Privacy Policy

1. About this policy

The Anxious Patient Experience™ (APE) is provided at The Cronulla Dentists, 13 Cronulla Street, Cronulla NSW 2230. In this policy, “we”, “us” and “our” mean the APE team and The Cronulla Dentists.

We handle personal and health information in line with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles, the Health Records and Information Privacy Act 2002 (NSW) and its Health Privacy Principles, and the Spam Act 2003 (Cth). This policy applies to everyone whose information we hold, including patients, people who book or enquire through this website, and visitors to the website.

2. The information we collect

When you book online or contact us, we collect your name, email address, phone number, the appointment time you choose, any note you add, and your agreement to our deposit and cancellation policy and to this policy.

When you are our patient, we collect the information we need to provide safe dental care. This can include your date of birth, address, emergency contact, medical and dental history, medications, allergies, how anxiety affects you and what helps, clinical notes, X-rays and photographs taken for your care, treatment plans, health fund and Medicare details, and payment records.

When you visit this website, our systems record basic technical information such as your browser type, the pages you visit and the date and time of your visit.

Health information is sensitive information under privacy law, and we only collect it when it is needed for your care or the law allows it. If you choose not to give us some information, we may not be able to book your appointment or provide treatment safely.

3. How we collect it

We collect most information directly from you: through this website, on our forms and questionnaires, by phone and email, and during your appointments. Sometimes we receive information from someone else, such as another dentist or doctor who refers you, a parent or guardian, or your health fund, and only where this is needed for your care or you have agreed to it.

4. Why we collect, use and share it

We use your information to:

• arrange, confirm and manage your appointments and deposit;
• provide dental care that suits you, including preparing for your visit around your needs;
• communicate with you about your appointment and care;
• process payments, health fund claims and rebates;
• keep accurate health records and meet our legal, professional and insurance obligations;
• improve our service and this website.

We only use or share your information for another purpose if you agree, if it is directly related to your care and you would reasonably expect it, or if the law requires or allows it.

5. Who we share it with

Depending on your care, we may share your information with:

• the clinical and administration team at The Cronulla Dentists;
• other health practitioners involved in your care, such as a doctor or another dental practitioner you are referred to, with your agreement;
• your health fund, Medicare and payment processors, to process claims and payments;
• service providers that run systems for us, such as our website and booking system, secure database, email delivery, payment provider (for the booking deposit) and our website agency, Generate Your Audience; these providers may only use your information to provide their service to us;
• government bodies, regulators, courts or law enforcement where the law requires it.

We do not sell, rent or trade your personal information.

6. Information stored or processed overseas

Our booking information is stored in a secure database in Australia. Some of our service providers, such as email, website hosting and payment providers, may store or process information outside Australia, including in the United States. Where this happens, we take reasonable steps to make sure the provider protects your information in a way that is consistent with Australian privacy law.

7. Our website, cookies and analytics

This website uses your browser's storage to remember small things that make it work, such as whether you have already seen our opening special message. If we use analytics or advertising tools, such as Google Analytics or the Meta Pixel, they collect information about how the website is used through cookies. We set these tools up so they do not receive the details you enter in our booking form. You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings.

This website may link to other websites, such as Google Maps. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of other websites.

8. Emails and messages

When you book, we email you to confirm we have received your request and to send information about your appointment. These messages are part of your care and are not marketing. We only send marketing messages if you have agreed to receive them, every marketing message includes a simple way to unsubscribe, and we never use your health information for marketing without your express consent.

9. How we store and protect your information

We hold information in secure electronic systems and, where needed, in paper records kept in locked areas. Access is limited to people who need it to do their job, accounts are protected by passwords, and our providers use encryption and other security measures. While no system is completely secure, we take reasonable steps to protect your information from misuse, interference, loss and unauthorised access, change or disclosure.

We keep health records for at least seven years from the last time we provided care, or for a patient who was under 18 at the time, until they turn 25, whichever is later, as NSW law requires. When information is no longer needed, we destroy it securely or remove anything that identifies you.

10. Data breaches

If a data breach is likely to result in serious harm to you, we will notify you and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner as required by the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme, and take steps to reduce any harm.

11. Seeing and correcting your information

You can ask to see the personal and health information we hold about you, and to correct it if it is wrong, out of date or incomplete. Please contact our Privacy Officer using the details below. We will respond within 30 days. We do not charge for making a request, but we may charge a reasonable fee for providing copies of your records, and we will tell you about any fee first. In some situations the law allows us to refuse access, and if so we will explain why in writing.

12. Dealing with us without giving your name

You can ask general questions without telling us who you are. To book an appointment or provide treatment, we need to know who you are.

13. Complaints

If you have a concern about how we have handled your information, please contact our Privacy Officer first. We will acknowledge your complaint promptly and aim to resolve it within 30 days.

If you are not satisfied with our response, you can contact:

• the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner: 1300 363 992, www.oaic.gov.au;
• the NSW Information and Privacy Commission: 1800 472 679, www.ipc.nsw.gov.au;
• the NSW Health Care Complaints Commission, for concerns about health care: 1800 043 159, www.hccc.nsw.gov.au.

14. Your new patient questionnaire

Before your first appointment we may email you a welcome pack and a private link to an online new patient questionnaire. The link is unique to your booking, works once and stops working a week after your appointment. The questionnaire asks for health information and about your experience of dental care, so that we can plan your visit safely and make it as comfortable as possible. Answering is voluntary: you can leave any question blank and talk it through with us in person instead.

Your answers are encrypted before they are stored, held in our website’s own database in Australia, and never sent by email, shared with advertising or analytics services, or used for any purpose other than your care. Only the named team members who look after your care can open them, and every time a questionnaire is opened a record is kept of who opened it and when. The team is told that a questionnaire has arrived by an email that contains only your booking reference, first name and appointment date.

Questionnaire answers are health records, so we keep them for at least 7 years after your last appointment (or until you turn 25 if you were under 18), after which they are securely deleted. You can ask to see or correct your answers, or ask us about them, using the contact details below.

15. Changes to this policy and how to contact us

We may update this policy from time to time. The latest version is always on this page, with the date it was last updated at the top.

Privacy Officer, The Anxious Patient Experience™
The Cronulla Dentists, 13 Cronulla Street, Cronulla NSW 2230
Phone: (02) 8599 9815
Email: theanxiouspatientexperience@gmail.com

If you need an interpreter, you can contact the Translating and Interpreting Service on 131 450.