Dental Excellence handles your personal information with the utmost confidentiality, privacy and care. This policy explains how we collect, use, store and share your personal and health information, and how you can access it or raise a concern.
This policy applies to Dental Excellence at Level 3, Suite 302, 147 Pirie St, Adelaide SA 5000 and 292 The Parade, Kensington SA 5068 (“we”, “us”, “our”). As a health service provider, we are bound by the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs).
What information we collect
We only collect information that is reasonably necessary to provide you with safe, high-quality dental care and to run our practice. This may include:
- your name, date of birth, address, phone number and email address;
- your medical and dental history, medications, allergies and other health information;
- clinical records, including X-rays, scans, photographs, models and treatment notes;
- Medicare, DVA, Child Dental Benefits Schedule, concession and private health fund details;
- emergency contact and next-of-kin details;
- billing and payment information, including payment plan applications; and
- information you send us through our website, by email, by phone or on social media.
You can choose to deal with us anonymously or under a pseudonym where it is lawful and practical, such as when making a general enquiry. For most dental treatment, however, we need to identify you to treat you safely and to claim on your behalf.
How we collect your information
We usually collect information directly from you: when you book an appointment, complete a new patient or medical history form, attend an appointment, call or email us, or send an enquiry through our website. Online bookings are made through HealthEngine, which shares your booking details with us.
Sometimes we collect information from others with your consent, or where the law allows, such as your doctor or another dentist or specialist, a parent or guardian, your health fund, or Medicare.
How we use your information
We use your information to:
- assess, diagnose and treat you, and coordinate your care with other health practitioners;
- manage appointments, including sending reminders and recall notices by SMS, email, phone or post;
- process payments, health fund claims (including through HICAPS), Medicare, DVA and payment plans;
- respond to your enquiries and feedback;
- meet our legal, professional and accreditation obligations, including record keeping and quality improvement; and
- with your consent, send you information about our services and special offers. You can opt out at any time.
Clinical photographs
Clinical photographs are part of your dental record. We will only use photographs of you on our website, social media or in marketing (such as before-and-after images) with your written consent, and you may withdraw that consent at any time for future use.
Who we share your information with
We only disclose your information for the purpose it was collected, for a directly related purpose you would reasonably expect, with your consent, or where required or permitted by law. This may include:
- other health practitioners involved in your care, such as specialists, your doctor or a referring dentist;
- dental laboratories that make crowns, veneers, dentures, aligners and other appliances;
- private health funds, Medicare, DVA and HICAPS for claims;
- payment plan and finance providers you choose to use, such as DentiCare, Latitude, Zip and Afterpay;
- service providers who help us run the practice, such as our practice management software, HealthEngine (online bookings), appointment reminder services, IT support, and our website host; and
- government agencies, courts or regulators where the law requires it.
Overseas disclosure
Some of our service providers may store data outside Australia. For example, enquiries sent through our website form are processed by our website host, Netlify, which stores data in the United States, and our website analytics are provided by Google. Where information is stored overseas, we take reasonable steps to ensure it is handled in a way that is consistent with the APPs.
Our website, cookies and analytics
When you use our website, we and our analytics providers (such as Google Analytics, through Google Tag Manager) may collect information such as your IP address, browser type, the pages you visit and how you found our site. This helps us understand how our website is used and improve it. This information does not usually identify you personally. You can disable cookies in your browser settings, although some parts of the site may not work as intended.
If you send us an enquiry through our website, we collect the details you enter (such as your name, phone number, email address and message) and use them only to respond to your enquiry. Please don’t include detailed health information in a website enquiry; our team can discuss this with you by phone or at your appointment.
Our website contains links to other websites, such as HealthEngine and payment providers. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those websites.
How we store and protect your information
Your records are stored securely in electronic and, in some cases, paper form. We use password-protected systems, restricted staff access, secure backups and confidentiality obligations for our team and service providers to protect your information from misuse, loss and unauthorised access. We keep dental records for the periods required by law and professional guidelines, and then securely destroy or de-identify them.
Accessing and correcting your information
You have the right to request access to the personal information we hold about you and to ask us to correct it if it is inaccurate, out of date or incomplete. Please contact us in writing. We will respond within a reasonable time, usually 30 days. In limited circumstances permitted by law, access may be refused, and we will explain why. A reasonable fee may apply for copying records, but not for making a request.
Making a privacy complaint
If you have a concern about how we have handled your personal information, please contact our Practice Manager using the details below. We take every complaint seriously and will aim to resolve it promptly and fairly.
If you are not satisfied with our response, you can contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) on 1300 363 992 or at oaic.gov.au, or the Health and Community Services Complaints Commissioner (South Australia) at hcscc.sa.gov.au.
Contact us
Practice Manager, Dental Excellence
Level 3, Suite 302, 147 Pirie St, Adelaide SA 5000
Phone: (08) 8423 1091
Email: info@dental-excellence.com.au
Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time. The current version is always available on our website and from reception.