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NOTICE OF PRIVACY PRACTICES
If you have any questions about this notice, please contact the Privacy Officer and/or the Patient Advocate. WHO WILL FOLLOW THIS NOTICE This notice describes our hospital’s practices and that of:
All these entities, sites and locations follow the terms of this notice. In addition, these entities, sites and locations may share medical information with each other for treatment, payment or health care operations purposes described in this notice. OUR PLEDGE REGARDING MEDICAL INFORMATION We understand that medical information about you and your health is personal. We are committed to protecting medical information about you. We create a record of the care and services you receive at the hospital. We need this record to provide you with quality care and to comply with certain legal requirements. This notice applies to all of the records of your care generated by the hospital, whether made by hospital personnel or your personal doctor. Your personal doctor may have different policies or notices regarding the doctor’s use and disclosure of your medical information created in the doctor’s office or clinic. This notice will tell you about the ways in which we may use and disclose medical information about you. We also describe your rights and certain obligations we have regarding the use and disclosure of medical information. We are required by law to:
HOW WE MAY USE AND DISCLOSE MEDICAL INFORMATION ABOUT YOU The following categories describe different ways that we use and disclose medical information. For each category of uses or disclosures we will explain what we mean and try to give some examples. Not every use or disclosure in a category will be listed. However, all of the ways we are permitted to use and disclose information will fall within one of the categories. For Treatment We may use medical information about you to provide you with medical treatment or services. We may disclose medical information about you to doctors, nurses, technicians, medical students, or other hospital personnel who are involved in taking care of you at the hospital. For example, a doctor treating you for a broken leg may need to know if you have diabetes because diabetes may slow the healing process. In addition, the doctor may need to tell the dietitian if you have diabetes so that we can arrange for appropriate meals. Different departments of the hospital also may share medical information about you in order to coordinate the different things you need, such as prescriptions, lab work and x-rays. We also may disclose medical information about you to people outside the hospital who may be involved in your medical care after you leave the hospital, such as skilled nursing facilities or home health agencies. For Payment We may use and disclose medical information about you so that the treatment and services you receive at the hospital may be billed to and payment may be collected from you, an insurance company or a third party. For example, we may need to give your health plan information about surgery you received at the hospital so your health plan will pay us or reimburse you for the surgery. We may also tell your health plan about a treatment you are going to receive to obtain prior approval or to determine whether your plan will cover the treatment. For Health Care Operations We may use and disclose medical information about you for health care operations. These uses and disclosures are necessary to run the hospital and make sure that all of our patients receive quality care. For example, we may use medical information to review our treatment and services and to evaluate the performance of our staff in caring for you and to conduct quality assessment and improvement activities. We may also use medical information to conduct medical review and auditing for the purposes of fraud and abuse detection and compliance with state and federal regulations. We may also combine medical information about many hospital patients to decide what additional services the hospital should offer, what services are not needed, and whether certain new treatments are effective. We may also disclose information to doctors, nurses, technicians, medical students, and other hospital personnel for review and learning purposes. We may also combine the medical information we have with medical information from other hospitals to compare how we are doing and see where we can make improvements in the care and services owe offer. We may remove information that identifies you from this set of medical information so others may use it to study health care and health care delivery without learning who the specific patients are. Appointment Reminders We may use and disclose medical information to contact you as a reminder that you have an appointment for treatment or medical care at the hospital. Treatment Alternatives We may use and disclose medical information to tell you about or recommend possible treatments options or alternatives that may be of interest to you. Health-Related Products and Services We may use and disclose medical information to tell you about our health-related products or services that may be of interest to you.
