Privacy Policy

Notice of Privacy Practices

THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW MEDICAL INFORMATION ABOUT YOU MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION.  PLEASE REVIEW IT CAREFULLY.

Southwest Health Center must maintain the privacy of your personal health information and give you this notice that describes our legal duties and privacy practices concerning your personal health information.  In general, when we release your health information, we must release only the information we need to achieve the purpose of the use or disclosure.  However, all of your personal health information that you designate will be available for release if you sign an authorization form, if you request the information for yourself, to a provider regarding your treatment, or due to a legal requirement.  We must follow the privacy practices described in this notice.

However, we reserve the right to change the privacy practices described in this notice, in accordance with the law.  Changes to our privacy practices would apply to all health information we maintain.  If we change our privacy practices, you will receive a revised copy.

Without your written authorization, we can use your health information for the following purposes:

1. Treatment. Southwest Health Center Nursing, Ancillary and Social Services Staff, in conjunction with the Physician Medical Staff, will use your health information to determine which treatment option, such as medicine or surgery, best addresses your health needs.  The treatment selected will be documented in your medical record, so that other health care professionals can make informed decisions about your care.
   
   
   In addition, Southwest Health Center will forward results of your health care services, including (but not limited to) laboratory results, physician progress notes and X-ray results to those physicians and other health care entities your MD feels can assist him or her with your treatment.
2. Payment. In order for an insurance company to pay for your treatment, we must submit a bill that identifies you, your diagnosis, and the treatment provided to you.  As a result, we will pass such health information onto an insurer in order to help receive payment for your medical bills.
3. Health Care Operations. In order to effectively carry out our Health Care Operations, we will include your name in our Daily Hospital Census if you are admitted as an inpatient.  This document allows our Nursing, Ancillary and Medical Staff to determine who is currently in our facility and who is responsible for their treatment. In addition, if you become a resident of our Nursing Home, we will include your name on a directory posted within our lobby, which directs health care workers to your room. The reason for this posting is to provide you with efficient medical care should an emergent or urgent situations arise.
   
   
   We may need your diagnosis, treatment, and outcome information in order to improve the quality or cost of care we deliver. These quality and cost improvement activities may include evaluating the performance of your doctors, nurses and other health care professionals, or examining the effectiveness of the treatment provided to you when compared to patients in similar situations.
   
   
   In addition, we may want to use your health information for appointment reminders. For example, we may look at your medical record to determine the date and time of your next appointment with us, and then send you a reminder letter to help you remember the appointment.  Or, we may look at your medical information and decide that another treatment or a new service we offer may interest you.  For example, we may contact a patient with a history of a heart attack to notify them that we a program which could help rehabilitate them.
   
   
   Please note, we routinely send satisfaction surveys to our patients asking them to rate our level of quality in several areas of care.  Southwest Health Center does not consider this a marketing effort.
4. As required or permitted by law. Sometimes we must report some of your health information to legal authorities, such as law enforcement officials, court officials, or government agencies. For example, we may have to report abuse, neglect, domestic violence or certain physical injuries, or to respond to a court order.  --Under Wisconsin State law, certain Health Information is also supplied to the Wisconsin Bureau of Health Information on a quarterly basis.  If your treatment falls within the category required by the state, your information will be submitted to the state in accordance with state law.
5. For public health activities. We may be required to report your health information to Authorities to help prevent or control disease, injury, or disability. This may include using your medical record to report certain diseases, injuries, birth or death information, information of concern to the Food and Drug Administration, or information related to child abuse or neglect. We may also have to report to your employer certain work-related illnesses and injuries so that your workplace can be monitored for safety.
6. For health oversight activities. We may disclose your health information to authorities so they can monitor, investigate, inspect, discipline or license those who work in the health care system or for government benefit programs.
7. For activities related to death. We may disclose your health information to coroners, medical examiners and funeral directors so they can carry out their duties related to your death, such as identifying the body, determining cause of death, or in the case of funeral directors, to carry out funeral preparation activities.
8. For organ, eye or tissue donation. We may disclose your health information to people involved with obtaining, storing or transplanting organs, eyes or tissue of cadavers for donation purposes.
9. For research. Under certain circumstances, and only after a special approval process, we may use and disclose your health information to help conduct research.  Such research might try to find out whether a certain treatment is effective in curing an illness.
10. To avoid a serious threat to health or safety. As required by law and standards of ethical conduct, we may release your health information to the proper authorities if we believe, in good faith, that such release is necessary to prevent or minimize a serious and approaching threat to your or the public's health or safety.
11. For military, national security, or incarceration/law enforcement custody. If you are involved with the military, national security or intelligence activities, or you are in the custody of law enforcement officials or an inmate in a correctional institution, we may release your health information to the proper authorities so they may carry out their duties under the law.
12. For workers' compensation. We may disclose your health information to the appropriate persons in order to comply with the laws related to workers' compensation or other similar programs.  These programs may provide benefits for work-related injuries or illness.
13. Southwest Health Center. Unless you object, we may use your health information, such as your name, location in our facility, your general health condition (e.g., "good", "fair", "serious" or "critical"), and your religious affiliation for our directory. It is our duty to give you enough information so you can decide whether or not to object to release of this information for our directory. The information about you contained in our directory may be released to people who ask for you by name, including the media. However, the information about your religious affiliation will only be disclosed to clergy. We may allow you to agree or disagree orally regarding the use of your health information for directory purposes.
14. To those involved with your care or payment of your care. If people such as family members, relatives, or close personal friends are helping care for you or helping you pay your medical bills, we may release important health information about you to those people. The information released to these people may include your location within our facility, your general condition, or death. You have the right to object to such disclosure, unless you are unable to function or there is an emergency. In addition, we may release your health information to organizations authorized to handle disaster relief efforts so those who care for you can receive information about your location or health status. We may allow you to agree or disagree orally to such release, unless there is an emergency.  It is our duty to give you enough information so you can decide whether or not to object to release of your health information to others involved with your care.

