Privacy Policy

This Policy sets out the types of personal information collected, used and disclosed by Active Recovery (ABN: 49 916 181 007).

Active Recovery takes your privacy seriously and is committed to open and transparent management of personal information. In dealing with personal information, Active Recovery complies with the Privacy Act 1988 (Act) and Australian Privacy Principles (APPs).

Personal information means information or an opinion about an identified individual, or an individual who is reasonably identifiable:
(a) whether the information or opinion is true or not; and (b) whether the information or opinion is recorded in a material form or not.

Sensitive information means:
(a)    information or an opinion about an individual’s:
(i)     racial or ethnic origin;
(ii)    political opinions;
(iii)   membership of a political association;
(iv)   religious beliefs or affiliations;
(v)    philosophical beliefs;
(vi)   membership of a professional or trade association;
(vii)  membership of a trade union;
(viii)  sexual orientation or practices;
(ix)   criminal record;
that is also personal information;
(b)   health information about an individual;
(c)   genetic information about an individual that is not otherwise health information;
(d)   biometric information that is to be used for the purpose of automated biometric verification or biometric identification;
(e)  biometric templates.

The types of personal information that Active Recovery collects from you will depend on your relationship with us.

(a) Patients of Active Recovery:
In order to provide physiotherapy and allied health services to our patients, we collect the following information:

(i) contact details for patients and nominated emergency contacts, including address, postcode, telephone numbers and email addresses;
(ii) demographic information, including age, date of birth, gender, country of birth, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander status;
(iii) health information, including medical history, current conditions, medications, referrals, diagnostic imaging and reports, pathology results, treatment plans, clinical notes, functional assessments, reported symptoms, and may include clinical photographs or videos where relevant to your care;
(iv) billing and administrative information, including private health insurance details, Medicare, DVA, Rehab Provider, Insurance and WorkCover information where applicable.

We also use this information for the management and improvement of our services, including:

(v) billing, payments and debt recovery, service monitoring, funding, complaint handling, incident reporting, service planning, evaluation, quality assurance, audits and accreditation activities;
(vi) requesting feedback through surveys or questionnaires to improve our services;
(vii) education and training of our practitioners and staff, where de-identified information is not sufficient;
(viii) sharing relevant information with other healthcare providers, insurers, medico-legal representatives or regulatory bodies where required for your care, claims, or legal obligations.

From time to time, Active Recovery may run marketing campaigns. If you are invited to participate in a photoshoot, we will provide clear and detailed information about what is involved, including the purpose of the shoot and the types of photos or services being captured. We will also obtain your separate consent prior to your participation.

(b) Prospective employees:
In order to assess applications for employment at Active Recovery, we may collect:

(i) contact details, including address, telephone number and email;
(ii) demographic information, including age, date of birth and gender;
(iii) qualifications, registrations, certifications and work experience;
(iv) references and other information obtained from third parties.

(c) Suppliers:
If you are a supplier or service provider to Active Recovery, we may collect information necessary to manage our relationship with you, including the nature of the goods or services provided, quotes, contact details and payment or banking details.

(d) Other collections:
Active Recovery may also collect personal information when you complete a form, survey or questionnaire, or when you communicate with us by email, phone, in writing or in person. We use this information to respond to your enquiry, provide services, and improve our operations.

We only collect personal information that is reasonably necessary for our functions and activities or otherwise in compliance with the requirements of APPs and APA guidelines.

We will usually collect sensitive information with your consent (or consent from someone acting on your behalf if you are unable to give consent).

Where Active Recovery collects personal information from will depend on the circumstances of the collection.

(a)    Directly from you: Active Recovery tries to collect personal information that is about you directly from you. We will collect personal information from you:
(i)     when you are able to provide us with information about yourself and your medical condition;
(ii)    if you complete a survey, questionnaire or you communicate to us by email, telephone, in writing or in person;
(iii)   if you are providing services to Active Recovery;
(iv)   if you apply for employment at Active Recovery.

(b)    From other people: Where it is unreasonable or impracticable to collect information directly from you, Active Recovery may obtain personal information about you from a third party. For example, Active Recovery may collect personal information from about you from:
(i)     a pathology provider or imaging provider who has performed a service on request from your healthcare provider to provide healthcare services to you;
(ii)    your General Practitioner or another healthcare provider who has information about your condition to assist us in providing healthcare services to you;
(iii)   a member of your family, a friend or your carer to assist us in providing healthcare services to you;
(iv)   your health insurer, Medicare or DVA to assist us in processing billing for healthcare services provided to you;
(v)    a reference identified on your application for employment at Active Recovery.

