Summerland Skin Cancer Clinic respects each individual patient’s privacy. As a medical clinic, we collect personal details and relevant health information required to provide you with high-quality care in regards to skin cancer diagnosis and management. This information may also be used for referral to other health practitioners or pathology tests as necessary in the course of your treatment. It is also needed for reminders and recall systems used by the clinic as part of providing care to you. All the information about you is stored by the clinic in the strictest confidence, in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles which are outlined in the Privacy Amendment (Enhancing Privacy Protection) Act 2012.

 

Personal details which we record include:

  • Full name (legal requirement for claiming Medicare rebates) and any pseudonyms used, date of birth, address and contact details.
  • Occupation, Indigenous status, emergency contact and next of kin details.
  • Health card details including Medicare or Veterans Affairs card details, and any applicable Pensioner Concession Card, Commonwealth Seniors Health Card, or Health Care Card details.

 

Specific medical information we collect and enter into your medical record includes:

  • Significant medical and surgical history, regular medications and allergies.
  • Previous history of skin cancer, both personal and family, if known.

 

Digital photographs may occasionally be taken of specific skin lesions or of certain procedures, which are then entered into the patient’s medical record. The purpose of these is for clinical monitoring of specific lesions or for photographic documentation of certain procedures. Occasionally, de-identified photos may be used for educational purposes for other medical clinicians. These will not be used in unauthorised public displays, and patients reserve the right of refusal to have photographs used for this or any of the above purposes.

 

We may collect your personal information in a variety of ways:

  • At initial booking of an appointment with the clinic via reception staff or through the online booking service HotDoc.
  • At the initial appointment by completing the New Patient Registration Form.
  • During the course of the skin check consultation or procedure appointment with the doctor or nurse.

In some instances your personal information may be collected from other sources, which may be because it is not practical or reasonable to collect it from you directly. This may include information from:

  • Your guardian or responsible person.
  • Other healthcare providers such as your general practitioner, specialists, allied health professionals, hospitals, community health services, pathology companies and diagnostic imaging services.
  • Medicare or Veteran’s Affairs.

If you believe any of your previously collected information has changed or is incorrect then you can request that the details be amended. This will be done in your medical record by the appropriate staff member(s).

 

This practice is committed to protecting your personal health information. All staff must sign a confidentiality clause, and if you feel that this has been breached at any time, please discuss this with your doctor or the practice manager. Electronic medical records are held securely at Summerland Skin Cancer Clinic and are only accessed by authorised staff involved in delivering your health care. They are backed up as encrypted files stored locally as well as offsite in the cloud. We are committed to ensuring that the most up to date electronic protection is employed. Any hard copy patient information is scanned digitally into your electronic medical file and is then shredded on-site before undergoing professional confidential document destruction. If you wish your information to be transferred to another doctor, it is necessary for you to first sign a release declaration from the other doctor and then a copy of any relevant information will be sent to the new doctor (with the original kept at Summerland Skin Cancer Clinic).

 

We may be required to share your personal information with third parties including:

  • Other health care providers relevant to your care, including My Health Record.
  • When it is required by law (for example court subpoena).
  • If it is necessary to lessen or prevent a serious threat to a person’s life, health or safety, or where it is impractical to obtain the patient’s consent (such as in an emergency situation).
  • To assist in locating a missing person.
  • Where there is a statuary requirement to report certain personal information (such as an infectious disease mandatory notification to the public health unit, or mandatory reporting of suspicion of harm to children).
  • People that are contracted to the clinic for business purposes such as information technology providers (who are also required to comply with the Australian Privacy Principles and this clinic’s privacy policy).

 

Medical reports for solicitors and Insurance companies will only be done if appropriate consent has been arranged and payment is received up front. If you wish to have a copy of your information, you will need to book an appointment with your doctor to view, copy and/or adequately discuss your medical information. An administrative fee may apply.

 

At Summerland Skin Cancer Clinic we are always willing to listen to any suggestions or comments that you may have to improve the patient experience and standard of care. Please talk to the Staff / Doctor, or add a comment to our Suggestions Box, located at Reception. If you have a complaint that you feel has not been sufficiently addressed through this mechanism, please ask for a complaints form from reception staff.  Complaints can be submitted anonymously. Once your complaint has been received by the clinic, you will be contacted by either the practice owner or our practice manager within 10 working days to discuss the matter further. If a satisfactory outcome cannot be reached, complaints may be directed to the: