Health information & privacy statement

Your privacy is important to us, so we make every effort to keep your confidential information exactly that - confidential.

Patients who receive care from Molemap should feel comfortable in entrusting their health information to the Molemap organisation. This Health Information and Privacy Statement (“Statement”) provides information to patients as to how personal information including health information is collected and used within the organisation, and the circumstances in which we may disclose it to third parties.

Molemap aims to maintain strict confidentiality and security of patient personal health information at all times and ensure that patient information held on the Molemap database is only available to authorised staff.

The Molemap Organisation is legally required to protect personal information and comply with all relevant privacy legislation such as:

• The Privacy Act 1988 and,
• Other State and Commonwealth Privacy and Data Legislation

Molemap will:

• Provide a copy of this Statement upon request.
• Take such steps as are reasonable in the circumstances to implement practices, procedures and systems to ensure compliance with the regulatory requirements and deal with inquiries or complaints.
• Collect personal information for the primary purpose of maintaining a patient’s Molemap record, for providing patients with information and for financial payments.

STAFF RESPONSIBILITY

• Molemap staff will take reasonable steps to ensure patients understand:
• What information has been and is being collected.
• Why the information is being collected, and whether this is due to a legal requirement.
• How the information will be used or disclosed.
• Why and when their consent is necessary.
• Molemap procedures for access and correction of information and for responding to complaints of information breaches, which includes providing this Statement.

WHAT INFORMATION IS COLLECTED

Molemap will collect relevant personal information as a provision of clinical services to a patient attending a Molemap clinic. Molemap obtains verbal consent from patients before proceeding with Molemap services in the clinic.

Molemap staff collect patients’ personal and clinical information when a patient completes a privacy and data handling agreement form. This form provides information about the management of collected information and patient privacy.

1. Collected personal information will include patients’:

• name, date of birth
• contact details; phone, email, postal address
• information we collect when you purchase services from us.

2. Collected clinical information to assist with assessment diagnosis and ongoing monitoring will include relevant:

• past medical history
• family medical history
• risk factors
• nominated or referring Doctor details

A patient’s personal and clinical information may be held as:

• Electronic written records; and
• Digital images of the skin surface (body shots) and of skin lesions.

HOW INFORMATION IS COLLECTED AND SECURED

The Molemap procedure for collecting personal information is:

• When patients make a booking, they will be asked for their personal information.
• During the course of a Molemap session, Molemap melanographers will collect clinical information.
• Personal information may also be collected from the patient’s guardian or responsible person (where practicable and necessary), or from any other involved healthcare specialists.
• Molemap may obtain further clinical information and reports regarding skin lesions of concern from any medical practitioner, health service or pathologist.

Molemap holds all personal information securely, in electronic format, within a protected and secure online database. The Molemap Database is located in New Zealand.

Molemap has a security and confidentiality policy to which all Molemap staff and contracted information technology staff are required to adhere. Molemap uses a computerised data handling system to record your personal and medical information and images. Molemap has an IT support and development team who are responsible for user support, programme development, and data security.

Patient consent

Molemap obtains verbal consent to proceed with Molemap services in the clinic. Molemap also provides privacy and data information for patients to read and sign prior to the commencement of a session.

Unique Identifiers

Molemap uses patient ID numbers to uniquely identify patients. The use of unique identifiers, in conjunction with other appropriate security practices, assists in the protection of personal information when it is being transferred between providers (e.g. from Molemap records to a specialist or from a laboratory to Molemap). The use of a unique identifier allows a name and address to be removed from the transmission.

Retention of Health Information

Molemap records are the property of Molemap. Legally, your information must be kept for a minimum of ten (10) years and Molemap will continue to maintain your record as long as you require us to do so. Patients have the right to access their Molemap records in accordance with the Privacy Act 1998 other relevant Health Records legislation. All patients are able to access their reports and most recent images via the patient portal using their unique access code. A patient’s request to access their full Molemap record needs to be made in writing to the General Manager.

