Privacy Policy

My Family Chiro: Privacy Policy

Effective Date: 1st January 2025

1. Introduction

My Family Chiro ("we", "us", or "our") is committed to protecting your privacy and ensuring that your personal and health information is managed in a secure and confidential manner. This Privacy Policy outlines how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your personal information, in compliance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and other relevant privacy laws, including state-based legislation such as the Health Records and Information Privacy Act.

2. What Information Do We Collect?

We may collect the following types of personal and health information from you:

Personal Identification Information: Name, date of birth, address, contact details (phone number, email address), Medicare number, health insurance details.
Health Information: Medical history, treatment details, test results, prescriptions, diagnoses, and other health-related data that you provide in the course of receiving care.
Sensitive Information: Any other information that is considered sensitive under Australian privacy laws, such as information about your racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious beliefs, or membership of professional bodies.

3. How We Collect Your Information

We may collect your personal and health information in the following ways:

Directly from you when you provide it to us in person, over the phone, or via our website.
From other healthcare professionals or institutions involved in your care, with your consent.
From insurance providers or government bodies (e.g., Medicare) for the purpose of billing and claims processing.

4. How We Use Your Information

We may use your personal and health information for the following purposes:

To provide you with healthcare services, including diagnosis, treatment, and management of your health.
To communicate with you regarding your appointments, treatment plans, and billing.
To ensure that we comply with legal and regulatory obligations.
To submit claims to Medicare, health funds, or other third-party payers.
To maintain accurate and complete health records for your ongoing care.

5. Disclosure of Your Information

We may disclose your personal and health information to the following parties, but only for the purposes described above or where required by law:

Other healthcare professionals involved in your care (e.g., specialists, laboratories, hospitals).
Medical practitioners, health funds, and Medicare for billing and claims purposes.
Government agencies or regulators as required by law.
Your nominated family members or carers (with your consent).
Third-party service providers (e.g., IT support, legal services, or auditors) who assist us in operating our practice, provided they are subject to confidentiality obligations.

6. Data Security

We take reasonable steps to protect your personal and health information from misuse, loss, unauthorized access, and disclosure. These steps include physical, electronic, and procedural safeguards to ensure that your information is kept secure.

7. Accessing and Correcting Your Information

You have the right to access your personal and health information held by us. If you believe that any of the information we hold is inaccurate or incomplete, you can request to have it corrected. To access or amend your information, please contact us using the details below.

8. Retention of Your Information

We retain your personal and health information for as long as it is required for the purpose for which it was collected, and as required by law. Generally, this means we will keep your records for a minimum of seven years after your last treatment.

9. Overseas Disclosure

In the event that we need to disclose your personal and health information to overseas recipients (for example, to an overseas healthcare provider or cloud service provider), we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect your privacy.

10. Your Privacy Rights

Under Australian law, you have the following rights:

The right to access your personal and health information.
The right to correct any inaccuracies in your information.
The right to request the deletion of your personal information (subject to certain legal requirements).
The right to lodge a complaint if you believe your privacy rights have been violated.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details below.

11. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on our website, and we encourage you to review this policy regularly to stay informed about how we are protecting your privacy.

12. Contact Us

If you have any questions or concerns about how we handle your personal and health information, or if you wish to make a complaint about a breach of your privacy, please contact us at:

Dr Luke Schmidt (Chiropractor)
Phone: 0494 311 071
Email: luke@myfamilychiro.com.au

For more information about your privacy rights, you can also contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) at:

Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC)
Phone: 1300 363 992
Website: https://www.oaic.gov.au