Privacy Policy
This notice describes the practices and procedures that this clinic and its professional, administrative and support staff follow to protect the privacy of your healthcare and private information.
Your Health Information
This notice applies to the information and records we have about your health, health status and the healthcare and services you receive at this office. Your health information may include information created by and received by this office. It may be in the form of written or electronic records, images or spoken words and it may include information about your health history, health status, symptoms, examinations, scans, test results, diagnoses, treatments, procedures, prescriptions, related billing activity and similar types of health-related information.
We (Dunsborough Acupuncture) are required by law to maintain the privacy of your health information and to provide you with a written statement of our privacy policy. Our privacy policy will tell you about the ways in which we may use and disclose your health information and describe to you your rights and our obligations regarding the use and disclosure of that information. We are required to abide by the terms of this notice, and to notify you of a breach of your unsecured health information.
How we may use and disclose health information about you
We may use and disclose your health information for the following reasons;
For Treatment: We may use your health information to provide you with physical therapy, treatment or services. We may disclose health information about you to doctors, nurses, technicians, office staff or other personnel who are involved in taking care of you and your health. Different personnel in our office may share information about you and disclose information to people who do not work in our office in order to coordinate your care, such as telephoning your doctor and getting needed information.
For Payment: We may need to use or disclose health information about you in order to obtain payment for our healthcare services. For example, we may bill your health plan, insurance company, or other third party for your treatment in this clinic. We may also need to tell your health plan or insurance company about a treatment you are going to receive in order to obtain prior approval, or to determine whether your plan will pay for the treatment.
For Healthcare Operations: We may use and disclose health information about you in order to manage the clinic and ensure that you and our other patients receive quality care. We may use your health information to evaluate the performance of our staff in caring for you. We may also use health information about all or many of our patients to help us decide what additional services we should offer, how we can become more efficient, or whether certain treatments are effective for certain problems. We may also disclose your health information to your health plan and other healthcare providers that care for you in order to help those plans and providers evaluate or improve care, coordinate and manage healthcare and services, train staff, and comply with the law.
Other circumstances
We may use or disclose health information about you for the following purposes, in accordance with the requirements and limitations of state and other law:
To Avert a Serious Threat to Health or Safety: We may use and disclose health information about you when necessary to prevent a serious threat to your health and safety or the health and safety of the public or another person.
Required By Law: We will disclose health information about you when required to do so by federal, state, or local law.
Workers Compensation: We may release health information about you for workers compensation or similar programs. These programs provide benefits for work-related injuries or illness.
Public Health Risks: We may disclose health information about you for public health reasons in order to prevent or control communicable disease, injury, or disability; or report suspected abuse or neglect, non-accidental physical injuries, or problems with products.
Health Oversight Activities: We may disclose health information to a health oversight agency for audits, investigations, inspections, or licensing purposes. These disclosures may be necessary for certain state and federal agencies to monitor the healthcare system, government programs, and compliance with civil rights laws.
Lawsuits and Disputes: We may disclose your health information in response to a court or administrative order, subpoena, discovery request, or other legal processes, subject to certain restrictions.
Law Enforcement: We may release health information if asked to do so by a law enforcement official in response to a court order, subpoena, warrant, summons, or similar process subject to all applicable legal requirements.
Information Not Personally Identifiable: We may use or disclose health information about you in a way that does not personally identify you or reveal who you are.
Family and Friends: We may disclose health information about you to your family members, friends, or others involved in your care or payment if we obtain your verbal agreement to do so. In situations where you are not capable of giving consent (due to your incapacity or medical emergency), we may, using our professional judgment, determine that a disclosure to your family member or friend is in your best interest. In that situation, we will disclose only health information relevant to the person’s involvement in your care.
Personal Representative: If you have a personal representative who has authority to make healthcare decisions on your behalf, such as a parent or guardian, we may disclose your health information to such a personal guardian.
Other uses and disclosures pursuant to your signed authorisation.
We will not use or disclose your health information for any purpose other than those identified in the aforementioned sections without your specific, written authorisation. We will not sell your health information, use or disclose any psychotherapy notes about you, or use or disclose your health information for marketing purposes without your authorisation unless otherwise permitted under federal law. If you sign an authorisation for us to use or disclose health information about you, you may revoke that authorisation, in writing, at any time. If you revoke your authorisation, we will no longer use or disclose information about you for the reasons covered by your written authorisation, but we cannot take back any uses or disclosures already made with your permission.
Your rights regarding your health information
You have the following rights regarding health information we maintain about you:
Right to Inspect and Copy: You have the right to inspect and copy your health information that we keep and use to make decisions about your care. You must submit a written request in order to inspect and/or copy records of your health information. If you request a copy of the information, we may charge a fee for the costs of copying, mailing, or other associated supplies.
Right to Correct: If you believe the health information we have about you is incorrect or incomplete, you may ask us to amend the information. You have the right to request a correction as long as the information is kept by this office.
Right to Request Restrictions: You have the right to request a restriction or limitation on the health information we use or disclose about you for treatment or healthcare operations. You also have the right to request a limit on the health information we disclose about you to someone who is involved in your care or the payment for it, like a family member or friend. For example, you could ask that we not use or disclose information about a surgery you had.
Right to Request Confidential Communications: You have the right to request that we communicate with you about medical matters in a certain way or at a certain location. For example, you can ask that we only contact you at work or by mail or e-mail.
Right to a Paper Copy of This Notice: You have the right to a paper copy of this notice. You may ask us to give you a copy of this notice at any time. Even if you have agreed to receive it electronically, you are still entitled to a paper copy.
Changes to this notice
We reserve the right to change this notice at any time, and to make the revised or changed notice effective for medical information we already have about you, as well as any information we receive in the future. You are entitled to a copy of the notice currently in effect.