Policies

All health practitioners practicing at NSDP have been accredited and registered in accordance with The Dental Board of Australia requirements.

All health practitioners practicing at NSDP have been recognized and registered with Medicare and all Australian private health funds.

NSDP had undergone a process of voluntary Private Dental Practice Accreditation, which means the practice meets the requirements of the stringent National Safety and Quality Health Services Standards (NSQHS Standards) that are applicable to the dental profession.

This privacy policy describes the way that the NSDP collects, uses and discloses personal and sensitive information about individuals.

Collection of Personal and Sensitive Information

The types of personal information NSDP collect include

• contact details (name, address, telephone numbers, email, etc);
• medical and dental history including radiographs and images.

The types of sensitive information the NSDP may collect include records of communication between us, which may include from time to time, the information you provide us or is collected from others (i.e other dental and/or medical practitioner). This includes, but is not limited to, the following types of information:

• professional and practice information;
• health information;
• personal credit card data.

Use and Disclosure of Personal Information

The NSDP uses and discloses your personal information upon consent for purposes including:

• providing treatment to the patient;
• billing;
• mailing of treatment plans and financial agreements;
• mailing of NSDP publications including newsletters and promotions;
• conducting a survey of patients;
• communication of personal information to service providers with which the NSDP has cooperative arrangements (i.e private health funds, finance providers).

NSDP will not use or disclose sensitive information unless the individual has consented; it is required by law, or in other special specified circumstances, for example relating to health services provision and individual or public health or safety.

Data Security

NSDP takes all reasonable steps to protect the information held by us (including your personal and sensitive information) from misuse and loss and from unauthorized access, modification or disclosure.

NSDP use technologies and process such as access control procedures, network firewalls, and physical security to protect your privacy.

NSDP will destroy or permanently de-identify any of your information which is no longer needed.

Dentists have a professional and a legal obligation to maintain clinically relevant, accurate and contemporaneous dental records of their patients.

Dental records play an essential role in:

• documenting the consent provided by the patient;
• documenting the assessment and treatment of the patient;
• documenting the advice provided to the patient;
• assisting with complaint resolution, medico-legal, and professional standards reviews; and
• documenting compliance with an insurer, other third-party payers, and government subsidized dental program requirements (ie. Medicare Schemes).

Content of dental records

Records consist of a variety of material generated and stored in handwritten and electronic format and include:

• Notes made by clinicians and staff;
• Completed written medical history;
• Consent documents;
• Copies of correspondence about and with the patient;
• Radiographs, digital records including CAD/CAM records, diagnostic images, reports, and casts;

Storage and security of records

NSDP protects the personal information we hold from misuse, interference, loss, unauthorized access, modification or disclosure.

All file cabinets are locked and not accessible to the general public. All computers are password protected and have appropriate and current security software installed.

Dental records are retained:

• in the case of health information collected while the individual was an adult – for seven years from the last occasion on which a health service ;
• in the case of health information collected while the individual was under the age of 18 years – at least until the individual has attended the age of 25 years.

If a health record is destroyed after the required retention periods, it is destroyed in a secure manner, such as document shredding.

Records release

All requests for access should be made in writing using a Request for Release of Dental Records Form. Copy of records will be forwarded to the requesting health professional directly.

It is our practice policy to try and give patients full information about the cost of their dental work before any treatment is undertaken.

A written estimate and treatment plan can be provided for all patients upon request. Patients will be informed if treatment changes.

We offer HICAPS facility and can process the claim on the spot for you. We will always require your health fund card, so please ensure you will bring it to each appointment.

You may settle your balance by cheque, cash or credit/debit card.

Our normal policy is that patients are asked to settle the account in full on the day of the treatment unless prior arrangements have been made.

We may request payment in advance for treatment which requires laboratory work, ie crowns, bridges and dentures and/or very long appointments.

North Sydney Dental Practice respects your time and we are committed to running our appointments on time.

We request you let us know in advance if you are unable to keep your appointment as short notice cancellations, failure to attend and arriving late (more than 15 minutes) are highly disruptive to the practitioners, staff and most importantly our other patients.

Failing to attend, rescheduling, or cancelling appointments with less than 24 hours’ notice may attract a cancellation fee of $75 payable at your next appointment.

Anyone who participates in or uses the Australian health system is entitled to a series of nation-wide rights. These rights help ensure that whatever the care, wherever it is received (within Australia), patients can trust that it will be both high quality and safe. This means that all patients of North Sydney Dental Practice have a number of important rights that have been set out by the Australian government. They can be found in the Australian Charter of Health Care Rights.

What is the Charter?

The Charter was formed by the Commission in 2007-2008 and outlines the rights afforded to consumers seeking and/or undergoing a healthcare service. It is relevant to any health setting in Australia, which for our purposes includes dental practices! Its purpose is to help both health care providers and health care consumers understand the rights entitled to patients all over the country.

To help our patients understand the Charter, you can view how these rights apply to you as a North Sydney Dental Practice patient. Click here to view or download the full document, or see below. We will outline the Charter’s rights as they fit into the context of our practice.

What you can expect from our Practice