We collect your personal and health information so that we can provide you with care and treatment, communicate with you and inform you of health services that may be relevant to you such as screening programmes.

We collect information from you directly, or from someone you have agreed we can speak to, for example, whānau, a support person or a relative. We will talk to you first to collect information unless there is good reason not to, for example, if you are sick and cannot agree to the information being provided to us.

To provide health services to you, your information is collected from other health care providers and organisations. These providers will have their own policies for sharing your information with us. Health providers we work with and receive information from can include other doctors, specialists, hospitals, laboratory and radiology and other results providers, community and social service providers, social workers, and other health professionals such as dental and optometry providers. Other organisations such as ACC and insurers, Ministry of Social Development and Police may also send us information as required.

Some members of our team use artificial intelligence (AI) tools (Heidi/ Nabla) to support their documentation of clinical services. The tool does not take record and store any private identifiable information. It simply summarises the consultation with succinct assessments and plans. You can choose not to have AI tools used in your care. If this is your preference, please let our team know.

We will take reasonable steps to make our patients aware when we collect information from other health care providers, including through this notice and, where appropriate, at the time of collection.

Collection of information is authorised under the Health Information Privacy Code 2020 and Privacy Act 2020 and related health legislation like the Health Act 1956.

We use your personal and health information to provide you with healthcare and to support the safe, effective running of our services, and we share it only when it is necessary for your care, required or permitted by law, or needed to meet funding, safety, and regulatory obligations.

We will usually tell you before we share your information, although we might need to share information without telling you first, for example because we are concerned about your or someone else’s life or health.

There are times when by law we are required to share information, for example when requested by Manatū Hauora | Ministry of Health, or the Health and Disability Commissioner.

Pegasus Health (Charitable) Limited receives information from us so that you can receive subsidised funding, and for clinical and administrative support.

If concerns are raised about the care or services we provide, we may disclose relevant health information to our regulators, insurers, indemnity providers, or legal advisers for the purpose of managing and responding to the concerns.

Our practice uses HealthOne. HealthOne is a South Island based secure electronic record that allows registered healthcare providers, directly involved in your healthcare, to quickly access information such as your test results, allergies, medications, GP summaries and hospital information. HealthOne adheres to the principles of the Privacy Act 2020 as well as the Rules set out in the Health Information Privacy Code 2020. Access is only possible via an approved highly secure healthcare information network which is regularly audited and tested. 

Privacy auditing is used to check that only those directly involved in your care are accessing your information. To find out more about HealthOne please visit https://healthone.org.nz. Please note that you are entitled to restrict the sharing of your healthcare records by contacting 0508 837 872 or emailing healthone.privacy@pegasus.health.nz.

Information is kept for as long as legally required and for our specific organisational purposes. We are legally required to keep your health information for a minimum of ten years after the last time we provided you with a health service.

You have the right to:

• Ask us to see any of your personal information that we hold.

• Ask us to correct your information if you think it is wrong.

Your caregiver or representative can also ask for information about you.

To make a request to see or correct your information, please contact us on reception@doctorsoncashel.co.nz or 03 366 2578 and ask to speak with the Privacy Officer.

If we are not the right people to respond to your request for information, we will let you know and transfer your request to the right place. For example, it might be better that we ask another treatment provider to respond to you directly. 

We will respond to you as soon as we can. If a response is going to take longer than 20 working days from the date of your request, we will let you know and keep you updated.

We will discuss with you how you would like to receive your information. It is important that you receive your information safely. Depending on the size and format of the information, we may provide it by:

• email, if it is appropriate and secure to do so; or

• hard copy/printed documents for collection in person; or

• if the information is too large to email or print, we may ask you to bring a USB device to the practice so we can load the information onto it for you.

If you collect the information in person, you will need to provide proof of identity, such as a driver’s licence or Kiwi Access Card. This helps us ensure we give the information to the right person. We only need to sight your identity document and will not keep a copy.

If your caregiver or representative asks us for information, we must provide this, unless a specific legal circumstance applies. These circumstances most commonly are: 

• We don’t think it is in your best interests to provide the information.

• We believe that you do not want the information to be provided. 

• There is a reason under the Privacy Act why the information should not be provided. 

We may first ask your representative for further information so that we know we are speaking to the right person and that they are authorised to talk to us on your behalf.

‍If you have concerns about your privacy and the handling of your personal information, please let us know. We will work with you and do our best to resolve your concern. We are always open to improving our processes and systems. 

If we are unable to resolve your concern, you have the right to complain to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner. Options for contacting the Privacy Commissioner are on the Commissioner’s website (privacy.org.nz).