Privacy Policy
Policy Statement
Physio Partners (Physio Partners Australia Pty Ltd) recognises the importance of your privacy and understands that the security of your personal information is important to you. This Information Privacy Policy (Policy) explains how Physio Partners manages the information that we collect, store, use and disclose and how to contact us if you have any further queries about our handling of your information.
By providing your information to us, you consent (to the extent that we require your consent under privacy laws to do these things) to Physio Partners collecting, holding, using and disclosing your information in accordance with this Policy.
Policy Details
Background
Physio Partners is required to ensure that its handling of information of patients, employees, healthcare professionals, contractors, volunteers, students and visitors is in accordance with the relevant legislation, including the:
- Privacy and Data Protection Act 2014 (Vic) (PDP Act);
- Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (Privacy Act);
- Health Records Act 2001 (Vic) (Health Records Act);
- Health Services Act 1988 (Vic) (Health Services Act);
- Aged Care Act 1997 (Cth) (Aged Care Act);
- Mental Health and Wellbeing Act 2022 (Vic) (Mental Health Act);
- Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Vic) (FOI Act),
- Family Violence Protection Act 2008 (Vic) (FVP Act);
- Child Wellbeing and Safety Act 2005 (Vic) (CWS Act);
- Public Records Act 1973 (Vic) (PRA Act).
Commonly used Terms relevant to Information Privacy
Personal Information:
- Personal information is defined in the PDP Act as information or an opinion (including information or an opinion forming part of a database), that is recorded in any form and whether true or not, about an individual whose identity is apparent, or can reasonably be ascertained, from the information or opinion, but does not include information of a kind to which the Health Records Act applies.
Sensitive Information:
- Sensitive information includes information about an individual's race or ethnic origin, political opinions, membership of a political association, religious beliefs or affiliations, philosophical beliefs, membership or a professional or trade association, sexual preferences and criminal history.
Health Information:
- Where Physio Partners collects your health information, the collection or handling of that information is subject to the Health Records Act and Health Services Act, including if you are an employee of Physio Partners. In this Policy, references to information may include personal, sensitive and health information unless indicated otherwise.
Why does Physio Partners collect your information?
In the course of our business, Physio Partners may collect information about you to perform our functions and activities as a health service and residential aged care service provider.
What type of information do we collect?
The types of information and documents containing your information we collect will vary depending on the nature of our interaction with you and may include:
- Identifying and contact information (such as name, date of birth, address, email address and telephone phone number);
- Next of kin or preferred contact person;
- Your medical history, information about your health condition, treatment, images of diagnostic scans, test results, immunisation history statements and COVID-19 vaccination certificates, both past and present;
- Parenting orders, powers of attorney, medical treatment decision maker nominations and advanced care directives;
- Records of communication including complaints, requests and queries;
- Photographs;
- Credit card and payment details;
- Lifestyle history and family history;
- Commonwealth and Victorian government identifiers (such as Medicare numbers, individual healthcare identifiers, pension or Veterans’ Affairs numbers and drivers licence numbers);
- Private health insurer membership details;
- Responses provided by you to surveys issued by us or by third party service providers on our behalf;
- Referrals to us from other health services or health service providers; and
Who do we collect information from?
Physio Partners may collect information about you from a range of sources including:
- Patients, next-of-kin, carers, family members and guardians in the course of, or in anticipation of, providing health services to patients;
- Healthcare professionals;
- Victorian Government agencies, authorities and departments;
- Commonwealth Government agencies, authorities and departments, such as Services Australia that maintains the national register where your vaccinations are recorded;
- Third parties providing services to Physio Partners.
How does Physio Partners collect information?
Physio Partners will only collect information about you by lawful and fair means and not in an unreasonably intrusive manner.
Depending on the nature of your interaction with Physio Partners, we may collect your information in a number of ways including directly from you, through our website, admission forms and correspondence (written and verbal). ,If you are a patient, Physio Partners typically collects your information directly from you. If you do not have the capacity to provide information to us, we may collect your information from another party including your emergency contact or next-of-kin/guardian/carer. We may also collect your personal information from third parties such as your general practitioner (GP), external specialist clinicians, other treating health service providers, your aged care or other care facility, or from health service providers who partner with us to provide health services.
