Palmers Medical Centre privacy policy

Current as of: 20th July 2024

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 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 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 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 financial claims and payments, 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:

• 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 deal with us anonymously or under 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 practice may collect your personal information in several different ways.

1. When you make your first appointment our practice staff will collect your personal and demographic information via your registration.
2. During the course of providing medical services, we may collect further personal information. Information can also be collected through pathology results, radiology results, specialist reports, hospital records, electronic transfer of prescriptions (eTP), My Health Record, eg via Shared Health Summary, Event Summary.
3. 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.
4. 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 (eg 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 (eg some diseases require mandatory notification)
• during the course of providing medical services, through eTP, My Health Record (eg via Shared Health Summary, Event Summary).

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

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. 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 practice in various forms eg as paper records, electronic records, visual records (X-rays, CT scans, videos and photos), audio and video recordings.

Our practice stores all personal information securely. eg electronic format, in protected information systems or in hard copy format in a secured environment. We use passwords, secure cabinets, confidentiality agreements for staff and contractors.

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 using a practice request for medical records form and our practice will respond within 30 days. There is a charge of upto $20 for providing copy of medical records.

Our practice 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 practice is correct and current. You may also request that we correct or update your information, and you should make such requests via email to reception  – reception@palmersmedical.com.au

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.

You can do using a complaints/feedback form available in reception and drop it in our complaints box in waiting area or email directly to the Practice Manager at info@palmersmedical.com.au or using the form on our website feedback section https://palmersmedical.com.au/faq/ or a letter to the following addressed to the Practice Manage at the appropriate location:

Palmers Medical Centre Truganina

228A Sayers Road

Truganina, VIC 3029

or

Palmers Medical Centre Woodlea

T16, 2 Lim Way,

Aintree, VIC 3336

Alternatively you can call on 03 9908 2555 and ask to speak to Practice Manager or Assistant Practice Manager at Truganina or for Woodlea location please call us on 03 8560 6020.

All complaints will be addressed in general within 7 days but can take a maximum of 28 days.

You may also contact the Health Complaints Commissioner. Generally, the Health Complaints Commissioner will require you to give them time to respond before they will investigate. For further information visit https://hcc.vic.gov.au/ or write to them at

Health Complaints Commissioner
Level 26
570 Bourke Street,
Melbourne, VIC – 3000

Privacy and online communication

We provide online appointments through our website using third party software applications e.g. HealthEngine, Automed Systems who collect your personal information to interact with our software systems to book online appointments on your behalf. We only use software applications which are bound by Australian privacy law.

We send followup recall messages and reminders through text message from our clinical software and third party software applications .e.g HealthEngine and Automed Systems, where patients have consented to this.

Our practice takes all reasonable steps to ensure that the information collected on our website is exchanged in a secure manner, e.g. using secure certificates.

We use email to communicate with patients in some cases, where patients have consented to it, particularly during Telephone and Telehealth consultations. Our emails are not encrypted and we cannot guarantee security of transmission. During all such communications we take care to ensure that correct patient’s email id used for communication and where required we use secure PDF with password protection, .e.g when emails are not initiated by the patient, otherwise we always ask for patient to initiate the email communication so staff are replying to that email. Patients should not use email to contact us in an emergency or when an urgent response is required.

Policy review statement

This privacy policy will be reviewed regularly to ensure it is in accordance with any changes that may occur. Any updates to the policy will be updated in handouts at the centre and also on our website .