Disclosure of Health Information

The information you provide and past Molemap results is used to provide you with the necessary care during your appointment. We also use your information to send you an invitation when your next Molemap is due.

With your consent, we will share and release your previous and current images and related files for the purposes of your care in the following situations:

• Molemap contracts expert Dermatologists, to provide diagnosis and assessment services. After your Molemap your information will be transferred to them for this purpose.
• We will send the dermatologists report containing your results to your doctor if you nominate one. This report may contain images of your body. Consent for access by your doctor can be changed by you at any time via the Patient Portal.
• If you attend or are referred to other Medical practitioners after your Molemap, at your request, we will disclose relevant information and release your images and related reports to them.
• If you move between our services nationwide or internationally your information will be available at your chosen Molemap clinic.
• If you have had further skin cancer related investigations or treatments, we may obtain information about the care and treatment you received and with your permission, may contact the service to share your information with them.

Molemap will not disclose personal information to any other third party without full consent from the patient and full disclosure to the patient of the reason for the information transfer. Exceptions to disclose personal information without patient consent are where the information is required by law. Molemap will inform the patient where there is a statutory requirement to disclose certain information.

Limited disclosure of Molemap demographic data may occur to third parties engaged by or for Molemap for business purposes, such as accreditation and for the provision of information technology. Where information is shared with third parties they are required to comply with this Statement. There may also be third party disclosure of clinical data for research or for educational purposes, in which case no identifiable features or details will be disclosed. Making your images and clinical data available for research or for educational purposes is your choice. You can opt out at any time through your secure patient portal or by contacting the Molemap customer services team on 1800 665 362 or [email protected].

Patient Satisfaction with the service provided is important to Molemap. Molemap conducts research to measure Patients’ satisfaction to assist us in improving the quality of our service. Molemap may employ an approved company to undertake this research. Taking part in research or marketing activities is your choice. If you do not wish to be contacted for market research please contact the Molemap customer services team on 1800 665 362 or [email protected]. to opt out.

USING PERSONAL INFORMATION

As a patient who receives care from Molemap, you consent that Molemap may collect, store and use your personal informationto do any of the following:

• Contact you by post, email, phone, sms or via online and social media interfaces such as, but not limited to, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn to advise of current Molemap initiatives and Molemap promotional offers which may be of interest to you or your family and friends, unless you request otherwise;
• Provide you (or allow a third party to provide you) with details of special offers, discounts, prize draws, competitions and information about products and services offered by Molemap or other brands, that may be of interest to you or your family and friends, unless you request otherwise;
• Take actions required to keep your information secure; and
• Undertake data analytics, insights or data mining (including the anonymisation or aggregation of your personal information with other data to identify patterns and trends), and use the full benefit of that analysis.

As a patient who receives care from Molemap, you agree that Molemap and its partners may share your personal information for the purposes listed in clauses 1 to 4 above and that Molemap may also share your personal information to agents working on behalf of Molemap (such as, but not limited to, mailing and research companies, data hosting suppliers and other suppliers) for the purposes set out in clauses 1 to 4 above, provided that unless required by law, we will not otherwise pass on your personal information to a third party.

Patients may opt-out of being contacted about Molemap offers and services at any time. For instructions on opting out, please see the section entitled, “Opting-out of being contacted by Molemap” below.

OPTING-OUT OF BEING CONTACTED BY MOLEMAP

Molemap wants to communicate with you only if you want to hear from us. Please see below how to proceed if you do not wish to be contacted by Molemap for each type of communication:

• eNewsletters and promotional emails: you can choose to opt out of promotional email communications by clicking ‘unsubscribe from this list’ in the body of the email. Alternatively, you can contact the Molemap customer services team on 1800 665 362 or [email protected]. If you change your mind, please contact the Molemap customer services team so you can start receiving promotional communications again.

• Appointment reminder calls, emails, letters: you can choose to opt out from appointments reminders such as when you are due for your annual Molemap appointment by contacting the Molemap customer services team on 1800 665 362 or [email protected]. If you change your mind, please contact the Molemap customer services team so you can start receiving appointment reminders again.

