Encounter Mode

Every Encounter Place must have one or more encounter modes associated with it before it can be used to record services.

In the following discussion, two types of Service Encounter Places are referenced.
  • The physical place at which a service is delivered.
  • The physical place from which a service is delivered.

See Encounter Place for more information.

Note: All services are assumed to be "face to face" unless implied otherwise by the mode.

Encounter Modes

An Encounter Mode identifies either:
  • The means of delivering a health service. For example "Telephone".
  • The type of physical place at which a health service is delivered. For example, "School". The entire encounter place is "West Leeming Primary School (School)" to identify services delivered at the school.
Use physical places at which a service is delivered with either the means of delivering the service or the type of place at which the service is delivered. For example:
  • Millennium Health Service Clinic (Telephone)
  • Millennium Health Service Clinic (Aboriginal Health Service)
Use physical places from which the provider travels to deliver a service with the type of place where the service is delivered. For example:
  • Millennium Health Service Clinic (School), i.e. the Millennium Health Service Clinic is not a school but the service is delivered at a school.

Examples of Common Places and Modes

Table 1. Common encounter places and modes
Description Encounter Place Encounter Mode
The physical place at which a service is delivered and the means of delivering a health service Millennium Health Service Clinic Administration - no client contact
Millennium Health Service Clinic Telephone
The physical place at which a service is delivered and the type of physical place at which a health service is delivered Millennium Health Service Clinic Aboriginal Health Service
Fremantle Prison Prison*
Leeming Primary School School
Leeming Senior High School School
The physical place from which a service is delivered an the means of delivering a health service Millennium Health Service Clinic Mobile Clinic
Millennium Health Service Clinic Outreach
The physical place from which a service is delivered and the type of physical place at which a health service is delivered Millennium Health Service Clinic Client's Home
Millennium Health Service Clinic Prison*
Millennium Health Service Clinic School
* Some combinations are mutually exclusive. For example, use only one of the following combinations, not both:
  • A specific prison and the mode of Prison
  • A place of health service and mode of Prison

Types of Modes

Communicare provides the following encounter modes:

Table 2. Types of encounter mode
Means of delivery Type of physical place
Administration - client contact Aboriginal Health Service
Administration - no client contact Client's Home
Clinical administration – client contact Commercial setting (eg pharmacy)
Clinical administration – no client contact Community Health Centre
Clinic - Consult Community Services Centre
Inreach Court
Mobile Clinic Day Aged Care Centre
Other Day Procedure Centre (Free-standing)
Outreach Dental Room
Telehealth - Provider Dispensary - no client contact
Telehealth - Recipient Drug and Alcohol Agency
Telehealth Video Health Care Practitioner Office (any discipline)
Telephone Health Service
Hospital - All types
Hospital - Emergency Department
Hospital - General Practice
Hostel
Nursing Home
Other (also a means of delivery, read "Other type of place")
Prison
Renal Dialysis Centre (Free-standing)
Respite Care Facility (non-Hostel or Nursing Home)
School
Supported residential accommodation
Other encounter modes:
  • Contact Attempt Unsuccessful - no client contact is a special encounter mode which is neither type of place nor means of delivery.

Modes

Typically, health services use only a few modes for each encounter place, configured by the Communicare Administrator.

Use the following table to help determine which encounter modes to use.

