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The Personal Health Information Act (PHIA) provides
you with the right to:
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access your personal health information,
and
-
have your personal health information kept
private
when that information is held by a health care
provider, health care facility or public body (referred to in the
Act as "trustees").
Access
The right of access means that you can ask to see, or get a copy of,
personal health information about you. You also have the right
to request a correction to this information if you feel it is inaccurate or incomplete.
Access to your
health records allows you to make informed decisions, based on
complete information, about your health and health care.
Privacy
PHIA also recognizes that personal health information is
private and should be held in confidence by those who maintain it.
This enables you to discuss things you might find sensitive or
embarrassing with trustees without worrying that they will discuss
it with others inappropriately.
In order to protect your right to privacy, PHIA
imposes obligations on trustees when they collect, maintain, use and
share your personal health information.
When trustees collect personal health information from
you, they will normally use that information for the reasons it was
provided. For example, if you discuss personal health information
with a health care provider, he or she will use that information to
provide you with the care you are seeking.
Before trustees can use this information for other
reasons -- or share it with people outside their organization -- they
should generally get your consent. There are some exceptions to this
obligation, however. Here are a few examples:
- A health care provider may share information about you with another provider who is involved in your care, as long as the information is relevant and as long as you haven’t asked the first provider not to.
- A hospital may contact your family and inform them that you are hurt or injured if you can’t inform them yourself.
- A hospital or personal care home may discuss, with family members and close friends, care you are currently receiving in the facility, as long as the facility believes you wouldn’t object.
- A trustee might share personal health information with an outside agency if it is necessary to prevent serious harm to you or someone else.
- A trustee might also have to share personal health information about you if another law requires them to do so.
For a complete list of the exceptions to consent,
see
sections 21, 22, 23, 24 and 25
of PHIA.
For more information
about PHIA: |
Legislative Unit
Manitoba Health
300 Carlton Street
Winnipeg MB R3B 3M9
Phone: (204) 788-6612
FAX: (204) 945-1020 |
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