Privacy

Commencing January 1st 2004 The Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) applies to all organizations in Canada that collect, use or disclose personal information in the course of doing commercial business. Quebec, British Columbia and Alberta have enacted provincial legislation which has been deemed substantially similar to the federal legislation and which applies in place of PIPEDA for commercial activities that occur entirely within that province. Some provinces, including Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario also have health privacy legislation that applies to personal health information. Personal Health Information Protection Act, 2004 (PHIPA), Ontario; Health Information Act, 1999 (HIA), Alberta; Health Information Protection Act 1999, (HIPA), Saskatchewan; and the Personal Health Information Act, 1997 (PHIA), Manitoba, share similar principles and requirements for the handling of personal health information. The existence of multiple laws dealing with the protection of information and privacy creates a complex framework from within Eastern Rehabilitation Inc and CBI Health will strive to provide the best possible care to our clients and at the same time to understand and respect your rights no matter where in Canada you are receiving services from CBI Health.

Maintaining the protection of your personal information is an important principle to Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. and it’s affiliated and partnership organizations and is required by law. Our organization is committed to collecting, using, and disclosing personal information responsibly and only to the extent necessary for the services we provide.

What is personal information?

Personal information includes any identifying information about you. Eastern Rehabilitation Inc collects personal information from you such as your name, address, telephone number and when you offer it as a means of payment, your credit card information. Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. collects and generates personal information in the course of providing you with the services you, or someone else requests.

Eastern Rehabilitation Inc and CBI Health Group has designated a Chief Privacy Officer to be accountable for the organization’s compliance with the applicable privacy legislation, including the ten principles set out in PIPEDA and other legislation: accountability; identifying purposes; consent; limiting collection; limiting use, disclosure and retention; accuracy; safeguards; openness; individual access and challenging compliance.

The Chief Privacy Officer, working with your local clinic, will receive and respond to questions and complaints about policies or practices with respect to personal information, and requests for access or amendments to inaccurate personal information. For information on how to contact the Chief Privacy Officer, please see the end of this notice.

Why does Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. need to collect use and disclose your personal information?

• To provide assessment, treatment or other services related to your injury or illness, and or your claim for compensation or benefits.
• To obtain payment for the assessment and treatment or other services we provide, and determine any entitlement to insurance coverage or other benefits
• To identify treatment outcomes and the extent of services provided, and share this information with CBI Health, payers (for example your insurance company) and referral sources (for example your doctor)

Eastern Rehabilitation Inc and CBI Health also compile information for its database that does not identify you (this is not personal information). The anonymous database is used to compile aggregate statistics for quality improvement initiatives, for example improving overall performance in different programs, and clinical outcomes research. Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. and CBI Health may also collect, use or disclose your personal or personal health information if permitted or required by law to do so.

Giving your consent

Your consent must be freely given. You need to understand the purposes for which Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. will collect, use or disclose your personal information before you give your consent and understand that you are able to withhold consent or may withdraw your consent after it has been given. You also need to understand the consequences of such refusal or withdrawal, which may include the inability of Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. to provide you with assessment, treatment or other services. Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. will make all reasonable efforts to ensure that the purposes for which the information will be used are identified to you so that you can provide knowledgeable consent. A consent form will need to be signed by you or someone you designate, after you understand the purposes for the collection, use and disclosure. If you are unable to read the consent, a verbal explanation will be provided so that you can reasonably understand how your personal or personal health information will be collected, used or disclosed.

Withdrawing your consent

You have the right to withdraw your consent to the collection, use or disclosure of your personal information in whole or in part, at any time upon providing reasonable written notice to the manager of the clinic you are attending. The manager is responsible for informing you of any potential consequences that may result from the withdrawal of your consent, prior to you making such a decision (for example it may limit the ability of Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. to provide you with assessment, treatment or other services). If you withdraw your consent it is not retroactive, and does not apply to personal information already collected, used or disclosed by Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. The manager of the clinic you are attending is required to notify the Chief Privacy Officer for CBI Health if you withdraw your consent, in whole or in part, so that any files related to you and held at another location or centrally, can be flagged to indicate your withdrawal of consent.

Safety and Accuracy of Personal or Personal Health Information

We will strive to keep your personal information as accurate, complete and up-to-date as is necessary for the purposes for which it is to be used. If you return for a further course of treatment or service, the personal information in your file will be updated at that time.

Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. and CBI Health have established a variety of safeguards to protect personal information in its care, including organizational (for example: training its employees, having employees sign a “Confidentiality Obligation Agreement”, performing an annual audit of privacy practices), physical (for example: locking filing cabinets, central filing of active charts, safe storage requirements for archived files, clinic security systems) and technological (for example: virus protection, computer backup, password entry to computer system) safeguards.

Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. will retain your personal information for the time necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected and to comply with its legal obligations and to meet its regulatory requirements.

Right of Access

You may request access to your personal information by written request addressed to the manager of the clinic you are attending. If you require assistance in preparing the request, the clinic staff will help you.

Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. will provide a response to your request within 30 days, either providing access to the requested information, or providing a written notice of why an extension of the time to respond is required, or providing you with written reasons why access has been denied.

If your request for access is denied the Chief Privacy Officer will provide you with information about the recourse available through the Chief Privacy Officer for CBI Health, the provincial or federal Privacy Commissioner (for contact information see the end of this notice).

It is the responsibility of Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. staff to ensure that you understand the material to which access has been given. A suitable time should be arranged so that a member of staff or clinic manager can review the material with you and explain abbreviations or medical terminology to avoid misunderstanding and misinterpretation.

Right to request correction or amendment

You have the right to request the correction or amendment of any personal information held by Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. if its accuracy and completeness is challenged and found to be deficient. Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. is obliged to correct a record that is not accurate or complete, unless Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. did not create the record, or the information to be amended consists of a professional opinion made in good faith.

If Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. does not agree to your request to correct or amend your personal information, this disagreement will be noted in your file, and your written request for the correction or amendment as well as the reasons for the refusal to amend will be included in your file.

When your personal information has been corrected or amended, or when a disagreement regarding amendment has occurred, all parties that have received the original personal information will be informed of the changes or informed of the disagreement if it is relevant to do so, and you instruct Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. to take that action.

Right to complain to the Chief Privacy Officer for CBI Health, federal or provincial Privacy Commissioner

You have the right to address a complaint to the Chief Privacy Officer for the CBI Health if you believe Eastern Rehabilitation Inc. is not in compliance with its policies and management related to the protection of your personal information. The complaint must be put in writing and given to the manager of the clinic you are attending who will promptly inform the Chief Privacy Officer. The Chief Privacy Officer will investigate all complaints related to Eastern Rehabilitation Inc.’s management of personal information. When necessary the Chief Privacy Officer will work directly with the Director of Operations, manager and staff involved, to implement corrective actions. This may involve training or notification of changes to privacy practices throughout the organization.

The Chief Privacy Officer will follow up with you to describe the actions taken and to determine if you are satisfied that your concerns have been resolved. If you are not satisfied, or if you wish to commence your complaint at this level, you may contact the provincial or federal Privacy Commissioner (depending on the subject matter of the complaint) using the contact information provided below. The Chief Privacy Officer for CBI Health can help you determine the correct Privacy Commissioner’s office to contact in your situation.