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Hospital Circular 20/2008

Date Issued: 10 July 2008

Distribution: Public Hospitals

Subject: Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) Funding and Reporting changes

This Circular replaces Circular 19/2004

The following changes to the funding and reporting standards for all ECT performed in public hospitals in Victoria apply to all separations on or from 1 July 2008

Funding of ECT

Patients admitted from the community as a same day episode of care receive WIES payments as acute patients.

Any patients receiving ECT whilst admitted to an inpatient mental health bed in a multi-day episode of care will receive a co-payment for each ECT procedure in addition to the mental health bed day rate.  This will include ECT patients treated under hub and spoke arrangements.

Payment rates for 2008 – 09 are:

WIES Payment             $463 Same-day episode of care
Co-payment                 $135 Multi-day episode of care

ECT Reporting: VAED

There are no changes to the current ECT reporting standards for VAED, however hub and spoke ECT will appear on the PRS/2 WIES reports as an unfunded line in the inlier report due to the way in which these separations are processed internally by DHS.  Further details of this change will be advised in the HDSS Bulletin in due course.

 ECT Reporting: CMI/ODS (RAPID)

All ECT must (under the Mental Health Act 1986) be reported to the Office of the Chief Psychiatrist, through the ECT Register.

The following changes are required for ECT reporting on CMI/ODS from 1st October 2008:

• Admitted episodes for same day ECT are no longer required to be recorded on the CMI/ODS 
• All patients receiving an ECT procedure are required to have an ‘ECT Task’ recorded with the date of treatment for each procedure.
• Patients receiving ECT whilst in a residential episode are not required to be placed on treatment leave

Gill Callister
Executive Director
Mental Health and Drugs