When contacting the Molemap customer services team regarding the above, please be sure to include your full name and the email address you used when you registered with or made an appointment with Molemap. It may take up to 10 working days to process your request, during which period you may continue to receive communications from Molemap.

Please note that if you book an appointment with us, we will continue to confirm your appointment status by email. We may also need to contact you via telephone, email or postal mail with questions or information regarding your appointment.

ACCESS TO AND CORRECTION OF INFORMATION

Molemap patients are able to access their report and the most recent images taken via the Patient Portal. Molemap acknowledges patients may request access to their whole Molemap record, such a request must be made in writing and Molemap will respond within a reasonable time.

Where patients have nominated a doctor to receive the report, the patient can also consent to their doctor having access to the body and lesion images taken for the purposes of ongoing monitoring by their doctor. Consent for access by their doctor can be changed by the patient at any time via the Patient Portal.

Molemap will take reasonable steps to correct personal information where it is satisfied they are not accurate or up to date. From time to time, Molemap may ask patients to verify the personal information held is correct and up to date. Patients may also request Molemap corrects or updates their information, and patients should make such requests in writing.

FEEDBACK AND COMPLAINTS

Quality Improvement Activities and Initiative

Molemap seeks and responds to patient feedback on their experience of the Molemap Service to support quality improvement activities. Patients are encouraged to provide feedback using the feedback prompt when you access the patient portal and we may also ask you to complete a questionnaire on occasion in order to get patient feedback. The feedback you provide is confidential and assists Molemap in developing additional services and improving existing services.

Your Rights

Despite our best intentions, complaints may arise. Molemap takes complaints seriously and will deal with all concerns in a courteous and understanding manner. Patient satisfaction affects health outcomes and Molemap acknowledges that patient complaints are an important source of customer feedback. We welcome your suggestion on how we can improve our service, so please feel free to contact us on 1800 665 362 or email [email protected]. All feedback and complaints will be dealt with by the appropriate member of our management team in accordance with its complaint resolution procedure. If you would prefer to write to us regarding feedback or a complaint, please email this to [email protected]. Should you wish to obtain independent advice regarding a complaint, please contact the State Health Care Commissioner.

NON-CLINICAL WEBSITE ANALYTICS

The following additional information is about the Molemap website. This refers to the Molemap promotional website which is not linked in any way whatsoever to your Molemap clinical record, the personal details held on your records or, to the secure Molemap patient portal.

To improve your experience on the Molemap website, we use ‘cookies’. Cookies are an industry standard and most major web sites use them. A cookie is a small text file that our site may place on your computer as a tool to remember your preferences. You may refuse the use of cookies by selecting the appropriate settings on your browser, if you do this you may not be able to use the full functionality of the Molemap website.

The Molemap website may contain links to other relevant websites. Please be aware that we are not responsible for the privacy practices of such other sites. When you link to other websites you should read their privacy policy.

The Molemap website uses Google Analytics, a service which transmits website traffic data to Google servers in the United States. Google Analytics does not identify individual users or associate your IP address with any other data held by Google. We use reports provided by Google Analytics to help us understand website traffic and webpage usage.

By using the Molemap website, you consent to the processing of data about you by Google in the manner described in Google’s Privacy Policy – external site

and, for the purposes set out above. You can opt out of Google Analytics if you disable or refuse the cookie, disable JavaScript, or use the opt-out service provided by Google – external site.

Molemap.net.au also uses interfaces with social media sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and others. If you choose to “like” or “share” information from this website through these services, you should review the privacy policy of that service. If you are a member of a social media site, the interfaces may allow the social media site to connect your visits to this site with other Personal Information, this will not however include your clinical information, or any personal information held by us on your clinical record.

CHANGES TO OUR POLICY

This Statement may be updated from time to time at our discretion. Any changes will take immediate effect once posted on our website, so we encourage you to review this Statement periodically.