(c)    Publicly available sources: Active Recovery may collect information about you from the public domain, for example professional registration boards if you are a healthcare provider.

If you are a patient, it is not practical for you to remain anonymous because we need to keep a record of the treatment we provide to you. We may be able to accommodate you using a pseudonym, however: you should be aware that failure to provide your real identity may:
(a)    adversely impact the quality of care Active Recovery can provide to you, and in some cases, could be dangerous to your health. For example:
(i)     we will be unable to link other health information we hold about you, limiting our ability to provide coordinated care;
(ii)    if you choose not to tell us medical information that is relevant to your care we will not provide care based on all of the relevant information.
(b)    mean that you are unable to claim Medicare, DVA or health insurance refunds for your treatment. You should contact these entities to discuss the availability of refunds.

Active Recovery holds personal information in databases, electronic systems and hard copy files. Our electronic databases contain the most up-to-date information.

We implement current industry-standard security measures and best practices to protect personal information stored electronically, including secure servers, access controls, password protection, and data encryption where appropriate. We also take reasonable steps to safeguard hard copy records from unauthorised access, misuse or loss.

Active Recovery may use your personal information for direct marketing purposes; however, this will only occur with your consent.

As part of our initial patient intake process, you will be given the option to choose whether you would like to be included in our direct marketing communications. You can opt in or out at that time, and you may withdraw your consent at any time.

If we intend to use your personal information (including images or videos) for marketing purposes beyond general communications, we will obtain your explicit consent through a separate consent form prior to any use.

Active Recovery may disclose your personal information to third parties where necessary to provide our services, comply with legal obligations, or operate our business effectively.

This may include disclosure to:

(i) other healthcare providers involved in your care (such as general practitioners, specialists, or allied health professionals) to ensure coordinated and appropriate treatment;
(ii) insurers, including private health insurers, workers compensation insurers, or third-party claims managers, for the purposes of processing claims and payments;
(iii) government bodies and regulatory authorities (such as Medicare, the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, or other relevant agencies) where required for funding, reporting or compliance purposes;
(iv) external service providers who assist us in operating our business, including IT service providers, practice management software providers, and administrative support services;
(v) professional advisers, including accountants, auditors, lawyers, or medical defence organisations, where required for business operations or legal obligations;
(vi) courts, tribunals, or other legal bodies where disclosure is required or authorised by law.

We only disclose personal information where it is reasonably necessary, and we take steps to ensure that any third parties handling your information do so in accordance with applicable privacy laws and confidentiality obligations.

You have the right to access the personal information that Active Recovery holds about you.

If you request to access your personal information, we will ask you to verify your identity and specify what information you wish to access. This will help us to identify the relevant information. To make a request to access your personal information please contact us at  info@activerecovery.net.au or visit Active Recovery at Level 3, 50 Launceston St, Phillip, ACT 2606.

You have the right to request that Active Recovery updates or corrects information held by us about you if you consider that the information we hold is not accurate, not up-to-date, not complete, not relevant or is misleading. To make a request please contact us at info@activerecovery.net.au or visit Active Recovery at Level 3, 50 Launceston St, Phillip, ACT 2606

If you believe that we have dealt with your personal information inappropriately, please contact us at info@activerecovery.net.au or visit Active Recovery at Level 3, 50 Launceston St, Phillip, ACT 2606 and ask that your request be directed to the Practice Manager. Active Recovery has internal processes for complaints. We will work to resolve privacy concerns with you. If you are not satisfied with the resolution of your complaint by Active Recovery, you may contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner who may investigate your complaint.

It is unlikely that Active Recovery will disclose personal information to entities outside of Australia. However any request received or made to disclose personal information to entities outside of Australia will require the approval of the Active Recovery Practice Manager prior to release of information.

For enquiries or feedback about this policy, or for complaints about Active Recovery’s handling of your personal information, please contact our Practice Manager at: Phone (02) 6162 1229; Email: info@activerecovery.net.au; or visit Active Recovery at Level 3, 50 Launceston St, Phillip, ACT 2606.

We reserve the right to revise this Privacy Policy or any part of it from time to time.