Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy describes the personal information collected from you, how it is protected and what it is used for. Dial a Midwife takes the protection of your personal information very seriously. Dial a Midwife collects and handles your personal information in a manner consistent with this Privacy Policy unless You’re informed otherwise.  Midwives are registered health practitioners who are bound by professional standards for the protection of your personal information. From time to time, we may need to change this policy. If we do so, we will post the updated version on our website and it will apply to all of your information held by us at the time.

Personal Information Collected

We collect personal information you provide to us directly:

• Name

• Contact information

• Date of birth

• Hand-held records such as Your antenatal card and/or hospital discharge summary

• Medicare Number under the Human Services (Medicare) Act 1973

• Medical, social and midwifery history

During our Consultation, the midwife will record notes of that Consultation and obtain information from You that is relevant to Your healthcare needs. Background information about You and Your family may also be collected where provided voluntarily or relevant to Your Consultation, and this may include information about Your lifestyle, work, relationships, goals and wishes.

Use of Personal Information Collected

We use the personal information that we collect about You to:

• Provide, administer, improve and personalise our Services

• Contact You in relation to our Services or your Consultation

• Process payments

• Process Medicare claims

• Maintain and update our records

• Conduct quality assurance activities to maintain the quality of our Service

• Meet our legal obligations

• Protect our lawful interests

Personal Information Disclosure

Your personal information may be shared with other healthcare providers when it is required or authorised by law, when it is necessary to lessen or prevent a serious threat to a patient’s life, health or safety or public health or safety, when it is impractical to obtain the patient’s consent, to assist in locating a missing person, to establish, exercise or defend an equitable claim, for the purpose of confidential dispute resolution process, when there is a statutory requirement to share certain personal information, and during the course of providing Services.

We may also exchange personal information with Medicare, health insurers and any party funding Your health services in relation to matters such as claims, cover and billing.

Only people that need to access Your information will be able to do so. Other than in the course of providing midwifery Services or as otherwise described in this policy, Dial a Midwife will not share personal information with any third party without Your consent.

Accessing and Updating Your Personal Information

Contact Us if You wish to seek access to or correct any other personal information we may hold about You. We aim to respond within a reasonable time and will verify Your identity prior to responding.  We may deny requests for access to - or correction of - personal information where the law allows us to do so.