Privacy Policy

West Perth Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery respects and upholds individual’s rights to privacy protection under the Privacy Act (1988).

This privacy policy explains how personal information is collected, held, used, disclosed, secured and otherwise managed, including patient health information. It describes the types of information collected and held and why, how to access and correct the information and how to make a privacy complaint.

References in this policy to personal information include sensitive information.

A copy of the Patient Privacy Information Sheet (based on this policy) is to be made available to patients who wish to obtain details about the hospital’s patient information management practices.

Anonymity

Where it is lawful and practicable to do so, individuals may deal with West Perth Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery anonymously or use a pseudonym (e.g. when enquiring about services generally). However, in many instances an individual’s identity needs to be established, such as when a health service is provided and when responding to complaints. If all of the personal information requested by the hospital is not received, these tasks may not be possible.

Collection of personal information

The information collected by West Perth Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery will depend on who the individual is, such as a patient admitted to hospital, referring practitioner, a health service provider, an employee, a supplier or contractor, a patient’s next of kin, a guardian or other responsible person, an emergency contact or person responsible for paying an account, and may include:

• name, address (postal and email) and telephone numbers
• gender
• date of birth
• marital status
• employment status
• occupation
• country of birth
• indigenous status
• next of kin
• payment information such as credit card details
• health fund and health insurance cover details
• Workers compensation or other insurance claim details
• Medicare details
• Department of Veterans Affairs details
• Department of Defence details
• concession card details
• medical history and other health information collected or received by the hospital in the course of providing a health service
• any additional information provided to the hospital by the patient
• information provided to the hospital by medical practitioners during the application for hospital accreditation/credentialing process
• information provided to the hospital by staff members during the employment process
• personal information collected from contractors engaged by the hospital
• personal information collected from suppliers servicing the hospital

West Perth Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery collect personal information directly from the individual concerned where it is reasonably practicable to do so. This may take place when the individual completes documents such as an admission, health insurance claim or other form, provides information over the telephone, is treated at the hospital or applies for a job, accreditation rights or service contract. However, depending on who the individual is, personal information may be collected from third parties such as:

• a responsible person or representative (e.g. guardian)
• an individual’s health service provider including specialists
• pathology laboratories
• a health professional who has treated the individual
• an individual’s health insurer or other insurer
• job referees
• other sources when processing job applicants (e.g. police checks).

Sensitive information about an individual is collected either directly from the individual or from a third party, with the individual’s consent (which may be implied or express, depending on the circumstances).

Use and disclosure of personal information

West Perth Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery uses the personal information it collects and holds:

• to assist treating doctors, purchase of prosthetic items, nursing staff and other health care professionals in providing medical treatment and care to patients;
• to assist with any calls made by the patient;
• to inform the ‘person responsible’ for a patient of appropriate care or treatment, when the patient is incapable of giving or communicating consent;
• to assist in planning, evaluation and complaint-handling;
• to effectively administer, manage, monitor and improve services;
• for charging, billing, collecting debts and processing health insurance claims on behalf of the patient;
• to provide information to Medical Practitioners, Registered Nurses and other Health Professionals who provide necessary follow up treatment and ongoing care;
• to assist in providing practical training and education to Nursing staff;
• to comply with quality and clinical audit activities including benchmarking and clinical indicator reporting in a de-identified form;
• to assist authorised external surveyors during hospital accreditation, certification and private hospital licensing processes;
• to provide data in both an identified and de-identified form in compliance with legislative requirements;
• to assess job applications;
• to verify an individual’s identity;
• to address liability indemnity arrangements and reporting;
• to prepare the defence for anticipated or existing legal proceedings;
• to conduct patient surveys with the aim of evaluating and improving services; and
• to enable our hospital and service providers to comply with their legal and regulatory obligations.

Personal information is also used in circumstances where required or authorised by Australian law or where the hospital otherwise has consent of the individual or their representative.

Wherever possible West Perth Oral Surgery will de-identify personal information prior to use and/or disclosure.

Unless allowed for by the Australian Privacy Principles, West Perth Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery will not disclose personal information about patients without their consent, except on a confidential basis to agents that are used in the ordinary operation of its business. West Perth Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery do not disclose personal information to overseas recipients without the patient’s written consent.

Storage and security of personal information

West Perth Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery stores personal and health information in both paper and electronic form and takes all reasonable steps to ensure that the personal information it collects, uses or discloses is secure, accurate, complete and up-to-date. Personal and health information is retained for the period of time determined by applicable Australian laws after which it is de-identified or disposed of in a secure manner.

West Perth Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery stores personal information contained in paper based and other hard copy documents in a dedicated secure storage area located at the hospital and off-site at an ISO 9001 Certified document storage facility.

Personal information is contained in databases in a secure environment; and such records are only accessible by authorised persons who require access to the personal information for the purpose of carrying out their duties of employment.

Access to personal information

Individuals may request access to the personal information the hospital holds about them. The individual’s identity needs to be verified prior to granting access. It is suggested that patients complete a ‘Request to Access Patient Information’ form, available from the hospital or practice, to facilitate the process.

Access may be denied to some or all of the personal information in certain circumstances allowed by the Privacy Act or other applicable laws. If West Perth Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery refuses a request for access, the individual is provided with written notice of the decision, including reasons for denial and how to complain if the individual is not satisfied with the decision. The hospital endeavours to give access to an individual’s personal information in the form they request. However if that is not possible an alternative means of access will be provided. A fee may be charged for collating and providing access to personal and health information.

Personal information the hospital gives access to, will be disclosed to the individual’s authorised representative or legal adviser where the hospital has been given written authority to do so.

West Perth Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery takes reasonable steps to correct the personal information it holds if it is satisfied that it is inaccurate, incomplete and out of date, irrelevant or misleading. If a patient believes that the personal information West Perth Oral Surgery holds needs to be corrected, a ‘Request to Amend Patient Information’ form is available for this purpose. It is hospital policy to take all steps to record the corrections and place them with the patient’s record but under no circumstances does the hospital erase or remove the original health record information.

There may be circumstances in which corrections may have to be refused. If this happens, the individual will be notified in writing of the reasons for the refusal and an explanation provided detailing how they can complain if they are not satisfied.

Complaints

Individuals who have any questions about privacy, this policy or the way personal information is managed at West Perth Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, or who believe that their privacy rights have been breached should contact the Business Manager with their question or complaint.

(Business Manager, West Perth Oral Surgery, Suite 2, 1 Walker Avenue, West Perth WA 6005)

West Perth Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery will endeavour to acknowledge receipt of a written complaint within 7 days and provide a written response within a reasonable time frame. It may be necessary to request further information from the complainant before the matter can be resolved. Any such request will be made in writing. If the individual is not satisfied that West Perth Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery has resolved their complaint, they have the right to make a complaint to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC). If they wish to make a complaint or to find out any more information about their privacy rights the OAIC can be contacted as follows:

Website: www.oaic.gov.au
Telephone number: 1300 363 992
Email: enquiries@oaic.gov.au
Fax: +61 9284 9666
In writing: Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, GPO Box 5218, Sydney NSW 2001

Individuals may also make a complaint regarding the handling of their health information to
the Office of the Information Commissioner WA:

Website: www.oic.wa.gov.au
Telephone number: 1800 621 244
Email: info@foi.wa.gov.au
Fax: (08) 6551 7889
In writing: Office of the Information Commissioner, Albert Facey House, 469 Wellington Street, PERTH WA 6000

Privacy

Requests and enquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to practicemanager@wpos.com.au

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