PRIVACY POLICY
The Health Information Protection Act is designed to improve the privacy of people’s health information while ensuring adequate sharing of information is possible to provide health services. Development of the Act started in 1997 and it was proclaimed in force on September 1, 2003. New regulations created under the authority of this Act called The Health Information Protection Regulations came into force on July 22, 2005.
HIPA and your rights
The Health Information Protection Act legislates rights of individuals and obligations of the “trustees” in the health system with respect to personal health information. A trustee includes persons or organizations prescribed in the Act or regulations who have custody or control of personal health information and includes, the Ministry, physicians, regional health authorities, the New Beginning Fellowship Center, ambulance operators, health professionals to name but a few. HIPA applies to personal health information in the health system in any form, including paper and electronic records. It provides protection for privacy of personal health information, while ensuring that information is available, as needed, to provide health services to those in need and to monitor, evaluate and improve the health system in the New Beginning Fellowship Center.
The Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act of 2005 (PSQIA) establishes a voluntary reporting system designed to enhance the data available to assess and resolve patient safety and health care quality issues. To encourage the reporting and analysis of medical errors, PSQIA provides Federal privilege and confidentiality protections for patient safety information, called patient safety work product. PSQIA authorizes HHS to impose civil money penalties for violations of patient safety confidentiality. PSQIA also authorizes the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) to list patient safety organizations (PSOs). PSOs are the external experts that collect and review patient safety information.