Introduction

Our practice is committed to best practices in relation to the management of information we collect. This practice has developed a policy to protect patient privacy in compliance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (‘the Privacy Act’).  Our policy is to inform you of:

• the kinds of information that we collect and hold, which, as a medical practice, is likely to be ‘health information’ for the purposes of the Privacy Act;
• how we collect and hold personal information;
• the purposes for which we collect, hold, use and disclose personal information;
• how you may access your personal information and seek the correction of that information;
• how you may complain about a breach of the Australian Privacy Principles and how we will deal with such a complaint;
• whether we are likely to disclose personal information to overseas recipients;

What kinds of personal information do we collect?

The type of information we may collect and hold includes:

• Your name, address, date of birth, email, and contact details
• Medicare number, DVA number, and other government identifiers, although we will not use these for the purposes of identifying you in our practice
• Other health information about you, including:
  • notes of your symptoms or diagnosis and the treatment given to you
  • your specialist reports and test results
  • your appointment and billing details
  • your prescriptions and other pharmaceutical purchases
  • your dental records
  • your genetic information
  • your healthcare identifier any other information about your race, sexuality, or religion, when collected by a health service provider.

How do we collect and hold personal information?

We will generally collect personal information:

• from you directly when you provide your details to us. This might be via a face to face discussion, telephone conversation, a registration form, or online form
• from a person responsible for you
• from third parties where the Privacy Act or other law allows it – this may include but is not limited to:  other members of your treating team, diagnostic centers, specialists, hospitals, the My Health Record system, electronic prescription services, Medicare, your health insurer, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme

Why do we collect, hold, use and disclose personal information?

In general, we collect, hold, use and disclose your personal information for the following purposes:

• to provide health services to you
• to communicate with you in relation to the health service being provided to you. 
• to comply with our legal obligations, including, but not limited to, mandatory notification of communicable diseases or mandatory reporting under applicable child protection legislation. 
• to help us manage our accounts and administrative services, including billing, arrangements with health funds, pursuing unpaid accounts, management of our ITC systems
• for consultations with other doctors and allied health professional involved in your healthcare; 
• to obtain, analyze and discuss test results from diagnostic and pathology laboratories
•  for identification and insurance claiming 
•  If you have a My Health Record, upload your personal information to, and download your personal information from, the My Health Record system.
•  Information can also be disclosed through an electronic transfer of prescriptions service, such as Inservio. 
• To liaise with your health fund, government, and regulatory bodies such as Medicare, the Department of Veteran’s Affairs, and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) (if you make a privacy complaint to the OAIC), as necessary.

How can you access and correct your personal information?

You have a right to seek access to, and correction of the personal information which we hold about you.   However, there may be some legal or administrative reasons to deny access. If our practice decides to deny access, the Practice will provide you with the reason why.

For details on how to access and correct your health record, please contact our practice as noted below under ‘Contact Details’. We will normally respond to your request within 30 days.

Telehealth Appointments

Any consultations performed via telehealth will be conducted in a secure room with only the Specialist present. Any personal information disclosed will be treated in the same manner as a face-to-face consultation and the terms of this Privacy Policy apply.

Use of Interpreter Services

Only Interpreters from the Australian Government’s Translating and Interpreting Service’ will be engaged by this Practice. If an Interpreter is engaged by us for your consultation, then the Interpreter will be bound by our Confidentiality Agreement to ensure the protection of your personal information.

How do we hold your personal information?

Our staff are trained and required to respect and protect your privacy. We take reasonable steps to protect information held from misuse and loss and from unauthorized access, modification, or disclosure. This includes:

• Holding your information on an encrypted database
• Holding your information in a secure back-up server
• Holding your paper-based information  in a lockable cabinet
• Our staff sign confidentiality agreements
• Information is accessed on a strictly need to know based on the day of your appointment only

Privacy-related questions and complaints 

If you have any questions about privacy-related issues or wish to complain about a breach of the Australian Privacy Principles or the handling of your personal information by us, you may lodge your complaint in writing (see below for details). We will normally respond to your request within 30 days. 

If you are dissatisfied with our response, you may refer the matter to the OAIC:

Phone: 1300 363 992

Email: enquiries@oaic.gov.au

Fax: +61 2 9284 9666

Post: GPO Box 5218 
Sydney NSW 2001

Website: https://www.oaic.gov.au/individuals/how-do-i-make-a-privacy-complaint

Overseas disclosure.

We will not disclose your personal information to any overseas recipients without prior written consent.

Updates to this Policy

This Policy will be reviewed from time to time to take account of new laws and technology, changes to our operations, and other necessary developments. Updates will be publicized on the practice’s website and displayed in our reception area.

Contact details for privacy-related issues

Attention to: The Practice Manager

Email: Admin@bandbeyedoctors.com.au

Phone: (08) 9791 4111