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CONFIDENTIALITY
Heritage Schools, Inc. Notice of Privacy Practices
Effective April 13, 2003
This notice describes how your medical information may be used and disclosed, and how you can assess this information. Please review it carefully.
PRIVACY PROMISE
Heritage understands that client medical and health information is personal. Protecting client health information is important. We follow strict federal and state laws that require us to maintain the confidentiality of client health information.
HOW WE USE CLIENT INFORMATION
When a client receives care from Heritage, we make a record. Typically, this record contains health history, current symptoms, examination and test results, diagnoses, treatment, and plan for future care or treatment. This information, often referred to as the client medical record, serves as the following:
- A basis for planning client care and treatment
- A means of communication among the many health professionals who contribute to client care
- A legal document describing the care the client received
- A means by which you or a third-party payer can verify that the client actually received the services billed
- A tool in medical education
- A source of information for public health officials charged with improving the health of the regions they serve
- A tool to assess the appropriateness and quality of client care
- A tool to improve the quality of health care and achieve better patient outcomes
OTHER SERVICES WE PROVIDE
We may also use your health information to:
- Share information with third parties who assist us with treatment, payment, and health care operations. Our business associates must protect client information by following our privacy practices.
- Notify or assist in notifying a family member, a personal representative, or another person responsible for client care, client location, and general condition.
- Communicate with family: Unless you object, health professionals, using their best judgment, may disclose to a family member, another relative, a close personal friend, or any other person that you identify health information relevant to that person's involvement in your care or payment related to your care.
- Contact you as part of a fundraising effort for Heritage School.
- Notify public health agencies. As required by law, we may disclose client health information to public health or legal authorities charged with preventing or controlling disease, injury, or disability.
SHARING CLIENT HEALTH INFORMATION
There are limited situations when we are permitted or required to disclose health information without your signed authorization, as follows:
- Public health purposes, such as reporting communicable diseases, work-related illnesses, or other diseases and injuries permitted by law; reporting births and deaths; and reporting reactions to drugs and problems with medical devices
- To protect victims of abuse, neglect, or domestic violence
- Health oversight activities such as investigations, audits, and inspections
- Lawsuits and similar proceedings
- When otherwise required by law
- When requested by law enforcement as required by law or court order
- For coroners, medical examiners, or funeral directors
- Organ and tissue donations, as requested by client families or guardians
- Research approved by our review process under strict federal guidelines
- To reduce or prevent a serious threat to public health and safety
- For workers' compensation or similar programs, if a client is injured at work
- Specialized government functions such as intelligence and national security
OUR PRIVACY RESPONSIBILITIES
Heritage is required by law to:
- Maintain the privacy of client health information
- Provide this notice describing the ways Heritage may use and share client information
- Follow the terms of the notice currently in effect
We reserve the right to make changes to this notice at any time, and to apply such new privacy practices effective for all information herein. Current notices will be posted at Heritage facilities, and on our website at http://www.heritagertc.org. You may also request a copy of any notice from the Heritage Privacy Office.
YOUR INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS*
You have the right to:
- Request restrictions on how we use and share client health information. We will consider all requests for restrictions carefully, but are not required to agree to any restriction.
- Request that we use a specific telephone number or address to communicate with you.
- *Inspect and copy client health information, including medical and billing records. Fees may apply. Under limited circumstances, we may deny you access to a portion of client health information, and you may request a review of the denial.
- * Request corrections or additions to client health information.
- *Request an accounting of certain disclosures of client health information made by us. The accounting does not include disclosures made for treatment, payment, and certain health care operations and disclosures required by law. Your request may state the period of time desired for the accounting, which must be within the six years prior to your request and exclude dates prior to April 14, 2003. The first accounting is free, but a fee will apply if more than one request is made within a 12-month period.
- Request a paper copy of this notice, even if you agree to receive it electronically.
* Requests indicated by an asterisk (*) must be submitted in writing. Please contact the Heritage Privacy Office for the appropriate form for your request.
- Maintain the privacy of client health information
- Provide this notice describing the ways Heritage may use and share client information
- Follow the terms of the notice currently in effect
OUR ORGANIZATION
This notice describes the privacy practices of Heritage Schools, Inc., doing business as Heritage Residential Treatment Center and Heritage Adolescent Counseling Center, and includes employees and volunteers of these facilities. This notice also describes the privacy practices of affiliated providers under contractual arrangements while they are performing services at the Heritage facilities, unless they provide you with a notice of their specific privacy practices. Affiliated providers are not employed by Heritage, but are authorized to provide services to clients in a Heritage facility. For more information about the privacy practices of affiliated providers, please contact them directly.
CONTACT US
If you would like further information about your confidentiality rights, are concerned that your confidentiality rights have been violated, or disagree with a decision that Heritage has made about access to your health information, please contact:
Privacy Office
Heritage Schools, Inc.
5600 N. Heritage School Drive
Provo, UT 84604
(801) 226-4600, ext. 500
We will investigate all complaints, and will not penalize you or treat you any differently for filing a complaint. You may also file a written complaint with the Office of Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
©2004 Heritage Schools, Inc.
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