If you are a healthcare professional, Physio Partners typically collects your information directly from you or from your patient.
If you are a contractor of Physio Partners, we typically collect your information directly from you or from third parties such as a nursing agency or recruitment agency.
For what purposes does Physio Partners collect, hold, use and disclose your information?
Physio Partners collects, holds, uses and discloses information for a range of purposes including the following:
- To provide you, or your patient, with health services including hospital, diagnostic imaging, outpatient and residential aged care services;
- To fulfil our clinical obligations;
- To invoice and process any fees payable in relation to services rendered;
- To manage our relationship with you and to contact you for follow up purposes, including to send you reminders and information about upcoming appointments/admissions;
- To undertake quality assurance, audits (clinical and non-clinical), accreditation, service planning, risk assessment and management and claims investigation and management;
- To comply with legal or regulatory obligations; and
- For other purposes required or authorised by or under law, including purposes for which you have provided your consent.
If you provide your email address, telephone and/or mobile phone number, Physio Partners will use your email address, telephone and/or mobile phone number to contact you (including by telephone call, SMS or email) for any of these purposes.
To whom may Physio Partners disclose your information.
Physio Partners may disclose your information to other persons or organisations including to:
Healthcare providers including:
- Healthcare providers and contractors who provide healthcare services to and at Physio Partners sites;
- Your referring/treating healthcare providers; and
- Healthcare providers we may refer you to for further healthcare services (including allied professionals, diagnostic imaging service providers and pathology service providers)
- The organisation that is funding the provision of our services to you such as government organisations (including Medicare Australia, TAC, WorkCover and Department of Veterans' Affairs) and private health insurers;
- Regulatory authorities and Commonwealth and Victorian government agencies such as Medicare Australia, Department of Veterans' Affairs, WorkCover and TAC;
- Courts, tribunals, safety and quality bodies and law enforcement agencies
- Governmental departments or agencies to disclose certain information where we are required to do so by law about patients who have specific conditions, or to maintain a health or disease register where we are required to do so by law; and
- Your family and/or emergency contact or next-of-kin/guardian/carer (unless you have requested that we do not do so).
How does Physio Partners hold your information and manage the data quality and security of your information?
Physio Partners stores information in hardcopy format on our premises and electronically on our servers.
To the extent required by the Relevant Legislation, Physio Partners will take reasonable steps to:
- make sure that your information that we collect, hold, use and disclose is accurate, complete and up to date; and
- protect your information that we hold from misuse, interference and loss and from unauthorised access, modification or disclosure
Information held by Physio Partners which is no longer required is destroyed or de-identified in a secure manner, subject to the requirements of the Relevant Legislation.
How can you access or correct your information held by Physio Partners?
You have the right to request access to your information held by Physio Partners. The FOI Act prescribes the process for requesting copies of your medical records. For information on how to make an FOI request to Physio Partners please contact one of our staff. If our record of your information is incorrect in any way, you can request for it to be corrected.
How Physio Partners handles complaints
If you have any concerns or complaints about the manner in which your information has been collected or handled by Physio Partners, please advise us of your concern or complaint through the Contact Us page of the website, send it our feedback team at hello@physiopartners.com.au Your concern or complaint will be considered or investigated with respect and thoroughness and we will respond to your complaint as soon as practicable.
If you remain dissatisfied with our response and your concern or complaint relates to your health information, you may contact the Health Complaints Commissioner (HCC). The HCC responds to complaints about health services and the handling of health information in Victoria. Their service is free, confidential and impartial.
To lodge a complaint with the HCC:
Fill out a complaint form online at hcc.vic.gov.au or
Phone 1300 582 113 between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday to discuss your complaint.
Further information
Further information about the application of the PDP Act and the FOI Act can be found at the website of the Office of the Victorian Information Commissioner at https://ovic.vic.gov.au
Further information about the application of the Health Records Act and Health Services Act can be found at the website of the Health Complaints Commissioner (Victoria) at hcc.vic.gov.au
Changes to our Information Privacy Policy
This Policy is effective from July 2023. As this Policy is updated from time to time, to obtain a copy of the latest version at any time, please visit our website at physiopartners.com.au