Privacy in our Medical Practice

We value the doctor-patient relationship. Patient privacy is vital to such a relationship. The Privacy Act 1988 (Cth)  and its recent amendments formalise the already existing and acknowledge privacy obligations of our practice.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use and disclose your personal information, how you may access that information and how you may seek the correction of any information. It also explains how you may make a complaint about a breach of privacy legislation.

This Privacy Policy is current from 19 April 2018. From time to time, we may make changes to our policy, processes and systems in relation to how we handle your personal information. We will update this Privacy Policy to reflect any changes. These changes will be available on our website and in the practice.

Collection

We collect information that is necessary and relevant to provide you with medical care and treatment, and manage our medical practice. This information may include your name, address, date of birth, gender, health information, family history, credit card and direct debit details and contact details. This information may be stored on our computer medical records system and/or in hand written medical records.

Wherever practicable we will only collect information from you personally. However, we may also need to collect information from other sources such as treating specialists, radiologists, pathologists, hospitals and other health care providers.

We collect information in various ways, such as over the phone or in writing, in person in our Mackay & McLeod Weight Loss Surgeons rooms, or over the internet if you transact with us online. This information may be collected by medical and non-medical staff.
In emergency situations we may also need collect information from your relatives or friends.

We may be required by law to retain medical records for certain periods of time depending on your age at the time we provide services.

Use and Disclosure

We will treat your personal information as strictly private and confidential. We will only use or disclose it for purposes directly related to your care and treatment, or in ways that you would reasonably expect that we may use it for your ongoing care and treatment. For example the disclosure of blood test results to your specialist or requests for x-rays.
There are circumstances where we may be permitted or required by law to discloser your personal information to third parties. For example, to Medicare, Police, Insurers, solicitors, government regulatory bodies, tribunals, courts of law, hospitals, or debt collection agents. We may also from time to time provide statistical data to third parties of research purposes.

We may disclose information about you to outside contractors to carry out activities on our behalf, such as n IT service provider, solicitor, or debt collection agent. We impose security and confidentiality requirements on how they handle your personal information. Outside contractors are required not to use information about you for any purpose except for those e activities we have asked them to perform.

Data Quality and Security

We will take reasonable steps to ensure that your personal information is accurate, complete, up to date and relevant. For this purpose our staff may ask you to confirm that your contact details are correct when you attend a consultation. We request that you let us know if any of the information we hold about you is incorrect or out of date.
Personal information that we hold is protected by:

• Securing our premises by placing passwords and varying access levels on databases to limit access and protect electronic information from unauthorised interference, access, modification and disclosure, and
• Providing locked cabinets ad rooms for the storage of physical records.

Corrections

If you believe that he information we have about you is not accurate, complete or up-to-date, we ask that you contact us in writing (see details below).

Access

You are entitled to request access to your medical records. We request that you put you request in writing and we will respond to it within a reasonable time.
There may be a fee for the administrative costs of reviewing and providing you with copies of your medical records.
We may deny access to your medical records in certain circumstances permitted by law, for example, if disclosure may cause a serious threat to your health or safety. We will always tell you why access is denied and the options you have to respond to our decision.

Complaints

If you have a complaint about the privacy of your personal information, we request that you contact us in writing. Upon receipt of a complaint we will consider the details and attempt to resolve it in accordance with our complaints handling procedures.
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.

Overseas Transfer of Data

We will not transfer your personal information to an overseas recipient unless we have your consent or we are required to do so by law.

Contact

Please direct any queries, complains, requests for access to medical records to:

Att: Practice Manager
Level 3, Clinical Practice Building
James Cook Drive
Townsville 4811

or email admin@mackaymcleod.com.au