We respect and protect the privacy of our users. The privacy policy tells you how we collect and use information.
The term "Personal Information" in this privacy policy means any information from which your identity is apparent or can be reasonably ascertained. We do not collect Personal Information about you when your visit our website. You can use this service without telling us who you are or revealing other Personal information.
Medical Information is often of a highly sensitive nature and we ensure we comply with the Privacy Act 1988(Cth), the Privacy Amendment (Enhancing Privacy Policy Protection) Act 2012, the Australian Privacy Principles and relevant State and Territory legislation (referred to as privacy legislation) to protect your patient information and handling your personal information.
How we deal with complaints and requests
We do our best to ensure you receive quality service and your experience with us is a pleasant and comfortable one. If we did not meet your expectations or you believe we can improve in any way we are more than happy to hear from you. We request that you contact us in writing and we will attempt to resolve the issue and advise you of the outcome in 7 days. 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.
To download the forms or for more information: Visit www.oaic.gov.au
COLLECTION
The purpose of this website is to provide you with trusted information about our services and links to other services or organisations that you may find useful.
Personal information we collect about you for your electronic record includes:
- Your name, address, telephone numbers, email address
- Medicare number
- Private health fund details
- Next of kin name and phone number
- GP's details
- Medical history including family history
If you supply us with phone numbers including numbers of next of kin this gives our staff permission to use these details to contact you. Our staff will identify themselves but will not divulge medical information. Please ensure you advise us of any change in details when you attend a consultation.
You may request access to Personal Information about you that we hold and you may ask to correct your Personal Information if you find that it is not accurate, up-to-date or complete. You may also make a complaint about our handling or your Personal Information. These services are free of charge. To protect your privacy and privacy of others, we will need evidence of your identity before we can grant you access to information about you or change it.
For administration and billing purposes however, and to enable the patients attended to by other medical professionals, patient information is shared between health providers.
Your medical records are retained by us for a minimum of seven years from the last consultation.
USE AND DISCLOSURE
Your personal and medical information is strictly private and confidential. We will only disclose for purposes related directly to your care for ongoing care and treatment to other health providers such as other specialists, radiologists, hospitals and general practitioners. As required under compulsion of law or where there is serious and imminent threat we may be permitted or required to disclosure your personal information.
We may also divulge personal information to government offices such as medicare or your private health fund to obtain information relevant to your treatment.
We will never send your information to third parties such as insurance companies without a current signed release from you to do so.
If you wish to have your medical records transferred to another practitioner you will need to advise the practitioner to request your records. We will need a signed authorisation from you to release to that particular practitioner. A copy of your notes or a letter with your medical history will be sent to your practitioner.
Your information may also be used for data collection and in research and publications in medical journals but you will not be specifically identified.
HOW WE PROTECT YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION
This online service is hosted in Australia in secure, government accredited facilities. To help protect the privacy of data and personal information we collect and hold, we maintain physical, technical and administrative safeguards. We update and test our security technology on an ongoing basis. We train our staff about the importance of confidentiality and maintaining the privacy and security of your information. All staff with access to your Personal Information have signed a confidentiality agreement.
CHANGES TO THE PRIVACY POLICY.
The Breast and Endocrine Centre has the right to change the Privacy Policy at anytime.
Website analytics
To improve your experience on our site, we may use "cookies". Cookies are an industry standard and most major websites use them. A cookie is a small text file that our site may place on your computer as a tool to remember your preferences. You may refuse the use of cookies by selecting the appropriate settings on your browser, however please note that if you do this you may not be able to use the full functionality of this website. Our website may contain links to other websites. Please be aware that we are not responsible for the privacy practices of such other sites. When you go to other websites from here, we advise you to be aware and read their privacy policy. Our website uses Google Analytics, a service which transmits website traffic date to Google servers in the United States. Google Analytics does not identify individual users or associate your IP address with any other data held by Google. We use reports provided by Google Analytics to help us understand website traffic and web page usage. By using this website, you consent to the processing of data about you by Google in the manner described in Google's Privacy Policy and for the purposes set out above. You can opt out Google Analytics if you disable or refuse the cookie, disable Java Script, or use the opt-out service provided by Google. australia.gov.au also uses interfaces with social media sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and others. If you choose to "like" or share information from the website through these services, you should review the privacy policy of that service. If you are a member of a social media site, the interfaces may allow the social media site to connect your visits to this site with Other Personal Information.