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Privacy Policy

WR Clinic – Manual Therapy and Remedial Massage


 

1. Our commitment to your privacy

 

WR Clinic respects your privacy and is committed to protecting the personal and health information you provide to us.

As a remedial massage and manual therapy practice, we collect information that may include sensitive health information. We understand that this information is personal and important to you, and we take reasonable steps to ensure that it is collected, used, stored and disclosed appropriately.

This Privacy Policy explains how we handle your personal information in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs).

This policy applies to information collected through:

  • appointments and consultations;

  • client intake and health history forms;

  • treatment and clinical records;

  • our website;

  • online booking systems;

  • email, telephone and text communication;

  • payment and health fund transactions;

  • social media and other communication channels; and

  • other interactions with our practice.

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2. What information do we collect?

 

Depending on the services you receive, we may collect personal information including:

Identification and contact information

  • full name;

  • date of birth;

  • residential or postal address;

  • telephone number;

  • email address;

  • emergency contact details;

  • preferred method of communication.

Health and treatment information

Because we provide remedial massage and manual therapy services, we may collect health information that is reasonably necessary to assess and provide treatment, including:

  • medical history;

  • current or previous injuries;

  • pain and symptoms;

  • relevant medical conditions;

  • medications where relevant to treatment;

  • previous treatments;

  • relevant surgical history;

  • pregnancy-related information where relevant;

  • information relating to physical activity or occupation where relevant;

  • treatment assessments, plans, note, outcomes and progress;

  • information provided by another health professional where relevant and authorised.

Health information is considered sensitive information under the Privacy Act and is subject to additional privacy protections.

Administrative and payment information

We may also collect:

  • appointment history;

  • invoices and receipts;

  • payment information;

  • health fund information where required for claiming;

  • HICAPS-related information where applicable;

  • cancellation and appointment records; and

  • correspondence between you and the practice.

We do not collect more personal information than is reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this policy.

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3. How do we collect your information?

 

Where practicable, we collect personal and health information directly from you.

For example, information may be collected when you:

  • complete a client intake or health history form;

  • make an appointment;

  • attend a treatment;

  • communicate with us by telephone, email, SMS or other communication method;

  • use our website or online booking system;

  • make a payment; or

  • voluntarily provide information to us.

In some circumstances, information may be collected from another person or organisation where this is reasonably necessary and permitted by law. For example, this may include information provided by another health professional with your consent.

We will generally collect health information with your consent, unless an exception permitted by law applies.

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4. Why do we collect your information?

 

We collect personal and health information for purposes including:

  • Providing Healthcare Services: To deliver and manage your treatment and care.

  • Administrative Purposes: To handle appointments, billing, and communications.

  • Compliance: To meet legal and regulatory requirements.

  • Improving Services: To enhance our services and operations.

We may also use limited contact information to send appointment reminders or other service-related communications.

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5. Consent

 

By providing personal and health information to us and requesting treatment, you consent to us collecting and using information reasonably necessary to provide the health service you have requested, subject to applicable privacy laws.

You may withdraw your consent to particular uses or disclosures of your information where consent is the legal basis for that use or disclosure.

Withdrawal of consent does not affect information that we are required or authorised to retain or handle under law, nor does it affect handling that is otherwise permitted by law.

If you do not provide information that is reasonably necessary for safe and appropriate treatment, we may be unable to provide some or all of our services.

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6. How do we use and disclose your information?

 

We will generally use or disclose your personal and health information only:

  • Healthcare Providers: Other medical professionals involved in your care.

  • Government Bodies: For compliance with legal or regulatory requirements.

  • Service Providers: Third parties who perform services on our behalf, such as IT support or billing services.

  • Insurance Companies: For processing claims and payments.

We will not sell your personal or health information.

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7. Direct marketing

 

We may occasionally use your contact information to provide information about our services, promotions or practice updates where permitted by law.

We will not use your health information for direct marketing without the consent required by applicable privacy law.

You may opt out of receiving marketing communications at any time by contacting us or using the unsubscribe option provided in an electronic marketing message.

Opting out of marketing will not affect your ability to receive treatment or other services from us.

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8. Payment and health fund information

 

Payments may be processed using external payment providers.

Where applicable, private health insurance claims may be processed through HICAPS or another authorised health-fund claiming system.

We only use and disclose information reasonably necessary to process payments or claims and to meet our legal, contractual and accounting obligations.

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9. How we protect your information

 

We take reasonable steps to protect personal and health information from:

  • Physical Security: Secure disposal of physical records once uploaded into our electronic system.

  • Electronic Security: Protection of electronic data through encryption and secure access controls.

  • Staff Training: Ensuring our team understands their obligations regarding your privacy.

Only people who need access to your information for legitimate practice purposes should have access to it.

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10. Access and correction to your information

 

You generally have the right to request access to personal information and health information we hold about you.

We may ask you to provide sufficient information to verify your identity before providing access to your records.

We will generally respond to an access request within a reasonable period.

If you believe that personal or health information we hold about you is inaccurate, incomplete, out of date or misleading, you may request that it be corrected.

We will consider your request and take reasonable steps to correct information where appropriate.

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11. How long do we keep your information?

 

We retain personal and health information for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes for which it was collected and to meet applicable legal, professional, insurance, accounting and business requirements.

Different types of records may need to be retained for different periods.

When information is no longer required and there is no legal or other reason to retain it, we will take reasonable steps to securely destroy or de-identify it.

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12. Privacy breaches

 

We take privacy and information security seriously.

If we become aware of a data breach involving personal information, we will assess the incident and take appropriate action in accordance with applicable privacy laws.

Where the Notifiable Data Breaches (NDB) scheme applies and a breach is likely to result in serious harm, we will comply with our obligations to notify affected individuals and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC), where required.

Our practice maintains procedures for identifying, containing, assessing and responding to suspected privacy breaches.

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13. Complaints about privacy

 

If you believe that we have mishandled your personal or health information, we encourage you to contact us first so that we can investigate and attempt to resolve your concern.

Please provide as much relevant information as possible, including:

  • your name;

  • the nature of your concern;

  • relevant dates;

  • the information involved; and

  • the outcome you are seeking.

We will investigate your complaint and respond within a reasonable period.

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If you are not satisfied with our response, or you wish to make a complaint directly, you may contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC).

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14. Children and young people

 

Where treatment is provided to a child or young person, we may collect information from the child, parent, guardian or another authorised person, depending on the circumstances.

Where appropriate, we may communicate with a parent or guardian regarding appointments, treatment and relevant health information.

We will handle the child's personal and health information in accordance with applicable privacy requirements and the circumstances of the individual case.

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15. Confidentiality

 

All client information is treated as confidential.

We expect anyone who has authorised access to client information to maintain confidentiality and only access or use information for legitimate purposes.

We will take reasonable steps to prevent client information from being unnecessarily visible or accessible to other clients or unauthorised persons within the practice.

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16. Changes to this Privacy Policy

 

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. The updated policy will be available on our website or upon request.

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