MTHC Patient Health Privacy Policy

Current as of: December 2022

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 at one of our clinics, you provide consent for our clinicians 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 clinics 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, clinical 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.

Dealing with us anonymously

You have the right to be anonymous or use a pseudonym unless it is impracticable for us to do so or unless we are required or authorised by law to only deal with identified individuals.

How do we collect your personal information?

Our clinics may collect your personal information in several different ways.

1. When you make your first appointment our clinic staff will collect your personal and demographic information via your registration.
2. During the course of providing healthcare services, we may collect further personal information.
3. Information can also be collected through electronic transfer of prescriptions (eTP) and My Health Record.
4. We may also collect your personal information when you visit our website, send us an email or SMS, telephone us, make an online appointment or communicate with us using social media.
5. 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).

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 APPs 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 eTP and My Health Record.

When we share your personal information for any of the above reasons we will make sure it is communicated in a secure way.

Only people who need to access your information will be able to do so. Our practice will not share personal information with any third party without your consent, other than in the course of providing medical services or as otherwise described in this policy.

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.

Our practice may use your personal information to improve the quality of the services we offer to our patients through research and analysis of our patient data.

We may provide de-identified data to other organisations to improve population health outcomes through research. The information is secure, patients cannot be identified and the information is stored within Australia. You can let our reception staff know if you do not want your information included.

How do we store and protect your personal information?

Your personal information may be stored at our clinics in various forms including paper records, electronic records, visual records (X-rays, scans, videos and photos and audio recordings.

Our clinics stores all personal information securely by storing data on secure information systems and services, ensuring information is protected with passwords and making sure clinic staff know how to manage and protect your health information.

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 clinics acknowledge that patients may request access to their medical records. We require this request in writing, addressed to the Operations Manager at the clinic you are attending. Our clinic staff will respond within 30 days.

Our clinics 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 clinics are correct and current. You may also request that we correct or update your information, and you should make such requests in writing, addressed to the Operations Manager of the clinic you are attending.

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.

If you have a privacy-related complaint, it can be lodged by emailing the Operations Manager at the clinic you are attending. The relevant email addresses are:

Melbourne Dental Clinic: mdc-bookings@unimelb.edu.au Melbourne EyeCare Clinic: reception@shepmed.unimelb.edu.au Melbourne Hearing Care Clinic: aud-reception@unimelb.edu.au Melbourne Speech Pathology Clinic: speech-clinic@unimelb.edu.au Shepparton Medical Centre: reception@shepmed.unimelb.edu.au University of Melbourne Psychology Clinic: clinic-psych@unimelb.edu.au

We will acknowledge your email in 48 hours and provide a response in 30 days.

You may also contact the OAIC. Generally, the OAIC will require you to give them time to respond before they investigate. For further information visit www.oaic.gov.au or call the OAIC on 1300 363 992.

Privacy and our website

To improve your experience on our website, we may use ‘cookies’. Cookies are an industry standard and most major web sites use them. A cookie is a small text file that our site may place on your computer as a tool to remember your preferences. You may refuse the use of cookies by selecting the appropriate settings on your browser, however, please note that if you do this you may not be able to use the full functionality of our website.

Our website may contain links to other websites. Please be aware that we are not responsible for the privacy practices of other sites.

Our clinics also use interfaces with social media sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn and others. If you choose to “like” or “share” information from this website through these services, you should review the privacy policy of this service. If you are a member of a social media site, the interface may allow social media sites to connect your visits to this site with other personal information.

Our websites also contain web forms for the submission of personal information for the purpose of supporting your care at our clinics. This information is collected and securely stored on databases with only clinical staff who require access to clinical records having passwords enabling them to do so.

Policy review statement

This policy will be reviewed regularly to ensure it is in accordance with any changes that may occur. The current policy is available on clinic websites and available upon request at individual clinical receptions.