Health
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Hospital Circular 14/2000

Date Issued: 1 September 2000
Publication: 14/2000
Distribution: Public Hospitals Metropolitan Heath Services Ambulance Services Metropolitan and Rural Regions
Subject: Olympic Games Football (Soccer) - Melbourne
Purpose: To request you note the Circular advice below and direct it to appropriate staff

1. Summary

For the period 2-29 September 2000 inclusive

  1. If an Eligible Olympic Family Member presents to a Victorian public hospital, if the patient is clinically stable, then ambulance transfer to St Vincent's Hospital Melbourne, after consultation with the Polyclinic Coordinator (see 7. Procedures for Victorian PublicHospitals), should be arranged.
  2. Victoria's public hospitals are required to offer Overseas Eligible Olympic Family Members access to free admitted and non-admitted health care, where that treatment is immediately necessary.
  3. All Eligible Olympic Family Members presenting for treatment to a public hospital (whether or not the they choose free or private care) should be asked to complete and sign the attached consent form.
  4. St. Vincent's Hospital Melbourne has been endorsed as the Official receiving hospital responsible for the medical care of all Eligible Olympic Family Members presenting to a public hospital in Victoria.
  5. But if Eligible Olympic Family Members are to present to your public hospital facility the processes in this Circular are required to ensure financial reimbursement and meeting Commonwealth Department of Health and Aged Care and SOCOG reporting requirements.

2. Purpose

The general purpose of this circular is to advise public ambulance services and public hospitals how access to health facilities for Eligible Olympic Family Members is to occur, and also how public hospitals are to capture appropriate consent and information for transmission to the Official Hospital.

3. Background

Around 300 Accredited Olympic Family Members (athletes, officials, and special high ranking guests) associated with the Olympic Games Football (Soccer) event in Melbourne, will be in Victoria over the period 2 - 29 September 2000. Matches will be played at the MCG and Soccer Teams will stay at the Hilton Hotel.

4. Definitions (for the purpose of this Circular)

  1. Accredited Olympic Family Members

    Accredited Olympic family members include

    1. Members of IOC, National Olympic Committees (NOC's);
    2. Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) executive and staff;
    3. Athletes and team officials; and
    4. Technical officials (umpires)

  2. Eligible Olympic Family Members

    All accredited Members of the Olympic Family who are:

    1. associated with the football (soccer) event held in Melbourne, and
    2. are in Victoria for the period 2-29 September 2000 inclusive

    For the purposes of this Circular, they include Overseas and Australian Eligible Olympic Family Members

  3. Overseas Eligible Olympic Family Members

    Overseas Eligible Olympic Family Members are those who reside overseas and, for the purpose of this Circular, regardless of any Reciprocal Health Care Agreement cover, they are Medicare Ineligible, and eligible for limited free care provided by public hospitals - under Olympic health care arrangements. They can elect private (chargeable) care if they wish.

  4. Australian Eligible Olympic Family Members

    Australian Eligible Olympic Family Members are covered by their full Medicare entitlements and can elect to be public or private patients in accordance with Medicare provisions. Normal charging arrangements will occur and such charges do not form part of the claims procedure outlined in this circular.

  5. Immediately necessary treatment

    For the purpose of this Circular, immediately necessary treatment means clinically relevant medical and hospital services in Victoria's public hospitals, for the diagnosis, alleviation, or care of Overseas Eligible Olympic Family Members requiring admitted or non admitted treatment.

    It is not intended to cover routine health services (including optometrical, dental and pharmaceutical supply) which are considered the Overseas Eligible Olympic Family Member could receive before or after the defined period.

    It is however, more than emergency treatment, and implies that it is not appropriate for the patient to wait until they return to their own country.

  6. Official Hospital

    St. Vincent's Hospital Melbourne has been endorsed as the Official Hospital of the Melbourne Olympic Football Tournament (hereafter St Vincent's). Its functions include the delivery of a range of specialised admitted and non admitted patient services, and the co-ordination of non emergency treatment through the Polyclinic located in the Hilton Hotel (Official Hotel). Access to the Polyclinic is available only to Eligible Olympic Family Members staying at the Hilton Hotel. Facilities not available at St. Vincent's, will be handled via St. Vincent's by contracting to an appropriate facility.

    St Vincent's will also act as the clearinghouse for all medical expenses and administrative issues referred to in this Circular relating to the provision of free care provided to Eligible Olympic Family Members. SVHM in its capacity as the Official Hospital will collect all outlying ambulance and public hospital treatment bills from public hospitals and ambulance services throughout Victoria, for costs incurred providing free immediately necessary public care to Eligible Olympic Family Members

7. Procedures for Victorian public hospitals

  1. Admission and identification of eligible patients

    STEP I: Eligible Olympic Family Members are encouraged to present to St Vincent's Hospital in the first instance, their medical condition and practicalities permitting.

    STEP II: Identification - all accredited Olympic Family Members will hold Olympic Accreditation Identification passes. These passes are fully laminated in Sydney 2000 logo imprinted plastic sleeves. Ask to see it to ensure accreditation is bona fide.

    STEP III: Notify the Polyclinic at time of presentation of all accredited Olympic Family Members who present to your facility for private (chargeable) or free admitted or non admitted care. The polyclinic staff will help you determine if they are Eligible Olympic Family Members.

