Privacy Policy
Policy Review Statement
This privacy policy will be reviewed regularly to ensure it is in accordance with any changes that may occur.
Current as of: 27/12/2023
Updates include the use of eHealth and Telemedicine.
Introduction
This privacy policy is to provide information to you, our patient, on how your personal information (which includes your health information) is collected and used within our practice, and the circumstances in which we may share it with third parties.
Why and when your consent is necessary
When you register as a patient of our practice, you provide consent for our GPs and practice staff to access and use your personal information so they can provide you with the best possible healthcare. Only staff who need to see your personal information will have access to it. If we need to use your information for anything else, we will seek additional consent from you to do this.
Why do we collect, use, hold and share your personal information?
Our practice will need to collect your personal information to provide healthcare services to you. Our main purpose for collecting, using, holding and sharing your personal information is to manage your health. We also use it for directly related business activities, such as financial claims and payments, practice audits and accreditation, and business processes (e.g. staff training).
What personal information do we collect?
The information we will collect about you includes your:
How do we collect your personal information?
Our practice may collect your personal information in several different ways.
1. When you make your first appointment our practice staff will collect your personal and demographic information via your registration.
2. During the course of providing medical services, we may collect further personal information. Health information can be sent and received to the practice via fax or mail. This practice is also a participant in the My Health Record Program (eHealth). Here, information can be collected by electronic transfer of prescriptions (eTP) and shared health summaries.
3. We may also collect your personal information when you visit our website, telephone us or make an online appointment. Currently we are not accepting communication via email or social media.
4. In some circumstances personal information may also be collected from other sources. Often this is because it is not practical or reasonable to collect it from you directly. This may include information from:
When, why and with whom do we share your personal information?
We sometimes share your personal information:
We will not share your personal information with anyone outside Australia (unless under exceptional circumstances that are permitted by law) without your consent.
Our practice will not use your personal information for marketing any of our goods or services directly to you without your express consent. If you do consent, you may opt out of direct marketing at any time by notifying our practice in writing.
How do we store and protect your personal information?
Your personal information is stored electronically. The practice no longer holds imaging results (CT scans and x-rays) onsite as you will be required to take them home.
Our practice has a number of measures in place to store all personal information securely. Some of these measures include encrypted data, firewalls, passwords and confidentiality agreements signed by contractors and staff.
How can you access and correct your personal information at our practice?
You have the right to request access to, and correction of, your personal information.
Our practice acknowledges patients may request access to their medical records. We require you to put this request in writing via a form provided in reception and our practice will respond within 30 days. Please note, there will a charge incurred for transfer of medical records. This will be advised prior to proceeding.
Our practice will take reasonable steps to correct your personal information where the information is not accurate or up to date. From time to time, we will ask you to verify that your personal information held by our practice is correct and current. You may also request that we correct or update your information, and you should make such requests in writing to the Practice Manager.
How can you lodge a privacy-related complaint, and how will the complaint be handled at our practice?
We take complaints and concerns regarding privacy seriously. You should express any privacy concerns you may have in writing. We will then attempt to resolve it in accordance with our resolution procedure within 30 days. You can address it to
Samantha Boskovski- Practice Manager
Ashford Avenue Family Practice
Shop 3/ 126 Ashford Avenue
Milperra NSW 2214
Or alternatively fill out the “Feedback Form” on our website under "Patient Information."
You may also contact the Office of the Australian Information Commission (OAIC). Generally, the OAIC will require you to give them time to respond before they will investigate. For further information visit www.oaic.gov.au or call the OAIC on 1300 363 992. You can also contact the Information and Privacy Commission NSW on 1800 472 678.
Policy Review Statement
This privacy policy will be reviewed regularly to ensure it is in accordance with any changes that may occur.
Current as of: 27/12/2023
Updates include the use of eHealth and Telemedicine.
Introduction
This privacy policy is to provide information to you, our patient, on how your personal information (which includes your health information) is collected and used within our practice, and the circumstances in which we may share it with third parties.
Why and when your consent is necessary
When you register as a patient of our practice, you provide consent for our GPs and practice staff to access and use your personal information so they can provide you with the best possible healthcare. Only staff who need to see your personal information will have access to it. If we need to use your information for anything else, we will seek additional consent from you to do this.
Why do we collect, use, hold and share your personal information?
Our practice will need to collect your personal information to provide healthcare services to you. Our main purpose for collecting, using, holding and sharing your personal information is to manage your health. We also use it for directly related business activities, such as financial claims and payments, practice audits and accreditation, and business processes (e.g. staff training).
What personal information do we collect?
