Privacy Policy
This privacy policy is to provide information to you, our patient, on how your personal information (including health information) is collected and used within our practice, and the circumstances in which we may share it with third parties. This document sets out the privacy policy of your medical records at our practice and the separate privacy policy of our website.
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 to do their job will have access. If we need to use 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 billing, practice audits and accreditation, and business processes (eg staff training).
What personal information do we collect?
The information we will collect about you includes your:
- name, address, date of birth, ethnicity, contact details, medical information including medical history, medications, allergies, adverse events, immunisations, social history, family history and risk factors.
- Medicare number (where available) for billing purpose and claiming purposes.
- Health fund details
Dealing with us anonymously
You have the right to deal with us anonymously or under a pseudonym unless it is impractical 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 practice may collect your personal information in several different ways.
- When you make your first appointment our practice staff will collect your personal and demographic information via your registration.
- During the course of providing medical services, we may collect further information about your health.
- 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.
- In some circumstances personal information may also be collected from other sources. Often this is because it is not practical or possible to collect it directly from you. 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 facilities.
- Your health fund, Medicare or the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (as applicable).
We sometimes share your personal information with:
- Third parties who work with our practice for business purposes, such as accreditation agencies and 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 (eg court subpoenas).
- When it is necessary to lessen or prevent a serious threat to a patient’s life, health or safety and it is impractical or not possible to get the patient’s consent.
- To help us locate 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 (eg some of our doctors are required to report notifications to the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA)). My Health Record system will assist GPs with the Patient Journey Summary.
- Doctors who need to access your information will be able to do so. Other than in the above circumstances, we will not share your personal information with any individual, company or organisation.
How do we store and protect your personal information?
Your personal information may be stored at our practice in various formats including paper records, electronic records, visual records (X-rays, CT scans, videos and photos), and audio recordings.
Our practice stores all personal information securely. We use combinations of physical security, including restricted access, and electronic security. We also use secure record systems that comply with the Australian Privacy Principles. All practice staff are required to adhere to strict confidentiality agreements.
Following the Feb 2018 changes to the Privacy legislation, we are now required to notify patients if we have a reasonable belief that there has been an eligible data breach involving their information. If your information is involved in an eligible data breach, we will notify you and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.
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 and our practice will respond within 30 days. Your practice will receive your specific request and notify you of how your practice will receive such a request in your records within this time period.
If you believe that the information we hold about you is incorrect, incomplete or inaccurate, then you may request us to amend it. We will consider if the information requires amendment. If we do not agree that there are grounds for amendment then we will add a note to the personal information stating that you disagree with it.
To make a request to access or correct your personal information, please contact our Practice Manager at admin@prestonfamilymedical.com.au or call us on (03) 9480 0844.
How do you lodge a privacy complaint regarding your personal information?
You have a right to complain about our handling of your personal information if you believe that we have interfered with your privacy.
We take privacy concerns seriously and will attempt to resolve any issues that you have with our handling of your personal information. If you wish to make a complaint about our privacy practices, then we request that you put your complaint in writing and address it to our Practice Manager. You can contact our Practice Manager at admin@prestonfamilymedical.com.au or call us on (03) 9480 0844.
You may also contact the 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.
Under Australian and state privacy laws (comprising the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), the Privacy Amendment (Private Sector) Act 2000 and the Privacy Amendment (Enhancing Privacy Protection) Act 2012 and the Health Records Act 2001 and Information Privacy Act 2000 (VIC)), you may have a right to make a complaint. We adhere to a complaints process for privacy complaints according to the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs).
Privacy and our website
Embedded content from other websites
Articles on this site may include embedded content (e.g. videos, images, articles, etc.). Embedded content from other websites behaves in the exact same way as if the visitor has visited the other website.
These websites may collect data about you, use cookies, embed additional third-party tracking, and monitor your interaction with that embedded content, including tracking your interaction with the embedded content if you have an account and are logged in to that website.