Patient relationship to health-care service provider code N

Guide for use:

CODE 1 Public admitted hospital patient

'Public admitted hospital patient' includes persons enrolled in Medicare who, on admission to a recognised hospital or soon after, receive or elect to receive a public hospital service free of charge. This includes patients for whom treatment is contracted to a private hospital. It does not include Department of Veterans’ Affairs patients and compensable patients. Code 1 also includes patients who were admitted to a private hospital as public patients.

CODE 2 Private admitted hospital patient

'Private admitted hospital patient' includes persons who on admission to a recognised hospital or soon after elect to be private patients treated by a medical practitioner of their choice; or elect to occupy a bed in a single room and are responsible for meeting certain hospital charges as well as the professional charges raised by a treating medical or dental practitioner. Private admitted hospital patients also includes persons who are eligible for Medicare who choose to be admitted to a private hospital and are responsible for meeting all hospital charges as well as the professional charges raised by any treating medical or dental practitioner.

Private admitted hospital patient also includes:

• Department of Veterans’ Affairs patients (eligible persons whose charges for their hospital admission are met by the Department of Veterans’ Affairs); and
• Compensable patients (persons who are entitled to receive or have received a compensation payment with respect to an injury or disease). Compensable patients are persons who are entitled to claim damages under motor vehicle third party insurance, worker's compensation, public liability or common law.

Whether patients are admitted patients will depend on administrative practices within particular jurisdictions. If the patients were considered to be admitted patients by the relevant health-service provider at the time of the health-care incident then Code 1 or 2 should be recorded (as appropriate). Code 1 or 2 should also be used for patients receiving long-term nursing or respite care in a hospital, if they are considered admitted hospital patients.

CODE 3 Resident

'Resident' should be recorded where, at the time of the incident, a patient was a resident in a residential aged care or mental health care establishment, or in a similar residential health-care setting. Some hospitals (particularly in rural areas) use hospital beds to provide long-term nursing or respite care. However, where patients receiving such care are admitted hospital patients this code should not be recorded.

CODE 8 Other

'Other' should be recorded where, at the time of the incident, the patient was attending an outpatient clinic, general practice surgery, Emergency department, or similar non-admitted, non-residential service.

CODE 9 Not stated/inadequately described

'Not stated/inadequately described' should be used when the information is not currently available.