Brunswick Medical Group complies with the Privacy Act 1988.
The Privacy Act now includes a set of 13 New Australian Privacy Principles that regulate the handling of personal information and is committed to protecting the privacy of individuals and their personal information.
Brunswick Medical Group with your consent will:
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- Record your health information for medical and health related services.
- Record and use your personal information for billing and administrative purposes.
- Collect, store and dispose of your personal information.
- Release relevant information to other Health Professions to allow quality medical care.
- Disclose to others involved in your healthcare, such as treating doctors and specialists within and outside Brunswick Medical Group. This may occur through referrals to specialists and during clinical handover to other doctors within Brunswick Medical Group when your treating doctor is on leave.
- Add you to a recall reminder register.
- Be part of the Practice’s national, state and Territory recall and reminder systems eg PAP, mammograms.
- Submit my vaccinations to the Australian Immunisation Register.
- Ask for your consent to be part of the Practice’s national, State and Territory recall and reminder systems. Eg Cervical Screening, Mammograms
- Disclose DE-IDENTIFIED personal health information to a third party for research or quality improvement activities to improve individual, community health care and practice management. De-Identifiable information cannot be traced back to the individual.
- Contact your next of kin in an emergency.
Consent can be withdrawn at any time by informing our receptionist or by written notification.
Brunswick Medical Group operates a fully computerised medical records system. All doctors and employees have individual passwords to allow access. Information is backed up daily and passwords changed regularly. Administrative staff that have access to your personal health information have signed confidentiality agreements.
Some medical information is downloaded directly into your medical record eg pathology results. These are encrypted to ensure confidentiality.
Transfer of Your Medical Records:
Please note an administration fee for transferring your records may apply.
Click here for the form.
When patients transfer to another medical practice, we will support the continuity of care by preparing your medical records. We will require a medical transfer form signed by you authorising the transfer of medical information, we will send your medical record to your new GP.
Access To Your Medical Records:
A patient has the right to access their medical record under the Privacy Act and Health Records Act. Please speak to our reception staff of your request. They will pass on the message to the Practice Manager. The Practice Manager will contact you to discuss the procedure. We will require a written request from you to access your medical record before we can proceed. We will advise you of the times that the doctor will be available to go through your medical records with you. This will be as soon as reasonably convenient within 30 days. A fee will be charged for this service that will reflect the time taken. There is no Medicare rebate available for this service.
There may be circumstances where the doctor will be obliged to release details of a patient’s personal health information without their express consent- this may be in the case of an extreme emergency, or if legally compelled to do so. All patient information collected shall be used to provide a comprehensive approach to patient care. Please advise us if your details change so that our information is accurate and up to date.
Management of your health information:
All information received during a consultation between you and your doctor is considered personal and private health information. Your medical record is a private and confidential document and our policy is to collect and maintain the security of your personal information. For this reason, you are advised to consult directly with the doctor regarding all medical history, pathology and radiology results.
Your private information will not be disclosed to any third parties without your written consent. We have a comprehensive privacy policy available to all patients on request at the front desk. Doctors, staff and contractors are expected to maintain the privacy of personal information.
Medical records are the property of the practice. If you have any concerns regarding the information collected at Brunswick Medical Group and how it is used please discuss the issues with the Practice Manager or one of the doctors.