Table 3. Encounter modes
Encounter Mode Consultation Delivery Description Included in reports Automated patient status updates?
Aboriginal Health Service In person Use to record a clinical consultation where the patient attended the clinic. nKPI and OSR Yes
Administration - client contact Administrative - in person Use to record that although the health service has seen the patient it was not for a clinical reason. None Yes
Administration - no client contact None Use to record administrative work for a patient. None No
Clinical administration – client contact Administrative - in person Client contact that is more clinically focused than Administration - client contact. nKPI and OSR
Note: Inclusion in reports may be affected by provider type.
 Yes
Clinical administration – no client contact None Clinical administration, for example:
  • Updating clinical history - allergies, past medical, surgical. Gynae history, family and social history
  • Referrals – child health, dietitian, allied health, social work, GP, OT, exercise physiologist, pharmacist
  • Applications – My Aged Care, MASS, Centrelink, Lions Club equipment
  • Immunisations – history, data entry, documentation verification
  • Pathology – follow up and organising treatment
  • Notifications – schools, GP, hospital, discharge planners
  • Discharge planning
 None No
Client's Home In person Use to record where workers from the health service deliver services at the client's home. Use instead of creating a separate encounter place for each client. nKPI and OSR Yes
Clinic - Consult In person Use to record a clinical consultation where the patient attended the clinic. nKPI and OSR Yes
Commercial setting (eg pharmacy) In person Use to record where workers from the health service deliver services at a business such as a pharmacy. Use instead of creating a separate encounter place for each business. nKPI and OSR Yes
Community Health Centre In person Use at community health centres to record a clinical consultation where the patient attended the health service. nKPI and OSR Yes
Community Services Centre In person Use to record where workers from the health service deliver services at a Community Services Centre. Use instead of creating a separate encounter place for each centre. nKPI and OSR Yes
Contact Attempt Unsuccessful - no client contact None Use to record attempted contact. None No
Court In person Use to record where workers from the health service deliver services at court. Use instead of creating a separate encounter place for each court. nKPI and OSR Yes
Day Aged Care Centre In person Use to record where workers from the health service deliver services at a day aged care centre. Use instead of creating a separate encounter place for each centre. nKPI and OSR Yes
Day Procedure Centre (Free-standing) In person Use at day procedure centres to record a clinical consultation where the patient attended the centre. nKPI and OSR Yes
Dental Room In person Use to record a clinical consultation where the patient attended a consulation in the dental room. nKPI and OSR Yes
Dispensary - no client contact None Use to record dispensary work for a patient. None No
Drug and Alcohol Agency In person Use at drug and alcohol agencies to record a clinical consultation where the patient attended the health service. nKPI and OSR Yes
Health Care Practitioner Office (any discipline) In person Use to record a clinical consultation for a health care practitioner that does not fit any other category. nKPI and OSR Yes
Health Service In person Use for non-indigenous health services to record a clinical consultation where the patient attended the health service. nKPI and OSR Yes
Hospital - All types In person Use in hospitals to record a clinical consultation where the patient attended the hospital. nKPI and OSR Yes
Hospital - Emergency Department In person Use in hospital EDs to record a clinical consultation where the patient attended the ED. nKPI and OSR Yes
Hospital - General Practice In person Use in hospital-based general practices to record a clinical consultation where the patient attended the practice. nKPI and OSR Yes
Hostel In person Use to record where workers from the health service deliver services at a hostel. Use instead of creating a separate encounter place for each hostel. nKPI and OSR Yes
Inreach In person Use to record inreach consultations. nKPI and OSR Yes
Mobile Clinic In person Use to record where workers from the health service go out in a mobile clinic to deliver services. Use instead of creating a separate encounter place. nKPI and OSR Yes
Nursing Home In person Use to record where workers from the health service deliver services at a nursing home. Use instead of creating a separate encounter place for each centre. nKPI and OSR Yes
Other In person Use to record where workers from the health service deliver services at a service encounter or physical place that is not otherwise described, read "Other means" or "Other service delivery mode". nKPI and OSR Yes
Outreach In person Use to record where workers from the health service go out into the community to deliver services. Use instead of creating a separate encounter place. nKPI and OSR Yes
Prison In person Use to record where workers from the health service deliver services at a prison. Use instead of creating a separate encounter place for each prison. nKPI and OSR Yes
Renal Dialysis Centre (Free-standing) In person Use to record where workers from the health service deliver services at a freestanding renal dialysis centre. Use instead of creating a separate encounter place for each centre. nKPI and OSR Yes
Respite Care Facility (non-Hostel or Nursing Home) In person Use to record where workers from the health service deliver services at a respite care facility. Use instead of creating a separate encounter place for each facility. nKPI and OSR Yes
School In person Use to record where workers from the health service go to a school to deliver services. Use instead of creating a separate encounter place for each school or youth club. nKPI and OSR Yes
Supported residential accommodation In person Use to record where workers from the health service deliver services at supported residential accommodation. Use instead of creating a separate encounter place for each centre. nKPI and OSR Yes
Telehealth Video Video conferencing Use to record services where the contact between the Communicare provider and the patient was using video conferencing. nKPI and OSR Yes
Telehealth - Provider Telephone or by another device such as a computer, with or without video Use to record remote telehealth consultations during the COVID-19 pandemic. nKPI and OSR Yes
Telehealth - Recipient Facilitator only Use where a consultation happened between a provider elsewhere and a patient, such as between a specialist and patient at a hospital, and the Communicare provider only facilitated the contact by providing a room and remote conferencing equipment. nKPI and OSR Yes
Telephone Telephone Use to record a clinical consultation performed over the telephone between the Communicare provider and the patient. nKPI and OSR Yes