The information we will collect about you includes your:
- names, date of birth, addresses, contact details
- medical information including medical history, medications, allergies, adverse events, immunisations, social history, family history and risk factors
- Medicare number (where available) for identification and claiming purposes
- healthcare identifiers
- health fund details.
How do we collect your personal information?
Our practice may collect your personal information in several different ways.
1. When you make your first appointment our practice staff will collect your personal and demographic information via your registration.
2. During the course of providing medical services, we may collect further personal information. Health information can be sent and received to the practice via fax or mail. This practice is also a participant in the My Health Record Program (eHealth). Here, information can be collected by electronic transfer of prescriptions (eTP) and shared health summaries.
3. We may also collect your personal information when you visit our website, telephone us or make an online appointment. Currently we are not accepting communication via email or social media.
4. In some circumstances personal information may also be collected from other sources. Often this is because it is not practical or reasonable to collect it from you directly. This may include information from:
- your guardian or responsible person
- other involved healthcare providers, such as specialists, allied health professionals, hospitals, community health services and pathology and diagnostic imaging services
- your health fund, Medicare, or the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (as necessary).
- Before the pandemic, the practice was not accepting communication via email or social media. Due to the nature of telehealth, some consultations require photos to be sent to your doctor via email (e.g. a photo of a rash). These photos will be downloaded onto our medical software and the email will be deleted afterwards.
- Sometimes your doctor will need to send you a form, or a referral or medical certificate via email. This will be encrypted with a password. This is done to protect your personal information in the rare event it is intercepted.
- In certain circumstances, you may wish to not have your PDF or email encrypted. This request will be documented into your file. The practice will not be responsible if an email is sent incorrectly (from the practice to you, or vice versa) or the email is intercepted by a 3rd party.
- As the email address supplied for the purpose of telehealth is managed by non-clinical staff, no health information (unless requested by your GP) is allowed to be sent. For example, you cannot send an email asking whether your symptom of chest pain is worth going to hospital or not. The practice will not be responsible for any health information or questions communicated electronically.
When, why and with whom do we share your personal information?
We sometimes share your personal information:
- with third parties who work with our practice for business purposes, such as accreditation agencies or information technology providers – these third parties are required to comply with Australian Privacy Principals and this policy
- with other healthcare providers
- when it is required or authorised by law (e.g. court subpoenas)
- when it is necessary to lessen or prevent a serious threat to a patient’s life, health or safety or public health or safety, or it is impractical to obtain the patient’s consent
- to assist in locating a missing person
- to establish, exercise or defend an equitable claim
- for the purpose of confidential dispute resolution process
- when there is a statutory requirement to share certain personal information (e.g. some diseases require mandatory notification)
- during the course of providing medical services, through eHealth – ie. eTP, My Health Record (e.g. via Shared Health Summary, Event Summary).
We will not share your personal information with anyone outside Australia (unless under exceptional circumstances that are permitted by law) without your consent.
Our practice will not use your personal information for marketing any of our goods or services directly to you without your express consent. If you do consent, you may opt out of direct marketing at any time by notifying our practice in writing.
How do we store and protect your personal information?
Your personal information is stored electronically. The practice no longer holds imaging results (CT scans and x-rays) onsite as you will be required to take them home.
Our practice has a number of measures in place to store all personal information securely. Some of these measures include encrypted data, firewalls, passwords and confidentiality agreements signed by contractors and staff.
How can you access and correct your personal information at our practice?
You have the right to request access to, and correction of, your personal information.
Our practice acknowledges patients may request access to their medical records. We require you to put this request in writing via a form provided in reception and our practice will respond within 30 days. Please note, there will a charge incurred for transfer of medical records. This will be advised prior to proceeding.
Our practice will take reasonable steps to correct your personal information where the information is not accurate or up to date. From time to time, we will ask you to verify that your personal information held by our practice is correct and current. You may also request that we correct or update your information, and you should make such requests in writing to the Practice Manager.
How can you lodge a privacy-related complaint, and how will the complaint be handled at our practice?
We take complaints and concerns regarding privacy seriously. You should express any privacy concerns you may have in writing. We will then attempt to resolve it in accordance with our resolution procedure within 30 days. You can address it to
Samantha Boskovski- Practice Manager
Ashford Avenue Family Practice
Shop 3/ 126 Ashford Avenue
Milperra NSW 2214
Or alternatively fill out the “Feedback Form” on our website under "Patient Information."
You may also contact the Office of the Australian Information Commission (OAIC). Generally, the OAIC will require you to give them time to respond before they will investigate. For further information visit www.oaic.gov.au or call the OAIC on 1300 363 992. You can also contact the Information and Privacy Commission NSW on 1800 472 678.