Privacy & Confidentiality
The Medical Centre Privacy
Statement
The physicians of The Medical Centre agree to
adhere, and cause their employees to adhere, to such reasonable policies and
procedures deemed necessary to protect the privacy of personal information, as
required by Federal and Provincial legislation and current professional
standards.
We are
committed to promoting privacy and protecting the confidentiality of the health
information of our patients. Our physicians are each health information
custodians under the Personal Health Information Protection Act 2004 (PHIPA)
and our staff are agents of the health information
custodians.
Your Health Record
Your
health record includes information relevant to your health including your date
of birth, contact information, health history, family health history, record of
your visits, the care and support you received during those visits, results
from tests and procedures, and information from other health care providers.
Our
Practices
We
collect, use and disclose your health information to:
· Treat and care for you
· Deliver our programs
· Plan, administer and manage our
internal operations
· Be paid or process, monitor,
verify or reimburse claims for payment
· Provide appointment reminders to
you
· Conduct risk management, error
management and quality improvement activities
· Dispose of your information
· Seek your consent (or consent of
a substitute decision maker) where appropriate
· Respond to or initiate
proceedings
· Compile statistics
· Allow for the analysis,
administration and management of the health system
· Comply with legal and regulatory
requirements
· Fulfill other purposes permitted
or required by law
Our
collection, use and disclosure of your health information are done in
accordance with Ontario law.
Your Choices
For most
health care purposes, your consent to use your health information is implied as
a result of your consent to treatment, unless you tell us otherwise. We may
also collect, use and share your health information in order to communicate or
consult with other health care providers about your care unless you tell us you
do not want us to do so.
There are
other circumstances where we are not allowed to assume we have your consent to
share information. For example, we must have permission to give your health
information to people who do not provide you with health care, for example your
insurance company or your employer
We may
also need consent to communicate with any family members or friends with whom
you would like us to give more detailed information about your health.
If we ask
for your consent, you may choose not to give consent. If consent is given, you
may withdraw consent at any time, but the withdrawal cannot be retrospective.
The withdrawal may also be subject to legal or contractual restrictions and
reasonable notice.
There are
some cases where we may collect, use or disclose (meaning share) your health information
without your consent as permitted or required by law. For example, we do not
require consent for using or disclosing your information for billing, risk
management or quality improvement purposes or to fulfill mandatory reporting
obligations.
As a patient, do I have the right to see my personal health information?
Yes. You have a right to access your records of personal health under the law. You may be asked to make the request in writing, and custodians are allowed, depending on the circumstances, 30 to 60 days to respond to your request. You may be charged a reasonable fee to cover the costs. Certain limited exceptions to access exist, but where custodians deny access to your records, they must explain the grounds for doing so, and you have the right to complain about denials or other access decisions to the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner, Ontario (IPC) within six months of the decision.
As a patient, do I have the right to see my personal health information?
Yes. You have a right to access your records of personal health under the law. You may be asked to make the request in writing, and custodians are allowed, depending on the circumstances, 30 to 60 days to respond to your request. You may be charged a reasonable fee to cover the costs. Certain limited exceptions to access exist, but where custodians deny access to your records, they must explain the grounds for doing so, and you have the right to complain about denials or other access decisions to the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner, Ontario (IPC) within six months of the decision.
How do I request information about my personal health record?
You may access the “REQUEST TO ACCESS PERSONAL HEALTH RECORD” form here. Complete the form and give it to your physician.
Your
Privacy Questions and Concerns
We
encourage you to contact your physician with any questions or concerns you
might have about our privacy practices. You may also contact our Privacy
Officer at:
Kathy
Grantham
Administration
Department
707
Charlotte Street
Peterborough,
ON K9J 7B3
705-743-6222
If, after
contacting us, you feel that your concerns have not been addressed to your
satisfaction, you have the right to complain to the Information and Privacy
Commissioner, Ontario, Canada.
The
Commissioner can be reached at:
Information
and Privacy Commissioner, Ontario, Canada
2 Bloor
Street East, Suite 1400
Toronto,
Ontario M4W 1A8
1-800-387-0073
www.ipc.on.ca