We will never market or sell your personal information. Guelph Community Acupuncture will collect, use and disclose your personal information for the following reasons:
- To provide you with acupuncture services
- To obtain payment for services provided
- To assist insurance companies with insurance claims verification
- To seek advice for potential treatment options
- To provide or arrange health care in cases of emergencies
The personal information that may be collected, used or disclosed by Guelph Community Acupuncture may include your birth date and contact information, your health history and family health history, your health status, the health care you receive (including identifying your health care provider(s)), your health number, the identification of your substitute decision-maker, if any, and insurance or billing information relating to health care.
We respect and value your privacy. Your personal information is kept strictly confidential, with a few exceptions. There may be (exceedingly rare) situations in which practitioners at Guelph Community Acupuncture will have to collect, use or disclose personal health information without your consent, but we will only do this if required by law. Under Ontario’s Personal Health Information Protection Act, we might have to share a patient’s personal information without their consent in the following circumstances:
- We have reason to believe that if we do not share information, someone is at risk of being harmed.
- We need to share information to help determine if the patient is able to give consent.
- Disclosure is required as part of a legal process, such as a summons or court order.
- The College of Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners and Acupuncturists (our regulatory body) asks for information as part of an investigation or the Quality Assurance program.
Your personal information is available to you for your review except in limited circumstance as required by law (again, according to Ontario’s Personal Health Information Protection Act). You can also ask to have your personal health information corrected if you believe there is a mistake in the records, with some exceptions.