Privacy Statement
Specialist Medical & Therapy Solutions (‘SMTS’ or ‘we’ ‘us’ or ‘our’ or ‘our practice’) recognises the importance of privacy and confidentiality for all our patients and anyone who visits our practice and website. This Privacy Policy will be made available to anyone who asks for it.
Our principal concern is, and always will be, the health of patients who visit our practice. Understanding that the information we collect both at our practice and on our website is often of a highly sensitive nature, SMTS will always ensure that it is compliant with the highest privacy standards to keep all personal information secure and protected. Our already established culture of confidentiality is in line with the Federal Privacy Act, which in 2001 was amended to include the Private Health Sector throughout Australia. Our Practice obligations have no exceptions to the Privacy Act in regards to the personal information we hold in trust.
Our policy
Our policy is to inform you of
- The kinds of personal information that we collect and hold
- How we collect and hold personal information
- The purposes for which we collect, hold, use and disclose personal information
- How you may access your personal information and seek the correction of that information
- How you may complain about a breach of the Australian Privacy Principles and how we will deal with such a complaint
And to answer any questions you have about privacy at SMTS
What is personal information and what we collect
Personal information is any information collected about our patients on behalf of the practitioners or by the practitioners themselves.
The personal information collected will include, but is not limited to:
- Your Name
- Date of Birth
- Address
- Telephone Number
- Medicare Number
- Health Care Fund
- Current Medications or treatment used by the patient
- Current and Previous medical history, including where clinically relevant, family medical history
- The Name of any health service provider or medical specialist to which the patient is referred
- Copies of any letter of referrals and any reports relating to the patient
- Results of previous tests
- Employer, Insurer, Solicitor information for compensable patients, including claim reference numbers and AHHRs completed by the therapist
Medical practitioners who provide services at SMTS may refer patients to the following services:
- Pathology services
- Radiology services
- Public hospitals
- Private hospitals
- Day procedure centres
- Specialist medical practitioners and other health providers involved in the relevant patient’s care
Information is also collected about our medical and allied health practitioners, directly from them or with their agreement, who provide services within our practice
This information includes:
- The practitioner’s name
- Address
- Telephone number
- Qualifications and experience
- Insurance information
- Current registration details
How do we collect and access personal information?
We will talk to you and ask you to complete forms where needed. If you allow us to, we will also ask for information from other health services that support you.
How we may collect and access information
- Provided directly by the patient to our practice or through our website
- Provided on the patient’s behalf with their consent
- From health insurance or service providers / medical specialists that patients are referred to
- From health service providers who refer a patient to medical / allied health practitioners working within our clinics
Why does SMTS keep personal information?
We only keep the information that we need to ensure our patients are provided the best treatment at SMTS. When we ask for your personal information, we will tell you why we need it.
Some of the reasons we keep personal information are to:
- Required for delivery of the health service to the patient
- For the purpose of which the patient was advised and to provide the patient with the best health treatment.
- For referral of patients to other health service providers or medical specialists
The collection and disclosure may also be used for the purposes of billing, liaising with Government departments regarding Medicare, training, to facilitate any improvements on our services at times required by SMTS, and as required by insurers.
Personal information may be used or disclosed in the following circumstances
- As required by law
- If there is a serious threat to the health or safety of an individual or to public health and safety
How long do we keep your information
We keep health information for a minimum of 7 years for adults from the last occasion in which a health service was provided to the patient. If the person is under the age of 18, then records are kept until the person is 25 years of age.
How is my personal information protected?
In order to prevent unauthorised access or disclosure, we have put in place suitable physical, electronic and managerial procedures to safeguard and secure the information we collect. Only the people who need to see it will see it. If you stop receiving services, we make sure your personal information remains safe. Our staff are trained and required to respect and protect your privacy. We take reasonable steps to protect information held from misuse and loss and from unauthorised access, modification or disclosure.
Written patient information will be stored in locked filing cabinets. Electronic Client Data is stored within secure data centres in Australia and accessible by authorised staff members only.
Our staff members and contractors have signed confidentiality agreements and require user ids and passwords to access your information.
Is my personal information shared?
We will only do this if you agree. Sometimes we may be required to share personal information for safety or legal reasons.
How do I access the personal information SMTS are keeping?
If you want to see what personal information we are keeping in order to provide services for you, please call Specialist Medical and Therapy Solutions on 1300 66 55 50, or email [email protected]
How can I change my personal information?
You can update your details by contacting Specialist Medical and Therapy Solutions on 1300 66 55 50 or via email at [email protected].
Website usage
This is the website of Specialist Medical and Therapy Solutions Ltd at https://smts.healthcare.
We use traffic log cookies to identify which pages are being used. When you visit our website, our web server automatically records some general information about your visit in the form of cookies, but does not recognise or record any individual information about you. A cookie is a small file which asks permission to be placed on your computer’s hard drive.
The information we record and use for statistical purposes is:
- Your IP address
- The date and time
- The pages accessed and documents downloaded
- The previous site visited
- The type of browser used
We can only identify you personally if you give us this information voluntarily. We do not know your email address unless you give it to us. We will only record your email address if you provide it when submitting a form or sending us a message. We will use it only for the purpose you have provided it for, and will not disclose it without your consent.
If you have given us your email address, but do not want to receive an email from us in the future, please contact us and we will remove your email address from our database.
How we use information collected from our website
Cookies help us provide you with a better website experience by enabling us to monitor which pages you find useful and which you do not. A cookie in no way gives us access to your computer or any information about you, other than the data you choose to share with us. We only use this information for statistical analysis purposes and then the data is removed from the system.
You can choose to accept or decline cookies. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies if you prefer.
If you supply your phone number or other personal information when submitting an online enquiry or booking request, we will only use it to respond to that enquiry. We use this information internally and only share it with Specialist Medical and Therapy Solutions staff who need it as part of normal business activities. We do not disclose or sell your personal information for use in mailing lists or databases.
Updates to this Policy
This Policy will be reviewed from time to time to take account of new laws and technology, changes to our operations and other necessary developments. You should check this page from time to time to ensure that you are happy with any changes.
Want more information?
If you have any questions about our Privacy, Security and Website Policy or would like more detailed information, contact us on 1300 66 55 50. You can also visit the Australian Information Commissioner and Privacy Commissioner’s Website to learn more.
How can I make a complaint?
You can make a complaint if you’re not happy with how we:
- Collected your personal information
- Store your personal information
- Share your personal information
To make a complaint, please contact our Privacy Officer:
Phone: 1300 66 55 50
Email: [email protected]
Mail: Suite 4 / 150 Lindesay St Campbelltown NSW 2560
If you are unhappy with our response, or wish to take the matter to an external party, you can contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC):
Phone: 1300 363 992
Online: oaic.gov.au
Mail: GPO Box 5218, Sydney NSW 2001
