Privacy
The need for privacy protection
In today’s world of electronic information, we all want to ensure that our personal and financial information is secure. We also want to know that our information is only being used in appropriate ways.
As eye doctors, optometrists have always followed the traditions of patient confidentiality when providing care and services. Our doctors and staff share your commitment to preserving your privacy.
Information you share with us
We take pride in helping you meet your needs through a full range of vision products and services. In obtaining our services, you share information with us about who you are, where you live and work, and aspects of your lifestyle. The information that we require about you will vary depending on the type of product or service you are requesting.
We obtain this information from you directly. With your consent, we may also obtain information from other health/medical professionals, financial institutions or other sources you may have given us.
How we help protect your privacy
Our essential commitment to you is that we will only use your personal information as required to provide you with excellent vision care services and products, and we will respect your privacy choices.
We do a number of things to protect the confidentiality and security of your personal information. These steps include:
- keeping our offices, file storage, and desks secure
- limiting access to information to staff and consultants who require it
- investigating suspected security problems, and
- using reasonable and appropriate security measures such as passwords and encryption for electronic information.
Sharing information with others
We obtain your written, verbal, or implied consent before sharing your personal information, and do not sell or otherwise distribute your personal information to anyone without your consent (except where required to do so by law or to meet credit reporting requirements). Privacy legislation provides specific instances in which we are able or required to collect or report information without your consent - such as during fraud investigations or in response to orders from legal authorities.
There are also instances where we need to share your information with our business partners (such as lens labs) in order to provide you with the services or products you have requested, or with insurance firms or government agencies that are providing reimbursement for services. In such cases, we only share the information that is required for the transaction.
If you have vision concerns that would benefit from the involvement of other health/medical professionals, your doctor may share your personal information with those professionals in order to provide you with the best diagnosis, treatment, and service.
There may be situations in which personal information is shared with other companies acting on our behalf. We will ensure that any party outside our office who is given access to your information offers the same level of privacy protection that you can rely on from our office, and that they will only process your information to the extent necessary to provide our promotions, products and/or services.
Patient communications
An eye examination and/or problem-specific assessments/evaluations/tests are an important part of the eyecare recommended by our optometrists. In addition, periodic routine eye exams are also an integral part in the maintenance and prevention of ocular health and vision problems. Ocular and systemic health discoveries and technological developments result in many ongoing changes in ocular health management options and recommendations. New eyecare and eyewear technologies may offer benefits that improve your visual well being.
We routinely contact our patients regarding eyecare or eyewear services that they have requested from our office. In addition, we do contact patients regarding recommended follow-up assessments and/or the need for a routine eye examination as recommended by our optometrists based on the individual findings from your visit(s) and current optometric standard of care recommendations.
We may also use your contact information from time to time in order to let you know about promotions, products and/or services that you might be interested in and/or to provide patient education - through phone calls, a newsletter, e-mail, or other means. We do this to help you find the best possible vision care, and you may have your name removed from communication lists on request.
Your financial information
Depending on the method of payment you are using, we may collect your name, address, credit or debit account numbers, and other information necessary to complete your transaction. We protect this information in the same manner as your other personal information, and do not share it with any parties other than those financial institutions involved in processing your payment.
Viewing your information
On request, you may see the personal, health and financial information that we have on your file(s). If your file contains information from other parties on your file, we cannot disclose that information to you for legal and business reasons - that information is legally the property of the person(s) or company that provided it.
Please contact us if you wish to view your file information. It may take up to ten working days for us to gather this information for your review. An administration fee may apply.
Privacy laws and regulations
British Columbia’s privacy legislation regulates private sector organizations that collect, use, or disclose personal information in the course of providing products and services.