Your Privacy – Privacy Statement

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Jolimont Endoscopy is sensitive to the concerns that our patients and customers have regarding confidentiality and management of information about them and their health. We take your privacy and our obligations to you in this regard very seriously.

As a health service provider we are required by law to comply with certain privacy obligations. The Privacy Act 1988 and Amendment (Private Sector) 2000 and the Health Records Act 2001 govern the collection and management of your personal and health information.

Health Information

For health service providers such as Jolimont Endoscopy, health information is ‘the identifying personal information collected in order to provide a health service’. Such information includes medical and other personal details used to ascertain and validate an individual’s identity and health status. Typically this information will include:

• Patient name and date of birth
• Admission and patient registration information
• Patient symptoms
• Examination and test results
• Diagnosis
• Treatment and care information

Why this information is needed

As a health service provider we need to collect certain information from you, in order to provide a health service to you. Your health record can help us to quickly identify which course of treatment is likely to be safe and effective for you. It also ensures that we do not repeat treatments that you may already have had in the past.

We will only ask for information that we believe is necessary for us to know in the course of providing a health service to you. Further, we will only collect your information if specific requirements are met, in particular:

• You have consented to provide the information (please note that willingly provided information is usually sufficient to imply consent to collection of information); or
• The information is received through an appropriate disclosure by another organisation such as another health service provider with your consent; or
• The collection is required, authorised or permitted by law or law enforcement purposes
• The collection is necessary to prevent or lessen a serious threat to life, health or safety of an individual or the public.

What happens if you do not provide health information

If you do not provide us with accurate or complete information when we request it, we may not be able to provide you with a proper level of service.

What happens to information about you

1. Primary and Directly Related Secondary Purposes

We use and disclose your health information for the following purposes:

• To assist your treating team(doctors, nursing staff, and other professionals) in providing health care to you
• To process private health insurance fund claims
• To provide the necessary follow-up treatment and ongoing care
• For our internal administrative requirements, including billing
• To assist us in undertaking management, funding, service monitoring, complaints handling, evaluation and accreditation activities
• To address liability indemnity arrangements with insurers, medical defence organisations and lawyers
• For the defence of anticipated or existing legal proceedings

2. Unrelated Secondary Purposes

We will not use your health information for any unrelated secondary purposes, unless we have your consent. Typically they include:

• To promote promotional offers and special events;
• Fundraising;
• Marketing (either to market our or someone else’s products); and
• Research and Development.

How we maintain and manage your health information

1. Who may view your health information

We will only grant access to others to view your health information where we believe it is necessary, and in your best interests, for those people to view your health information.

In general, the following people may view your health information:

• Our employees
• Our doctors
• Our subcontractors
• Any other health service providers with whom we may deal on your behalf.

2. When can information be disclosed with out your consent

We will only disclose your health information to a third party without your consent when:

• The disclosure is directly related to the primary purpose for Collection
• In an emergency situation where release of information is necessary to aid medical treatment
• We are required by law to disclose the information (e.g. reporting of notifiable diseases to the Department of Health Services)
• The disclosure is required for the enforcement of a criminal law or a law imposing a pecuniary penalty or for the protection of public revenue
• The third party is our agent or contractor and is required by us to keep that information confidential and will only use that information for the purposes for which it is disclosed.

Where we cannot obtain your consent

There may be some situations where we cannot obtain your consent or you cannot grant valid consent. In these situations we will try and obtain the consent of your authorised representative (for example your guardian).

1. Transfer outside Victoria

If we transfer your information outside Victoria, including overseas, we will obtain your written consent before doing so.

If it is not practical to obtain your written consent, then the information may still be transferred if, as part of the agreement for the transfer of that information, the other organisation agrees to comply with our privacy obligations to you.

2. Where is your health information stored and for how long

We may store your health information in both hard copy and on computer. Hard copy information is kept under lock and key. Information stored on computer is generally password protected.

We will keep your health record for a minimum of seven(7) years after your visit. After that time, if the record is no longer necessary, it will be disposed of securely as required by law.

3. Updating your health information

If at any time you believe that any of your health information, stored by us, is not accurate or is out of date, please let us know by contacting our Privacy Officer on (61 3) 96548033.

Access to Your Health Information

You may access your Health Information by contacting our Privacy Officer on 96548033.

We will use our best efforts to take less than thirty (30) days to respond to your request.

We may also charge you a reasonable fee for providing access to your health information.

We may withhold access to your health information in a number of circumstances. These include where:

• Providing access would pose a serious and imminent threat to the life or health of a person;
• Providing access would have an unreasonable impact on the privacy of others;
• The information is subject to confidentiality where the person who provided the information to us did so expressly on the condition that it remains confidential;
• The request is vexatious or frivolous;
• The information relates to legal proceeding between us and the information requested would not be required to be recovered in court;
• We are in commercial negotiations with you and the information would reveal our intentions;
• Providing access would be unlawful or we are required by law to withhold access;
• Providing access could prejudice the investigation or detection by our organisation or by a government body of an unlawful activity or some serious or improper conduct

Where we do withhold your information, we may instead choose to give you a summary of that information.

If we do withhold your health information, we will provide your with reasons in writing.

If we withhold access to your health information, we will consider whether the provision of access to an independent third party will meet both of our needs.

Modifications to our Privacy Policy

We may modify this Privacy Statement at any time at our sole discretion. We will make all modifications available to you at our first opportunity and/or upon request.

More Information

If you require further information please contact our Privacy Officer on (61 3) 96548033.

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