PRACTICE INFORMATION

POPIA & Privacy

How the practice collects, uses, shares and protects personal information.

CONFIDENTIALITY & THE POPI ACT

The purpose of this section of the contract is to set out how we collect, use, share and otherwise process your personal information, in a manner that is compliant, ethical, adheres to industry best practice and applicable protection of personal information legislation as enacted from time to time.

Definitions

“The Practice” refers to the medical practice of Dr Taryn Gaunt Inc., Practice number: 1127233, Address: 28 Masonic Street, Port Alfred.

“You” and “your” refers to you the patient and any of your dependents which may include your spouse, partner, children and other dependents as the case may be.

“Your personal information” refers to personal and special personal information about you and your dependents (as relevant). It includes information about race, gender, sex, pregnancy, marital status, national, ethnic or social origin, colour, sexual orientation, age, physical or mental health, well-being, disability, religion, conscience, belief, culture, language and birth of the individual amongst other things. Thus, your personal information comprises information you may have given to us yourself or we may have collected from other sources (e.g. pathology laboratory). It may also include details of your medical treatment, medications, medical appointments, procedures and medical aid claims in the patient database and practice management system.

“Process(ing) (of) information” means the lawful and reasonable automated or manual activity of collecting, recording, organising, storing, updating, distributing and removing or deleting personal information to ensure that such processing is adequate, relevant and not excessive given the purpose for which it is processed.

“Competent person” means anyone who is legally competent to consent to any action or decision being taken for any matter concerning a patient or dependent - for example a parent, legal guardian or a legal representative appointed by a court to manage the finances, property, or estate of another person unable to do so because of mental or physical incapacity.

How the practice will process and disclose your personal information and communicate with you

The Practice will keep your personal information confidential.

When you engage with the practice, you entrust it with personal information about yourself and, where applicable, your dependents. We are committed to protecting your right to privacy.

We have a duty to take all reasonably practicable steps to ensure your personal information is complete, accurate, not misleading and updated on a regular basis. To enable this, we will always endeavour to obtain personal information from you directly. Where we are unable to do so, we will make use of verifiable independent third-party data sources.

You have the right to object to the processing of your personal information and have a choice whether or not to accept these terms and conditions. However, it is important to note that we require your acceptance to service you and your dependents’ medical treatment and care.

By submitting your dependents’ relevant personal information, you hereby confirm that you are duly authorised to share such information with us. We will furthermore process their information for the purposes and in the manner set out in this Privacy Statement.

You understand that from time to time the Practice may allow a computer specialist to access the patient database which carries your Personal Information for the purpose of updating or repairing the database. You give permission for such temporary sharing and access, on the understanding that the practice has signed Data Processing agreements with such third parties.

If you are giving consent for a person under 18 (a minor), you confirm that you are a competent person and that you have authority to give their consent on their behalf. If you share your personal information with any third parties, we will not be responsible for how they use this information nor be responsible for any loss suffered by you or your dependents (where applicable).

Your consent and acceptance

You understand and accept that the Practice may process your personal information. We will do so in a manner that complies with the law. We will process your information for the following purposes:

for the provision of health care services to you and your dependents;
for the administration of you and your dependents’ interactions with the Practice including but not limited to scheduling appointments, referrals to hospital and /or other healthcare professionals, procuring tests and diagnostic procedures, prescribing and dispensing medication, and the processing/payment of accounts, debt collection, etc;
for claim submissions to your medical scheme (where applicable);
for the provision of relevant information to a contracted third party who requires this information in order to provide a healthcare service to you or your dependents;
to share your personal information with external health administrators, managed care providers and other healthcare practitioners for them to assess or evaluate certain clinical information, in the event that you are subject to such a clinical assessment:
to communicate or report to any state regulatory or any other governance body on any matter relating to your personal information that we are by law obliged to communicate and report on.

Examples of when and how we will get and share your personal information include:

Getting your personal information from other relevant sources, including other medical practitioners, contracted service providers.

Transferring your personal information outside the borders of the Republic of South Africa where appropriate, for example to administer international emergency treatment.

If a third party asks the Practice for any of your personal information, we will share it with them only if:

you have already given your consent for the disclosure of this information to that third party; or
we have a legal or contractual duty to give the information to that third party.

The Practice will provide your personal information to any entity with whom you or your dependent/s already have a relationship; or where you or your dependent/s have applied for a product, service or benefit from such an entity. This information will be provided for the administration of you or your dependent/s products or benefits with such entities. This may include the disclosure of ICD-10 codes on prescriptions, referral letters, requests for special investigations (radiology, pathology, etc.) and in communication with your medical aid.

Your rights over your information

You have the right to ask us to update, correct or delete your personal information, unless the law requires us to keep it. Where we cannot delete your personal information, we will take all practical steps to de-personalise it.

Where this Practice is required by law to collect and keep personal information, we shall do so. At a minimum, this includes the following legislation:

Medical Schemes Act, 1998
The Consumer Protection Act, 2008
The Protection of Personal Information Act, 2013
Electronic Communications and Transactions Act, 2002
Promotion of Access to Information Act, 2002

The Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA)

The PAIA was passed to give effect to the constitutional right, held by everyone in South Africa, of access to information which is held by the State or by another person and which is required for the exercise or protection of any right. Where a request is made in terms of PAIA, the body to which the request is made, is obliged to give access to the requested information, except where the Act expressly provides that the information may or must not be released. It is important to note that PAIA recognises certain limitations to the right of access to information, including, but not exclusively, limitations aimed at the reasonable protection of privacy, commercial confidentiality, and effective, efficient and good governance, and in a manner which balances that right with any other rights, including such rights contained in the Bill of Rights in the Constitution. The Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) was enacted in November 2013, to promote the protection of personal information processed by public and private bodies. POPIA amended certain provisions of PAIA, balancing the need for access to information against the need to ensure the protection of personal information.

We will take all reasonable steps to confirm your identity before providing details of your personal information in respect of a formal request for such information. We are entitled to charge a fee for this service and will let you know what it is at the time of your request.

Your right to complain

If you believe that this Practice has used your personal information contrary to this Privacy Statement, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator, under POPIA, but we encourage you to first contact the Practice to resolve the complaint.

EMAIL DISCLAIMER

This e-mail and any attachments are intended solely for the named addressee and may contain legally privileged and confidential information and / or copyright material of the Company or third parties. If you are not the intended recipient of this email (or such persons’ authorised representative) then please notify the sender of this mail immediately by return email or telephone and delete this message from your system. Reading, printing, distribution, storing, commercializing or acting on this transmission or the information it contains without the necessary permission / consent constitutes an offence in terms of the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013. The Company respects your privacy and acknowledge that this e-mail may contain personal details, which may belong to you, others and/or to your company (personal information). By sending this email communication, you expressly give the Company consent to process the personal information which will be done in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act (4 of 2013) (POPI), The Company’s POPIA policy. The views expressed in this e-mail are, unless otherwise stated, those of the sender and not those of the Company or its management. E-mails cannot be guaranteed to be secure or free of errors or viruses. No liability or responsibility is accepted for any interception, corruption, destruction, loss, late arrival or incompleteness of or tampering or interfering with any of the information contained in this e-mail or for its incorrect delivery or non-delivery or for its effect on any electronic device of the recipient.

Download the full terms and privacy document (PDF)

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