1. Who we are
Henry Cooke Physiotherapy is a private physiotherapy practice operated by Henry Cooke as a sole trader.
This Privacy Policy explains how Henry Cooke Physiotherapy collects, uses, stores and discloses personal information, including health information, in accordance with applicable privacy laws.
We are committed to protecting the privacy and confidentiality of the personal information entrusted to us.
2. What personal information we collect
We may collect and hold personal information that is reasonably necessary to provide physiotherapy services and manage our practice.
This may include:
Name, date of birth and contact details
Address and emergency contact details
Health and medical history
Current symptoms, injuries and diagnoses
Medications and relevant medical conditions
Treatment history and clinical information
Information about physical activity, exercise and lifestyle where relevant to treatment
Medicare and private health insurance information where required
Appointment, billing and payment information
Information provided through forms, correspondence, emails, telephone calls or our website
Any other information reasonably necessary to provide safe and appropriate physiotherapy services.
3. How we collect your information
We generally collect personal information directly from you, including when you:
Complete our patient intake or consent forms
Book an appointment
Attend a consultation
Contact us by email, telephone or through our website
Make a payment or provide billing information
Communicate with us about your treatment.
Where reasonably necessary, we may also collect information from other healthcare providers or third parties with your consent or where permitted or required by law.
4. Why we collect, use and disclose your information
We collect, use and disclose personal information for purposes including:
Providing physiotherapy assessment, treatment and advice
Maintaining accurate clinical records
Communicating with you about appointments and treatment
Managing bookings, payments and accounts
Processing private health insurance or other relevant claims where applicable
Communicating with other healthcare professionals involved in your care, where authorised or permitted
Responding to enquiries, complaints or requests
Meeting our legal, regulatory and professional obligations
Improving the quality and administration of our services.
We will generally only use or disclose your health information for the purpose for which it was collected, or for a related purpose that you would reasonably expect, unless otherwise permitted or required by law
5. Disclosure of information to other parties
We may disclose personal information where reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this Privacy Policy.
This may include disclosure to:
Other healthcare professionals involved in your care, with your consent or where permitted or required by law
Private health insurers where necessary and authorised
Professional or regulatory bodies where required
Information technology, practice management, payment and other service providers that assist us in operating the practice
Government agencies or other organisations where disclosure is required or authorised by law.
We will only disclose information to third parties where permitted by applicable privacy laws.
6. Halaxy and other service providers
Because you're using Halaxy, I'd specifically mention it rather than leaving your patients wondering where their records are stored.
We use third-party service providers to assist with the operation and administration of our practice, including practice management, appointment scheduling, clinical records, electronic forms and payment processing.
These services may involve the collection, storage or processing of personal information on our behalf.
We take reasonable steps to ensure that third-party providers we use handle personal information in a manner consistent with applicable privacy obligations.
7. Overseas disclosure
Some of our third-party service providers may store or process personal information outside Australia.
Where personal information is disclosed to an overseas recipient, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that the disclosure is handled in accordance with applicable privacy laws.
8. How we store and protect your information
We take reasonable steps to protect personal information from misuse, interference, loss, unauthorised access, modification or disclosure.
Personal information may be held in electronic and/or physical records.
Electronic information is stored using systems and service providers selected to support the secure management of personal and health information.
Access to personal information is limited to those who need it for legitimate practice or treatment purposes.
We will take reasonable steps to securely destroy or de-identify personal information when it is no longer required to be retained, subject to our legal and professional obligations.
9. Accessing and correcting your information
You have the right to request access to personal information and health information we hold about you, subject to applicable legal exceptions.
You may also request that information we hold about you be corrected if you believe it is inaccurate, incomplete or out of date.
To request access to or correction of your information, please contact us using the details provided below.
We will respond to requests in accordance with applicable privacy laws.
10. Privacy complaints
If you believe that we have mishandled your personal or health information, we encourage you to contact us first so that we can investigate and attempt to resolve your concern.
You can make a privacy complaint by contacting:
Henry Cooke Physiotherapy
Email: hello@henrycookephysio.com
We will acknowledge and investigate privacy complaints and respond within a reasonable timeframe.
If you are not satisfied with our response, you may contact the relevant privacy regulator, including the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) or the Victorian Health Complaints Commissioner (HCC), depending on the nature of your complaint.