Privacy Policy - George Jeffrey Children's Centre

George Jeffrey Children’s Centre is committed to protecting individual privacy and the confidentiality of the personal health information it holds.

Your Health Record

Your health record includes important information about your health including your date of birth, contact information, health history, details of your physical and mental health, record of your visits, the care and support you received during those visits, results from tests and procedures, and may also include information from other health care providers.

With limited exceptions, you have the right to access the health information we hold about you. If you request a copy of your record, one will be provided to you at a reasonable cost. If you wish to view the original record, one of our staff members must be present, and a reasonable fee may be charged for this access. If you need a copy of your health record, please contact our Health Records Department at (807) 625-6794 by phone and/or in writing. Please note that formal access requests must be made in writing. We encourage you to contact our Health Records Department to discuss the process prior to submitting an access request. In rare situations, you may be denied access to some or all of your record, for example when access may result in a risk of serious harm to you or another person (per health privacy legislation).

We make every effort to ensure that all of your information is recorded accurately. You have a right to ask for a correction to your record if you believe the information is inaccurate or incomplete, and in most cases we will be able to make the requested correction, or otherwise we will ask you to prepare a statement of disagreement to be attached to the record.

Our Practices

We collect, use and disclose (meaning share) your health information to:

Treat and care for you
Deliver our programs
Plan, administer and manage our internal operations
Be paid or process, monitor, verify or reimburse claims for payment
Provide appointment reminders to you
Conduct risk management, error management and quality improvement activities
Educate our staff and students
Seek your consent (or consent of a substitute decision maker) where appropriate
Respond to or initiate proceedings
Conduct research (subject to certain rules including research ethics board review and approval)
Compile statistics
Allow for the analysis, administration and management of the health system
Comply with legal and regulatory requirements
Fulfill other purposes permitted or required by law

Our collection, use and disclosure (sharing) of your personal health information is done in accordance with Ontario law.

Your Choices

You have a right to make choices and control how your health information at George Jeffrey Children’s Centre is collected, used, and disclosed, with some exceptions. We may also collect, use and share your health information in order to communicate or consult with other health care providers within our organization about your care unless you tell us you do not want us to do so.

In most cases, we must have your permission to give your health information to people who do not provide you with health care, including health professionals at George Jeffrey Children’s Centre not involved in your care, other service agencies, or your insurance company. We also need consent to communicate with any family members or friends with whom you would like us to share information about your health (unless one or more of these individuals is your substitute decision-maker).

When we require and ask for your consent, you may choose to say no. If you say yes, you may change your mind at any time. Once you say no, we will no longer share your information unless you say so, unless the law permits or requires us to do so.

Sometimes we do not need your consent, for example, to use your information for billing, risk management or error management, quality improvement purposes; or to disclose personal health information in a number of permitted or required circumstances, including to eliminate or reduce a significant risk of serious bodily harm; or to fulfill mandatory reporting obligations under other laws such as for child protection or safe operation of a motor vehicle.
Please visit the IPC website www.ipc.on.ca for additional information.

For More Information or Complaints

We encourage you to contact us with any questions or concerns you might have about our privacy practices. You can reach our Privacy Officer, Tina Bennett at: (807) 625-6799.

If, after contacting us, you feel that your concerns have not been addressed to your satisfaction, you have the right to complain to the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario. The Commissioner can be reached at:

Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario
2 Bloor Street East, Suite 1400
Toronto, Ontario M4W 1A8
1-800-387-0073
1-416-325-9195 (fax)
or visit the IPC website via www.ipc.on.ca