Privacy policy 

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Specialists on Honeysuckle is committed to best practice 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;

 

Collection

We collect information that is necessary and relevant to provide you with medical care and treatment. 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.

 

Method of collection

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, 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 centres, specialists, hospitals, the My Health Record system[1], electronic prescription services, Medicare, your health insurer, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme

 

Use and Disclosure

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, analyse and discuss test results from diagnostic and pathology laboratories

•  for identification and insurance claiming 

•  If you have a My Health Record, to 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. 

• 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.

 

Updating personal information

You have a right to seek access to, and correction of the personal information which we hold about you. We request that you put your request in writing and we will respond normally within 30 days, 

There may be a fee for the administration costs of retrieving and providing you with copies of your medical records.

For details on how to access and correct your health record, please contact our practice as noted below under ‘Contact Details’:

 

Data, Quality and Security

• We store your information at our premises in electronic systems under our control in encrypted database and with backups held both locally and with a contracted data storage Provider. We take appropriate steps to protect the security of the information we hold about you, including protections against unauthorised access, virus or other electronic intrusions, fire, theft or loss. We require our contract providers to do the same.

• We or our contracted data storage providers may use servers, systems and cloud computing providers outside of Australia. Our contracts with them require them to protect the privacy of your information when held on these servers and/ or using cloud computing. Our contractors are required to comply with Australian privacy laws.

• Access to personal information restricted on a need-to-know basis

• Our staff sign confidentiality agreements

 

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 to (see below for details).  We will normally respond to your request within 30 days. 

If you are dissatisfied with our handling of a complaint or the outcome, you may make an application to the Australian Information Commissioner or the Privacy Commissioner in your State or Territory.

 

Anonymity and pseudonyms

The Privacy Act provides that individuals must have the option of not identifying themselves, or of using a pseudonym, when dealing with our practice, except in certain circumstances, such as where it is impracticable for us to deal with you if you have not identified yourself.

 

Overseas Transfer of Data

We may disclose your personal information to the following overseas recipients:

• any practice or individual who assists us in providing services (such as where you have come from overseas and had your health record transferred from overseas or have treatment continuing from an overseas provider)

• anyone else to whom you authorise us to disclose it

 

Policy  Updates 

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 publicised on the practice's website. 

 

Privacy and websites

The privacy policy I uploaded on our website. Patients are encouraged to contact us via email Our website has links to social media.. No personal interaction is done via social media. No patient feedback is encouraged online and currently appointments are not made online. 

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Privacy policy - CCTV 

 

Our premises are monitored by CCTV at main reception, and front and rear car parks to provide added security to deter theft and vandalism and keep staff and patients safe. 

 

They are no cameras in clinical treatment areas. CCTV cameras are NOT installed in toilet facilities, change rooms,  a shower or other bathing facility, or any other area in a workplace prescribed by privacy regulations.  Cameras are not  hidden and are placed in public view. All cameras installed are operational and there are no dummy cameras.

 

Footage is recorded and stored within cloud based security system and the footage deleted automatically every 60 days. 

 

Requests for access to CCTV footage will be treated like other requests for personal information and assessed on a case-by-case basis. The footage will not be used or disclosed for any purpose other than the reason it was collected, without the consent of the individual 

affected, unless an exception applies under the Privacy Act (APP 6.1). CCTV footage may also be subject to a subpoena or other disclosure requirements as part of legal proceedings.

 

As the CCTV has been installed to safeguard our staff and premises and to prevent crime in the practice, the consent of individuals may not be required if access to the footage is reasonably necessary to a police investigation.

 

Signs are displayed inside and outside the practice to warn those entering that they will be under surveillance. Patient registration forms have been updated to reflect the presence and operation of CCTV and location of cameras.

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Updated 21/03/2021