Privacy policy

Our Legal Responsibility 

We are required by law to give you this notice.  It provides you with how we may use and disclose protected medical information about you and describes your rights and our obligations regarding the use and disclosure of that information.  We shall maintain the privacy of protected health information and provide you with notice of our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to your protected health information.  We have the right to change these policies at any time.  If we change our privacy policies, we will notify you immediately.  This current policy is in effect unless stated otherwise.  If this policy is changed it will apply to all your current and past health information.  You may request a copy of this information at any time. . 

How We May Use or Disclose Your Protected Health Information 

The following examples describe ways we may use your protected health information for your treatment, payments, healthcare operations, etc.  Please be advised not every use or disclosure in a particular category will be listed. 

Treatment: We may use and disclose your protected health information for your treatment.  This includes disclosing your protected health information to other medical providers, trainees, medical staff, and office staff that are involved in your care.   

Healthcare Operations: We may use or disclose your protected health information to operate this medical practice.  These activities include training students, reviewing cases with employees, utilizing your information to improve quality of care, and contacting you by telephone, email, or text to remind you of appointments.  

We will not disclose your protected health information for any other purpose other than those identified in this policy without your specific, written authorization.  You can revoke this authorization at any time but it will not affect your protected health information that was shared while the authorization was in effect. 

Appointment Reminders:  We may contact you via telephone, text or email with reminders that you have upcoming appointments. 

Mobile Opt-In: No mobile opt-in will be shared with third parties for marketing purposes.

Public Health Risk: We may disclose your protected health information, if necessary, in order to prevent or control disease, report adverse effects from medication or products, prevent injury, disability, or death.  This information may be disclosed to healthcare systems, government agencies, or public health organizations.  We may have to disclose your protected health information to the FDA to report adverse effects, defects, problems, enable recalls, if required by FDA regulations. 

Health Oversight Activities: We may disclose your protected health information to health oversight agencies for audits, investigations, inspections, or licensing purposes.  The disclosures may be necessary for state and federal agencies to monitor healthcare systems compliance with civil law. 

Required By Law: We will disclose your protected health information when required to do so by federal, state, and/or local law. 

Lawsuits: We may disclose your protected health information in response to court action, administrative action, or a subpoena. 

Local Law: We may disclose your protected health information to law enforcement official in response to a court order, subpoena, warrant, subject to all applicable legal requirements. 

Your Right Regarding Your Protected Health Information 

Access to Medical Records: You have the right to access and receive copies of your protected health information that we use to make decisions about your care.  You must submit a written request to obtain your protected health information to the individual listed at the end of this privacy policy. 

Amendment: If you believe the protected health information, we have about you is incorrect or incomplete, you may ask us to amend the information.  You will need to submit a written request on why you feel the health information should be amended.  We may deny your request to amend the information.  If we deny the request we will provide you with a written explanation.  

Accounting and Disclosures:  You have a right to receive an accounting of disclosures of your health information made by this medical practice, except that this medical practice does not have to account for the disclosures provided to you or pursuant to your written authorization, or as described in paragraphs treatment and health care operations, or disclosures for purposes of research or public health which exclude direct patient identifiers, or which are incident to a use or disclosure otherwise permitted or authorized by law, or the disclosures to a health oversight agency or law enforcement official to the extent this medical practice has received notice from that agency or official that providing this accounting would be reasonably likely to impede their activities. 

Restriction Request: You have the right to request restrictions or limitations in which we disclose on the protected health information we disclose about you for treatment or healthcare operations.  We shall accommodate your request except where the disclosure is required by law.  We require this to be a written request submitted to the individual at the end of the policy. 

Confidential Communication: You have the right to request that we communicate with you about healthcare matters in a certain way in a certain location.  We must accommodate you if it is reasonable and allows us to continue to collect payments. 

Complaints: If you believe your privacy right have been violated, you may file a complaint with our office.  You may also file a complaint with the US Department of Health and Human Services. 

Celena Wink APN FNP-C