NOTE: Except for the situations listed above, we must obtain your specific written authorization for any other release of your health information.

Your Health Information Rights

You have several rights with regard to your health information.  If you wish to exercise any of the following rights, please contact the HIPAA Privacy Officer.  Specifically, you have the right to:

1. Inspect and copy your health information. With a few exceptions, you have the right to inspect and obtain a copy of your health information.  However, this right does not apply to psychotherapy notes or information gathered for judicial proceedings, for example.  In addition, we may charge you a reasonable fee if you want a copy of your health information. <
2. Request to correct or amend your health information. If you believe your health information is incorrect, you may ask us to correct or amend the information.  You may be asked to make such requests in writing and to give a reason as to why your health information should be changed.  However, if we did not create the health information that you believe is incorrect, or if we disagree with you and believe your health information is correct, we may deny your request.
3. Request restrictions on certain uses and disclosures. You have the right ask for restrictions on how your health information is used or to whom your information is disclosed, even if the restriction affects your treatment or our payment or health care operation activities.  Or, you may want to limit the health information provided to family or friends involved in your care or payment of medical bills.  You may also want to limit the health information provided to authorities involved with disaster relief efforts.
   
   
   However, we are not required to agree in all circumstances to your requested restriction. If you receive certain medical devices (for example, life-supporting devices used outside our facility), you may refuse to release your name, address, telephone number, social security number or other identifying information for purpose of tracking the medical device.
4. As applicable, receive confidential communication of health information. You have the right to ask that we communicate your health information to you in different ways or places.  For example, you may wish to receive information about your health status in a special, private room or through a written letter sent to a private address.  We must accommodate reasonable requests.
5. Receive a record of disclosures of your health information. In some limited instances, you have the right to ask for a list of the disclosures of your health information we have made during the previous six years, but the request cannot include dates before April 14, 2003.  This list must include the date of each disclosure, who received the disclosed health information, a brief description of the health information disclosed, and why the disclosure was made.  We must comply with your request for a list within 60 days, unless you agree to a 30-day extension, and we may not charge you for the list, unless you request such list more than once per year.  In addition, we will not include in the list disclosures made to you, or for purposes of treatment, payment, health care operations, our directory, national security, law enforcement/corrections, and certain health oversight activities.
6. Obtain a paper copy of this notice. Upon your request, you may at any time receive a paper copy of this notice, even if you earlier agreed to receive this notice electronically. This information is also posted on our website, http://www.southwesthealth.org
7. Complain. If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may file a complaint with us and with the federal Department of Health and Human Services.  We will not retaliate against you for filing such a complaint.  To file a complaint with either entity, please contact The HIPAA Privacy Officer, who will provide you with the necessary assistance and paperwork, or you may contact them in writing at the following address:
    
    
   Region V, Office for Civil Rights
   Department of Health and Human Services
   233 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 240
   Chicago, ILL.  60601

   Again, if you have any questions or concerns regarding your privacy rights or the information in this notice, please contact our HIPAA Privacy Office at 608-342-4763.

   This Notice of Medical Information Privacy is Effective 4-14-2003.