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ICPC-2 PLUS
Recording health information at the point of care
A user-friendly coding system, allowing health professionals to record symptoms, diagnoses (problem labels), past health problems and processes (such as procedures, counselling and referrals) at the point of care.
About ICPC-2 PLUS
ICPC-2 PLUS (also known as the BEACH coding system) is a clinical terminology classified to the International Classification of Primary Care, Version 2 (ICPC-2).
ICPC-2 PLUS can be used in age-sex disease registers, morbidity registers and full electronic health records in primary care. It currently contains approximately 8,000 terms that are commonly used in Australian general practice.
Primarily used in Australia, ICPC-2 PLUS is installed in various software packages and used in electronic health record (EHR) systems by approximately 6,000 GPs in more than 500 practices throughout Australia.
It is also used in research projects, including the BEACH (Bettering the Evaluation And Care of Health) program, the national study of general practice activity. The terminology is therefore often referred to as the BEACH coding system.
The terminology is maintained and regularly updated by the Classifications and terminologies node, WHO-CC for Strengthening Rehabilitation Capacity in Health Systems, University of Sydney. Users of ICPC-2 PLUS are actively involved in the ongoing development of the terminology.
Developer files for ICPC-2 PLUS September 2024 have been released. Please contact us for details.
End users
If your EHR software provider has installed ICPC-2 PLUS as part of their clinical software, you may subscribe to ICPC-2 PLUS as an end user. This allows you to access ICPC-2 PLUS for data entry and data reporting.
For detailed information regarding what ICPC-2 PLUS is, how it works, advantages for you and a subscription form, download the ICPC-2 PLUS pamphlet for potential users (pdf, 233.5KB).
If you require further information about ICPC-2 PLUS, or have questions regarding its application, please contact us.
Licensing and costs
Charges apply for end users of ICPC-2 PLUS. All end users must sign an ICPC-2 PLUS end user contract before being given access to ICPC-2 PLUS.
Please contact us to obtain an ICPC-2 PLUS contract, or complete the subscription details on the ICPC-2 PLUS pamphlet.
Current licensing fees for ICPC-2 PLUS in Australia include 2 components:
- the payment of a "one off" Wonca fee for the lifelong use of ICPC-2; and
- an annual ICPC-2 PLUS site license fee.
License fees for standalone practices are as follows:
Licenses |
WONCA + Annual = 1st Year |
|---|---|
Single User |
$100 + $160* = $260 |
2-4 User |
$150 + $230* = $380 |
5-10 User |
$200 + $315* = $515 |
11-15 User |
$200 + $390* = $590 |
16-20 User |
$200 + $470* = $670 |
21+ User |
$200 + $630* = $830 |
* Includes 10% GST |
|
The annual ICPC-2 PLUS site fee covers the provision of regular database updates. These updates are usually provided via your EHR software provider. You can also contact us with new terms to be considered for inclusion in the term set in time with the next update. The annual fee is GST taxable.
Annual renewal license fees (effective February 2020):
Licenses |
Price * |
|---|---|
Single User |
$160 |
2-4 User |
$230 |
5-10 User |
$315 |
11-15 User |
$390 |
16-20 User |
$470 |
21+ User |
$630 |
* Includes 10% GST |
|
- Site: Fees are calculated based on a single site. Site is defined as "shared medical records", rather than physical location. For multiple practice sites, the licensing fee can be negotiated.
- Calculating the number of users: the number of users is calculated based on the number of Full Time Equivalent (FTE) clinical users of the system. Practice managers and administrative staff should not be included in this calculation.
Large groups of practices may wish to organise a single licence for ICPC-2 PLUS, with a single contract and point of contact.
Licences for using ICPC-2 PLUS outside Australia can be negotiated. Please note that the licence fees listed above are for Australia only and not applicable for overseas licences.
Please contact us for more information if this applies to you.
Developers
If you have an established electronic health record system (EHR) or are developing one, and would like to install ICPC-2 PLUS, we can provide you with a developer license. Developers may be:
- EHR software developers;
- clients who would like to incorporate ICPC-2 PLUS directly into their own (self developed) clinical system; or
- developers of databases for research purposes.
ICPC-2 PLUS is provided to Developers as comma delimited text files (CSV files) designed for implementation into EHR systems. Functionality requirements are also provided to Developers to assist with installation and search engine development.
The functionality requirements provide file descriptions and instructions for installing ICPC-2 PLUS. Any software developer adhering to all functionality requirements may apply for accreditation. Contact us for further details.
ICPC-2 PLUS terms for COVID-19 (pdf, 152.4 KB).
Licensing and costs
Anyone wishing to become a developer must agree to the licensing conditions and sign a Developer contract.
No charge is made to developers for installing ICPC-2 PLUS into a clinical system. However, once the terminology is being used for clinical or research purposes (that is, data are being entered into the system or database using ICPC-2 PLUS), an end user license must be in place. Charges apply for end users.
If you would like to register as an ICPC-2 PLUS Developer, or would like further information about potential applications for ICPC-2 PLUS, please contact us.
ICPC-2 PLUS is updated twice a year, in March and September. Updates include new terms, new keywords and the addition of new linkages between keywords and terms. Once an update has been finalised, developers are supplied with new ICPC-2 PLUS CSV files and the update is passed on to end users.
Developer files for ICPC-2 PLUS September 2024 have been released. Please contact us for details.
All ICPC-2 PLUS developers and end users are provided with an electronic copy of the ICPC-2 PLUS user guide. The user guide provides information on the purpose of coding and classifcation, the development of ICPC-2 PLUS and hints on the best way to access the term you want.
Appendices to the user guide are updated and distributed to licensed end users and developers as appropriate, and contain information about keywords, abbreviations used, recent terms added and lists the ICPC-2 PLUS data output groupers.
The demonstrator has been designed to explain how ICPC-2 PLUS could work in clinical system or in a research database and includes keyword functionality.
Information about the structure and analytic features included in ICPC-2 PLUS are also provided in the downloadable demonstrator, which is a great way to view the structure and terms available in ICPC-2 PLUS to help determine whether it meets your needs.
Please note: This is a Microsoft Access database. You will therefore need to have a copy of Microsoft Access to use this version of the demonstrator. The database allows you to search for all active ICPC-2 PLUS terms using either keywords or ICPC-2 rubric headings.
By downloading the demonstrator you are obliged to abide by the terms and conditions of the ICPC-2 PLUS demonstrator licensing agreement.
- Download the ICPC-2 PLUS demonstrator (zip, 2.3MB).
