It Is Sault Area Hospital’s Responsibility To Protect Your Personal Health Information.
Our health information system makes it possible to share your personal health information in a safe and secure digital format with doctors and other care providers in your “Circle of Care.” This means authorized care providers can have immediate access to your important personal health information when providing direct care to you, thus improving the care you receive.
Sault Area Hospital is committed to keeping your personal health information (PHI) confidential and secure. We take steps to protect your PHI from theft, unauthorized access, inappropriate collection, use and disclosure. Protecting privacy is the law. We collect PHI about you directly from you or from the person acting on your behalf. Occasionally, we collect PHI about you from other sources if we have obtained your consent to do so or if the law permits.
We assume you consent to share your health information with external healthcare providers involved in your care, such as doctors, hospitals, clinics, long-term care homes, and community agencies. We may also ask external healthcare providers for information about you if we need it for your care.
Personal Health Information May Be Used And Disclosed To:
- Treat and care for you.
- Receive payment for your treatment and care.
- Conduct risk management activities.
- Plan, administer and manage our internal operations.
- Conduct quality improvement activities.
- Compile statistics and patient satisfaction surveys.
- Conduct research and teaching.
- Fulfill other purposes permitted or required by law.
- Facilitate federal and provincial government initiatives.
- Our hospital foundation(s), so they may conduct fundraising to improve our health facilities, services and programs.
- Assist other health providers, agencies or hospitals in order to provide continuity of care.
- Inform inquiring individuals of your presence at Sault Area Hospital.
- Page patients who leave their units or outpatient areas without providing proper notification to staff.
- Provide your name and location to visiting community faith group representatives, if you tell us your religious affiliation.
- Obtain required information for patients detained under the Mental Health Act or Criminal Code of Canada.
You may access and correct your personal health records or withdraw your consent for some of the above uses and disclosures by contacting us directly. Contact the Privacy Officer at (705) 759-3434 ext. 6866.
You have a right to contact the Information and Privacy Commissioner/Ontario if you think we have violated your rights:
Information and Privacy Commissioner/Ontario
2 Bloor Street East, Suite 1400,
Toronto, ON
M4W 1A8