    Call the dedicated 24 hour lines at the Polyclinic on

    9417 2914; or
    9417 3712
    in the first instance:.

    If there is any difficulty in getting through, contact the Polyclinic Co-ordinator, Georgette Georges, available 24 hours:

    mobile 0438 059 725;
    9288 2211 ask for pager 695; or
    Non Urgent email georgeg@svhm.org.au

    STEP IV: Transfer - if medical condition permits these patients should be transferred by ambulance to SVHM after consultation with the Polyclinic Coordinator.

    Dr Andrew Bacon, Chief Medical Coordinator, State Emergency Response Plan, will be taking the role of chief medical officer for the health services in connection with the Melbourne Olympic Football Competition. He will be contactable on the Medical Displan paging service tel 03 9483 1988.

  2. Olympic Family Member Consent Form to Release Information

    All Eligible Olympic Family Members presenting to a public hospital (whether or not the they choose free or private care) should be asked to complete and sign the attached consent form.(Word File 26KB)

    If the person refuses, then there is no consent to release information. However entitlement to free care as an Eligible Olympic Family Member still applies.

    For any assistance explaining the necessity of this specific consent form to the patients, public hospitals can contact the Polyclinic in the first instance. Public hospitals should offer non-English speaking patients the use of an accredited (where possible) interpreter, where it judges that essential communication needs to be improved to ensure informed consent.

  3. Confidentiality and Privacy

    Public hospitals must comply with the Commonwealth Privacy Act 1988 in addition to complying with applicable State laws and privacy and confidentiality policies and procedures with respect to consent and the release of personal health information from health records for treatment received.

  4. Billing arrangements

    1. Private care in public hospitals

      Where Eligible Olympic Family Members choose to use their own private health insurance or travel insurance, normal charging and billing routines should apply.

    2. Public care in public hospitals

      See 8. Coding arrangements for details

    3. Ambulance

      St Vincent's will collect and pay all outlying ambulance bills for ambulance services provided to Eligible Olympic Family Members.

    4. Non admitted patients

      Where an overseas Eligible Olympic Family Member is treated as a non-admitted patient, the hospital should submit an account to St Vincent's.

    5. Claim forms

      The attached claim forms:

      1. Olympic Health Care Funding-Claim for Medical Services (Excel File 18KB)
      2. Olympic Health Care Funding-Claim for Pharmaceutical Benefits Schemes Items Provided (Excel File 17KB)

      are required to be completed and submitted on time as a condition of reimbusement.

    6. Due dates and contacts

      All accounts and claim forms must be finalised by 30 November 2000 and sent to:

      Mr Chris Doidge
      Financial Controller
      Finance Department
      St Vincent's Hospital Melbourne
      41 Victoria Pde
      FITZROY VIC 3065

      Enquiries relating to billing: contact Ms Georgette Georges on 94172914 (up to 29 September), and on 92882211 (post 29 September)

    7. Record keeping

      Records relating to claims for reimbursement must be kept for at least 4 years from 1 November 2000.

8. Coding arrangements

Where an overseas Eligible Olympic Family Member is admitted (whether eventually transferred to St Vincent's or not), the patient should be recorded as being treated under contract to St Vincent's Hospital.

The Contract Type will be either:

AB admitted by Hospital A and transferred to St Vincent's

(A)B admitted by Hospital A, but not transferred to St Vincent's

Refer to the PRS/2 Manual, 1999-2000:

Internet website: http://www.dhs.vic.gov.au/ahs/prs299/index.htm or, in the printed version, to pages A-44-45, for a list of reporting requirements and pages B-82 onwards for details of each Contracting field.

The Account Class to use is ME Ineligible: hospital exempt (no charge).

Coding enquires may be directed to PRS Help desk 96168141.

9. Health Practitioners (Special Events Exemption) Act

This legislation is designed to allow health practitioners from other countries who accompany teams that visit Victoria for major sporting or cultural events, to provide health care services to members of those teams without undergoing registration processes.

The Olympic Football Tournament has been e declared a special event. The Special Event Order was published in the Government Gazette on 25 August 2000.

The Special Event Order for the Olympic Football Tournament will be for the period 2 September 2000 to 29 September 2000 inclusive. Health practitioners will be accredited through the IOC Medical Commission. The provision of health services is restricted to competition venues, accommodation and the Polyclinic at the Hilton Hotel . Health practitioners are restricted to treating members of the own national team. The registration and prescribing rights do not extend to other patients, and the medical practitioners do not have practice rights at any Victorian Hospital.

Approved visiting medical practitioners will be able to prescribe and supply SOCOG approved medication using a SOCOG prescription form. SOCOG prescription forms will only be filled from the imprest at the Polyclinic or St Vincent's Hospital pharmacy.

10. Post Olympic Football Tournament

Accredited Olympic Family Members presenting after 29 September 2000 should be treated as all overseas visitors that present to your facility.

All other enquires

For all other enquires relating to this Circular, public hospitals can contact the Regional Office, or Ms Vivienne Fink, Acute Health, E-mail vivienne.fink@dhs.vic.gov.au, Ph 9616 7661

DR C W BROOK
DIRECTOR
ACUTE HEALTH

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