Fundraising Activities We may give information to NorthBay Healthcare Foundation so that the Foundation may contact you in raising money for the hospital. We would only release contact information, such as your name, address and phone number and the dates you received treatment or services at the hospital. If you do not want the Foundation to contact you for fundraising efforts, you must notify NorthBay Healthcare Foundation in writing at the following address: NorthBay Healthcare Foundation Hospital Directory We may include certain limited information about you in the hospital directory while you are a patient at the hospital. This information may include your name, location in the hospital, your general condition (e.g., fair, stable, etc.) and your religious affiliation. Unless there is a specific written request from you to the contrary, this directory information, except for your religious affiliation, may also be released to people who ask for you by name. Your religious affiliation may be given to a member of the clergy, such as a priest or rabbi, even if they do not ask for you by name. This information is released so your family, friends and clergy can visit you in the hospital and generally know how you are doing. You will be given the chance during registration to request that your name not appear on the hospital chaplain’s religious census (a list of patient names and religious affiliation) if you so desire. You also have the chance to not have your name and your presence in the hospital available to anyone who calls. This is called "Release No Information" and this is done by completing a Release No Information form. Individuals Involved in Your Care or Payment for Your Care We may release medical information about you to a friend or family member who is involved in your medical care. We may also give information to someone who helps pay for your care. Unless there is a specific written request form you to the contrary, we may also tell your family or friends you condition and that you are in the hospital. In addition, we may disclose medical information about you to an entity assisting in a disaster relief effort so that your family can be notified about your condition, status and location. Research Under certain circumstances, we may use and disclose medical information about you for research purposes. For example, a research project may involve comparing the health and recovery of all patients who received one medication to those who received another, for the same condition. All research projects, however, are subject to a special approval process. This process evaluates a proposed research project and its use of medical information, trying to balance the research needs with patients’ need for privacy or their medical information. Before we use or disclose medical information for research, the project will have been approve through this research approval process. As Required By Law We will disclose medical information about you when required to do so by federal, state or local law. To Avert a Serious Threat to Health or Safety We may use and disclose medical information about you when necessary to prevent a serious threat to your health and safety or the health and safety of the public or another person. Any disclosure, however, would only be to someone able to help prevent the threat. SPECIAL SITUATIONS Organ and Tissue Donation We will release medical information to organizations that handle organ procurement or organ, eye or tissue transplantation or to an organ donation band, as necessary to facilitate organ or tissue donation and transplantation. Military and Veterans If you are a member of the armed forces, we may release medical information about you as required by military command authorities. We may also release medical information about foreign military personnel to the appropriate foreign military authority. Worker’s Compensation We may release medical information about you for workers’ compensation or similar programs. These programs provide benefits for work-related injuries or illness. Public Health Risks We may disclose medical information about you for public health activities. These activities generally include the following:
Health Oversight Activities We may disclose medical information to a health oversight agency for activities authorized by law. These oversight activities include, for example, audits, investigations, inspections, and licensure. These activities are necessary for the government to monitor the health care system, government programs, and compliance with civil rights laws. Law Enforcement We may release medical information if asked to do so by a law enforcement official:
Coroners, Medical Examiners and Funeral Directors We may release medical information to a coroner or medical examiner. This may be necessary, for example, to identify a deceased person or determine the cause of death. We may also release medical information about patients of the hospital to funeral directors as necessary to carry out their duties. National Security and Intelligence Activities We may release medical information about you to authorized federal officials for intelligence, counterintelligence, and other national security activities authorized by law. Protective Service for the President and Others We may disclose medical information about you to authorized federal officials so they may provide protection to the President, other authorized persons or foreign heads of states or conduct special investigations. Inmates If you are an inmate of a correctional institution or under the custody of a law enforcement official, we may release medical information about you to the correctional institution or law enforcement official. This release would be necessary (1) for the institution to provide you with health care; (2) to protect your health and safety or the health and safety of others; or (3) for the safety and security of the correctional institution. As an inmate you will automatically be made a "Release No Information" patient in our hospital. This means if someone calls, other than the corrective institution, we will not acknowledge your presence in our hospital. YOUR RIGHTS REGARDING MEDICAL INFORMATION ABOUT YOU You have the following rights regarding medical information we maintain about