed. Most PIP payments are proportional to
practice size. Practice size is calculated using a measure of patient load
at the practice that is independent of the number of services provided to
patients. This measure is called SWPE.
The SWPE value of a practice is the sum of the factors of care if provides to
each of its patients, weighted for the age and sex of each patient.
What
does my practice have to provide to claim a PIP?
To be eligible for participation in the PIP and receive the correct payment, a
practice must provide documentary evidence that:
-
it is accredited or it is registered for accreditation (see
below)
-
the practice has public liability insurance, and
-
all medical practitioners at the practice have:
-
professional indemnity
cover
-
completed 'Part F' of the
application form
(or 'Part G', if they join the practice after it is
approved for the PIP).
When will the practice receive a PIP
payment?
If the application is successful, the practice will receive its initial payment
in the first payment quarter after approval. Thereafter, the practice will
receive quarterly payments, providing it continues to meet the eligibility
criteria. Payments are generally made in February, May, August and November.
Payments are made by Electronic Funds Transfer
(EFT)
Practices may spend their payment as they wish, though the usual taxation rules
apply. Please note that the Practice Incentive Program payment is intended to
support the practice in purchasing additional equipment, upgrading its
facilities, or offering additional remuneration to doctors working at the
practice. If a practice chooses to use the payment as an additional source of
income for its doctors, the Australian Government strongly encourages its
equitable distribution amongst doctors working at the practice. However, the
Australian Government cannot be responsible for individual practices' business
arrangements.
New PIP IT
arrangements to apply from November 2006
The
new arrangements, to apply from November 2006, aim to encourage practices to
implement more secure IT practice systems and electronic patient health records
to facilitate efficient and widespread information transfer and storage.
Accurate and complete medical documentation is essential for supporting good
clinical care and ensuring good communication between health providers, allowing
them to respond quickly to patient needs to benefit both consumers and
providers. The GPCG has developed Security Guidelines for use in General
Practice, including a simple Computer Security Check-list for implementation
(see below). The guidelines will assist practices in maintaining the security
and privacy of electronic patient and practice records which is critical for
both health record systems and the operation of a general practice and will
assist with compliance for the new Practice Incentive Program.
Service Incentive Payment
(SIP)
A service incentive payment is made by Medicare for completion of medical
care provided by the individual general practitioner. The payment is calculated
according to information provided by the practice to Medicare.
Medicare Initiatives - The Practice Nurse
and Allied Health Worker initiative The Practice Nurse and Allied Health Worker initiative aims to
build on the current PIP Practice Nurse incentive by providing additional
practice nurses and allied health workers to work in PIP general practices. This
initiative will allow for an additional 457 full time practice nurses and/or
allied health workers by 2007 funded through PIP grants in areas of urban
workforce shortage, as defined by the Department of Health and Ageing (DoHA).
Practice
Nurse Subsidy
 (Medicare Guidelines)
Practice
Nurse Incentive Q & A
Enhancing General Practice in
western NSW
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