Privacy Statement – Southern Skin Clinic
(Health Information Privacy Code 2020 Policy)
Objective: To comply with Health Information Privacy Code 2020 when collecting, using, storing or disclosing information about patients’ health or the treatment that they are receiving.
Collecting health information
We collect personal information from you, including information about your:
- name
- contact information
- location
- interactions with us
- billing or purchase information
- relevant health records
Using health information
We collect your personal information in order to:
- provide appropriate healthcare within our scope of practice
Sharing health information
Besides our staff, we share this information with:
- relevant local and regional healthcare organisations, including Southern Community Laboratories, Te Whatu Ora, WellSouth Primary Health Network, patients’ registered general practitioners, and hospital specialists in order to provide appropriate healthcare services within our scope of practice.
We will not disclose a patient’s health information without his/her consent (or the consent of his/her representative) unless we reasonably believe that it is not possible for us to get the patient’s consent and:
- the disclosure is for the purposes of the patient’s treatment (e.g. a referral);
- the disclosure is to the patient’s caregiver and the patient hasn’t objected to the disclosure;
- it is necessary to disclose the information to prevent a serious and immediate threat to the patient or another person’s life or health;
- the disclosure is made for the purposes of a criminal proceeding;
- the disclosure is to a social worker or the police and concerns suspected child abuse
Providing some information is optional. If you choose not to provide name, date of birth, national health identifiers or relevant medical background, we will be unable to provide some healthcare services.
Storage of health information
We keep your information safe by storing it in a fully-encrypted patient management system and it is only accessible to staff directly involved in your care.
You have the right to ask for a copy of any personal information we hold about you, and to ask for it to be corrected if you think it is wrong. If you would like to ask for a copy of your information, or to have it corrected, please contact us at admin@southernskinclinic.co.nz.
Please note that this practice is contributing to, and accessing healthcare information from HealthOne.
What is HealthOne?
HealthOne is a South Island based secure electronic record that allows registered healthcare providers directly involved in your healthcare, to quickly access information such as your test results, allergies, medications, GP summaries and hospital information. HealthOne strictly adheres to the principles of the Privacy Act 2020 as well as the Rules set out in the Health Information Privacy Code 2020. Access is only possible via an approved highly secure healthcare information network which is regularly audited and tested. Privacy auditing is used to check that only those directly involved in your care are accessing your information. To find out more about HealthOne please visit https://healthone.org.nz/. Please note that you are entitled to restrict the sharing of your healthcare records by contacting 0508 837 872 or emailing HealthOne.privacy@pegasus.health.nz.