Privacy notice

Your patient health record

The information collected and held about you as a patient of the Practice forms part of your patient health record. The information collected for this record includes:

• Your name, date of birth, contact details, and emergency contact/next of kin.
• Medicare and health insurance information.
• Demographic information, cultural background, lifestyle risk factors or family history.
• Notes of consultations, including outcomes and diagnosis, and records of communications with you.
• Test results and outcomes of referrals to specialists and other health service providers.

Who we collect your information from

This information will be collected directly from you, or with your consent, from other parties including GPs, specialists, hospitals, dentists, pathology, radiology and allied health providers who may be involved in your care.

Using our online appointment system

If you chose to make an online appointment booking, information will be collected as part of the booking process. Use of our online appointment booking system is voluntary and patients can still make an appointment directly with the Practice.

Transfer health records to our Practice from another practice

If you have consulted with a doctor at another practice, the health information held by that doctor may assist us with your healthcare needs. If you would like a copy or summary of your health records transferred to this Practice please ask reception for information about how this can take place.

Engaging with the Practice anonymously

This Practice is established to provide health services to the UTS staff and student community and their immediate families. As we need to verify a patient is eligible to use the Practice, we do not generally allow patients to access this Practice anonymously.

However, a patient is welcome to provide feedback to or communicate with the Practice anonymously by sending a letter to Practice Manager, UTS Health Service. Refer to our contact details below.

Limiting access to your health records

Your patient health records are confidential. It is the policy of this Practice to maintain security of personal health information at all times and ensure this information is only available to authorised members of staff.

Medical practitioners, staff and management of the Practice have access the health records held by the Practice for the above purposes. Systems administrators, accreditation or quality reviewers may have limited access for legitimate business purposes, subject to signed confidentiality agreements.

Storage of your health records

No health records are held overseas by the Practice. A patient’s health record will only be sent overseas with their express written consent.

Patient records are stored digitally in the Practice’s health records database in line with the requirements of the UTS Records Management Policy, Privacy Policy, and Information Security Policy.

The Practice collects your personal and health information:

• to provide you immediate and ongoing management of your health, care and wellbeing
• to ensure this Practice is able to continue treating you as a patient
• for Practice quality improvement, planning, and accreditation purposes
• to communicate with you

Note that it is the policy of the Practice to telephone and/or SMS patients when the doctor needs to discuss an abnormal report, test or result. If you do not wish this to occur, please discuss this with your doctor.

When we may disclose information

Your personal and health information will be disclosed in the following circumstances:

• With your consent. In order to provide you with access to the best ongoing health care available both in acute and chronic situations, we disclose information to other GPs, specialists, hospitals, dentists, pathology, radiology and allied health providers who may be involved in your care. Consent is implied when you act on a referral for treatment.

The Practice uses our health records database to automate the creation of referral letters. Only relevant information is provided when generating referral letters.

You may also request your health records to be disclosed to other parties, such as a lawyer, insurer, or other medical practice.

• To Medicare or your health insurer. The Practice provides limited information about you for the purpose of accessing and processing Medicare financial rebates or insurance claims.
• Where the Practice is permitted or required by law to disclose information. This Practice may be legally required or permitted in certain circumstances to disclose patient information under legislative obligations. For example, under the Infectious Diseases Act - Health (Infectious Diseases) Regulations, Adoption Act, or in response to a court order, subpoena, or legal warrant.

My Health Record

This Practice does not currently provide information to My Health Record. However, when this practice is registered to participate, your health information may be accessed from My Health Record if you are a registered participant. The Practice will only include additional information on My Health Record with your consent.

Minors

In most cases a parent who holds parental responsibility or guardianship may be able to provide and access information we hold about their child. A minor who is 14 years or older may seek treatment without the knowledge of a parent/guardian. This is subject to a medical practitioner’s assessment of the young person’s capacity to understand the consequences. A similar assessment will be made when responding to requests from a parent/guardian to access the information.

You have the following rights in relation to your personal and health information:

• Right to request access to your personal or health information held by the Practice.
• Right to request inaccurate and incomplete information be updated.
• Right to make a complaint about how your information has been managed (including an alleged breach of an Australian Privacy Principle (APP) from schedule 1 of the Privacy Act 1988 (Cwlth), or a Health Privacy Principle (HPP) from schedule 1 the Health Records and Information Privacy Act 2002 (NSW).

To exercise any of these rights, refer to our contact details below.

If you have any further questions or wish to exercise your rights, contact the Practice Manager on (02) 9514 1177.

The Practice can also be contacted, including anonymously, by writing to the Practice Manager, UTS Health Services, University of Technology Sydney, PO Box 123, Ultimo NSW 2148.

If you wish to lodge a complaint with the NSW Privacy Commissioner, you can contact the NSW Information and Privacy Commission by mail (GPO Box 7011, Sydney NSW 2001) or email (ipcinfo@ipc.nsw.gov.au) or phone (1800 472 679).