you. Right to Inspect and Copy You have the right to inspect and copy medical information that may be used to make decisions about your care. Usually, this includes medical and billing records, but may not include some mental health information. To inspect and copy medical information that may be used to make decisions about you, you must submit your request in writing to Medical Records Department. If you request a copy of the information, we may charge a fee for the costs of copying, mailing or other supplies associated with your request. We may deny your request to inspect and copy in certain very limited circumstances. If you are denied access to medical information, you may request that the denial be reviewed. Another licensed health care professional (physician) chosen by the hospital will review your request and the denial. The person conducting the review will not be the person who denied your request. We will comply with the outcome of the review. Right to Amend If you feel that medical information we have about you is incorrect or incomplete, you may ask us to amend the information. You have the right to request an amendment for as long as the information is kept by or for the hospital. To request an amendment, your request must be made in writing and submitted to Medical Records Department. In addition, you must provide a reason that supports your request. We may deny your request for an amendment if it is not in writing or does not include a reason to support the request. In addition, we may deny your request if you ask us to amend information that:
Even if we deny your request for amendment, you have the right to submit a written addendum, not to exceed 250 words, with respect to any item or statement in you record you believe is incomplete of incorrect. If you clearly indicate in writing that you want the addendum to be made part of your medical record we will attach it to your records and include it whenever we make a disclosure of the item or statement you believe to be incomplete or incorrect. Right to an Accounting of Disclosures You have the right to request an "accounting of disclosures". This is a list of the disclosures we made of medical information about you other than our own uses for treatment, payment and health care operations, (as those functions are described above) and with other expectations pursuant to the law. To request this list or accounting of disclosures, you must submit your request in writing to Medical Records Department. Your request must state a time period which may not be longer than six years and may not include dates before April 14, 2003. The first list you request within a 12 month period will be free. For additional lists, we may charge you for the costs of providing the list. We will notify you of the cost involved and you may choose to withdraw or modify your request at that time before any costs are incurred. Right to Request Restrictions You have the right to request a restriction or limitation on the medical information we use or disclose about you for treatment, payment or health care operations. You also have the right to request a limit on the medical information we disclose about you to someone who is involved in your care or the payment for your cared, like a family member or friend. For example, you could ask that we not use or disclose information about a surgery that you had. We are not required to agree to your request. If we do agree, we will comply with your request unless the information is needed to provide you emergency treatment. To request restrictions, you must make your request in writing to Medical Records Department. In your request, you must tell us (1) what information you want to limit; (2) whether you want to limit our use, disclosure or both; and (3) to whom you want the limits to apply, for example, disclosures to your spouse. Right to Request Confidential Communications You have the right to request that we communicate with you about medical matters in a certain way or at a certain location. For example, you can ask that we only contact you at work or by mail. To request confidential communications, you must make your request in writing to Medical Records Department. We will not ask you the reason for your request. We will accommodate all reasonable requests. Your request must specify how or where you wish to be contacted. Right to a Paper Copy of This Notice You will receive a paper copy of this notice. You may obtain a copy of this notice at our website: www.northbay.org. CHANGES TO THIS NOTICE We reserve the right to change this notice. We reserve the right to make the revised or changed notice effective for medical information we already have about you as well as any information we receive in the future. We will post a copy of the current notice in the hospital. The notice will contain on the first page, in the top right-hand corner, the effective date. In addition, each time you register at or are admitted to the hospital for treatment or health care services as an inpatient or outpatient, we will offer you a coy of the current notice in effect. COMPLAINTS If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may file a complaint with the hospital or with the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. To file a complaint with the hospital, contact the Privacy Officer or the Patient Advocate. All complaints must be submitted in writing to the following address: Privacy Officer or Patient Advocate You will not be penalized for filing a complaint. OTHER USES OF MEDICAL INFORMATION Other uses and disclosures of medical information not covered by this notice or the laws that apply to us will be made only with your written permission. If you provide us permission to use or disclose medical information about you, you may revoke that permission, in writing, at any time. If you revoke your permission, this will stop any further use or disclosure of your medical information for the purposes covered by your written authorization, except if we have already acted in reliance on your permission. You understand that we are unable to take back any disclosures we have already made with your permission, and that we are required to retain our records of the care that we provided to you. |
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