Privacy Policy
To ensure a safe and appropriate treatment, Registered Massage Therapists (RMT) must collect specific personal information. This information is collected, maintained safely and only disclosed with your written consent and under the guidance of PHIPA (Personal Health Information Protection Act).
WHAT IS PERSONAL INFORMATION?
Personal information is any information relating to a person’s identity.
Personal information includes information that relates to:
An individual’s personal characteristics (e.g., gender, age, home address or telephone number, ethnic background, family status)
Health (e.g., health history, health conditions, health services received by them)
Activities and views (e.g., opinions expressed by an individual, an opinion or evaluation of an individual)
WHO CAN SEE YOUR HEALTH INFORMATION?
The collection, maintenance and use of your personal information will only be done by Nicole Hepworth, RMT.
This information is never disclosed without your written permission, even in the case of agencies or companies that may need to see part of your health care information, such as your insurance company.
WHEN YOUR CONSENT IS NOT REQUIRED
As a Registered Massage Therapist, I may be required to use and/or give out some of your personal health information without your consent ONLY in the following situations:
-To obtain payment for services or goods provided. Payment may be obtained from the individual, WSIB, private insurers or others.
-To report certain information, such as to report certain diseases to public health authorities
-Suspected abuse
-To reduce a significant risk of serious bodily harm to a person or the public
For risk management and legal purposes
-To assess a person’s ability to make health care and other important decisions -For administration or enforcement of laws related to the practices of health care providers by a Regulatory Body (The College of Massage Therapists of Ontario)
-For the purpose of a legal proceeding or complying with a court order, or other legal requirement
MARKETING AND PERSONAL INFORMATION
Your personal information is NEVER provided to anyone for marketing purposes.
YOUR PERSONAL SECURITY
We understand the importance of protecting your personal information. For that reason, we have taken the following steps:
Paper information is secured in a locked cabinet.
Computers and backups are secure in a locked area. 2 factor authentication is used, and screens are locked when not in use.
Electronic information is transmitted either through a direct line, or has identifiers removed, or is strongly encrypted.
RETENTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION
RMTs are required to retain personal information to ensure that we can answer any questions you may have about the services provided and for our own accountability to The College of Massage Therapist of Ontario (CMTO), our regulatory and licensing body.
Client files are retained for 10 years after last contact (or 10 years after turning 18), as required by the CMTO. After the time has lapsed, paper files containing personal information are shredded. Electronic information is deleted and hardware/hard drives are physically destroyed.
VIEWING YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION
If you would like a copy of your personal information, please make your request in writing. A response to your request will be given within 30 days.
IF THERE IS A PRIVACY BREACH
Precautions are consistently taken to avoid any breach of your privacy. If there is a loss, theft or unauthorized access of your personal health information you will be notified right away. Upon learning of a breach, the following steps will be taken:
Retrieving any hard copies of personal health information and ensuring no other copies have been made
Preventing unauthorized access to electronic information (e.g., change passwords, restrict access, temporarily shut down system) ·
In case there are further questions, contact information will be provided
Providing the Commissioner’s contact information and advising the affected individual of their right to file a complaint with the Commissioner
The breach will be investigated and resolved by; conducting an internal investigation, determining what steps should be taken to prevent future breaches (e.g. changes to policies, additional safeguards), depending on the circumstances of the breach, the RMT may notify and work with the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario.
QUESTIONS?
You may reach out to Nicole Hepworth, RMT, or the Privacy Commissioner of Ontario. This must be done within one year of the matter for which you have a complaint.
Information and Privacy Commissioner/Ontario:
2 Bloor Street East, Suite 1400, Toronto, Ontario M4W 1A8
Telephone: 416 326 3333 or 1 800 387 0073
Fax: 416 325 9195
TTY: 416 325 7539
Website: www.ipc.on.ca
Email address: info@ipc.on.ca