Privacy Policy

Sera Spine & Rehab ("the Clinic") may collect personal information where this is required for the work we undertake. We will only collect personal information by lawful and fair means, and primarily directly from you — for example, through your interaction with us or your use of our website. Wherever practicable, personal information is de-identified.

What personal information we collect

The type of personal information collected depends on your interaction with us. If you are a patient of the Clinic, we may collect:

• Your name
• Your contact information (postal address, email address, telephone number) and your preferred manner of contact
• Information relating to your treatment and health history

If you participate in any of our programs or activities, we may also collect payment details. If you are a job applicant, employee or contractor, we may collect details about your employment history.

If we receive unsolicited personal information that we would not ordinarily be permitted to collect, we will destroy or de-identify that information.

We will take reasonable steps to notify you of our collection of your personal information, including any additional information required by the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).

If you do not provide your personal information to the Clinic, we may be unable to offer or maintain treatment, or allow you to participate in our programs and activities.

Use of your personal information

The Clinic will keep your personal information for as long as we are legally obliged to do so, or until the need for it has passed — at which point it will be destroyed, deleted or de-identified.

For patients, our primary purpose for collection is to administer and provide you with the full benefits of your treatment. For other individuals, personal information may be collected to respond to enquiries, communicate with you, allow participation in our activities, or comply with legal obligations.

We may disclose limited information to contractors engaged to act on our behalf — such as IT service providers — to enable them to provide their services. All such contractors are required to comply with the Privacy Act.

We will not use your personal information for direct marketing purposes unless permitted to do so under the Privacy Act.

The Clinic does not disclose personal information to any individual or organisation outside Australia. If we transfer personal information overseas, we will comply with the requirements of the Privacy Act relating to overseas disclosures.

Software and third-party platforms

The Clinic uses Cliniko as our primary practice management and data storage platform. Their privacy policy is available at cliniko.com/policies/privacy.

Our phone system and booking concierge is managed through Zurili. The concierge may access limited personal details to help manage and change bookings. Their privacy policy is available on their website.

For private health insurance claiming, we use HalTH software. Patients are asked to bring both their payment card and private health insurance card to each appointment to facilitate on-the-spot claiming.

Other software used by the Clinic includes, but is not limited to:

• Peptalkr
• Finger-Ink
• Aeva AI
• Jotform
• Tyro Health
• Google Sheets / Microsoft Excel

Additional software may be used from time to time for administration, treatment or related purposes. Some permitted exceptions to disclosure apply, including where we are legally required to disclose, or where disclosure is required to protect the personal safety of any individual or the public.

Storage and security of your personal information

The Clinic takes all reasonable steps to keep your personal information secure, safe and protected from misuse, interference, loss or unauthorised access. Your information is stored on secure servers (electronic records) or in controlled facilities (hard copy records). Our staff and contractors who provide services related to our information systems are obliged to respect the confidentiality of any personal information held by us.

Use of cookies on our website

Cookies are small pieces of information that a website transfers to your device for record-keeping purposes, website usage statistics, or to provide enhanced functionality. The information obtained through cookies is generally de-identified and does not constitute personal information, though it may include your IP address.

Most browsers are set to accept cookies by default but can be configured to block or delete them. If you choose to refuse cookies, some parts of our website may not function as intended.

By using our website, you accept the use of cookies as described above.

Accessing your personal information

You have the right to access the personal information the Clinic holds about you. To do so, please contact us using the details below. We reserve the right to refuse access as permitted under the Privacy Act — for example, where access would pose a serious threat to another person's health, would unreasonably impact on another individual, or is frivolous or vexatious.

Correction of your personal information

The Clinic will take reasonable steps to ensure that the personal information we hold is accurate, up-to-date and complete. If you wish to update or correct your personal information, please contact us.

Problems or complaints

If you have a problem, query or complaint about how the Clinic collects, uses or discloses your personal information, please contact us. We take all aspects of privacy seriously and welcome your feedback. We will investigate any complaint and endeavour to resolve it promptly.

If you are unsatisfied with our response, you may contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) at www.oaic.gov.au.

Further information

For more information about privacy issues in Australia and protecting your privacy, visit the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner at www.oaic.gov.au.