Privacy Policy

Browns Plains Medical Centre & Skin Cancer Clinic ("the Practice", "we", "us", "our") is committed to protecting the privacy and confidentiality of your personal and health information. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, store, and protect your information in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs), the My Health Records Act 2012 (Cth), and other applicable Australian and Queensland laws.

This Policy applies to all patients, website visitors, and individuals who interact with us in any capacity. By accessing our services or website, you consent to the collection and use of your information as described in this Policy.

Our registered address is 840 Wembley Road, Browns Plains QLD 4118. If you have any questions about this Policy, please contact us at reception@brownsplainsmc.com.au or (07) 3445 3111.

We collect personal information that is necessary for us to provide healthcare and related services. The types of information we may collect include:

• Personal identification information: full name, date of birth, gender, address, telephone number, and email address
• Health information: medical history, current and past diagnoses, symptoms, test results, pathology reports, imaging reports, medications, allergies, immunisation history, and clinical notes
• Medicare and healthcare identifiers: Medicare card number, Individual Healthcare Identifier (IHI), and Concession/Pension card details
• Private health insurance information: fund name, membership number, and level of cover
• Veterans' Affairs (DVA) details, where applicable
• Emergency contact and next of kin details
• Referral information from other treating health professionals
• Payment information: credit card or bank details (processed via secure third-party payment providers only)
• Website usage data: IP address, browser type, pages visited, and cookies (see Section 11)
• Communications: records of correspondence, telephone calls, or emails with the Practice

Health information is classified as sensitive information under the APPs and is afforded a higher level of protection under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).

We collect information in the following ways:

• Directly from you when you register as a patient, complete intake forms, or attend a consultation (in-person or via telehealth)
• From your authorised representatives, carers, or guardians where you have consented or where you are unable to provide consent
• From other treating health professionals, including hospitals, specialists, allied health providers, and pharmacists (via referral letters, discharge summaries, and clinical correspondence)
• Through the My Health Record system, where you are registered and have not restricted access
• Through our online appointment booking system (HotDoc)
• Through our website contact forms and email communications
• From pathology, radiology, and other diagnostic service providers
• From public health registries and recall/reminder systems, as authorised by law

We collect, hold, use, and disclose your personal and health information for the primary purpose of providing you with healthcare services. Secondary purposes, which are directly related to the primary purpose, include:

• Facilitating referrals to specialists, hospitals, allied health professionals, and other care providers
• Coordinating your ongoing care with other treating health professionals
• Processing Medicare, DVA, and private health insurance claims and billing
• Sending appointment reminders, recall notices, and health screening notifications
• Complying with mandatory reporting obligations under Queensland and Commonwealth law
• Managing medical indemnity and risk management obligations
• Quality improvement, accreditation, and clinical auditing activities
• Staff training and supervision purposes, with appropriate de-identification where possible
• Research activities, only with your explicit consent and/or ethical approval as required
• Fulfilling obligations under the My Health Records Act 2012 (Cth)
• Responding to complaints, legal claims, or regulatory inquiries

We will not use your information for any purpose beyond those described above without your consent, except where required or permitted by law.

Your information may be disclosed to the following parties, strictly for the purposes set out in Section 4:

• Other treating health professionals involved in your care (with your implied consent for treatment purposes)
• Hospitals and specialist services to which you are referred
• Pathology and radiology providers
• The My Health Record system (unless you have opted out)
• Medicare Australia, the Department of Veterans' Affairs, or private health insurers for billing and claiming purposes
• Our Practice management software and IT service providers, subject to appropriate confidentiality agreements
• Medical defence organisations for indemnity and legal support purposes
• Public health authorities under mandatory reporting obligations (e.g., notifiable diseases, child protection)
• Courts, tribunals, or law enforcement agencies where required by law or court order
• Accreditation bodies (e.g., AGPAL, QIP) for practice accreditation purposes, with appropriate safeguards

We will not sell, rent, or trade your personal or health information to any third party for commercial purposes.

Where disclosure to a third party is required, we take reasonable steps to ensure that recipient organisations handle your information in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles.

We do not generally disclose personal information to overseas recipients. In the limited circumstances where an overseas service provider may process data (such as cloud-based storage or software services), we take reasonable contractual steps to ensure that the overseas recipient handles your information consistently with the Australian Privacy Principles.

By consenting to this Policy, you acknowledge that in such circumstances the overseas recipient may not be subject to Australian privacy law, and we may not be accountable under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) for their handling of your information, except where we have taken reasonable steps as described above.

We take reasonable steps to protect your personal and health information from misuse, interference, loss, and unauthorised access, modification, or disclosure. Our security measures include:

• Secure electronic health record systems with role-based access controls and audit logging
• Password-protected workstations and encrypted data transmission
• Secure physical storage of paper records with restricted access
• Staff training on privacy obligations and confidentiality
• Contractual confidentiality obligations on all staff and third-party providers
• Regular review of IT security measures

Clinical records are retained for a minimum of seven (7) years from the date of last entry for adult patients, or until the patient turns 25 years of age for records relating to a person who was a minor, in accordance with Queensland Health guidelines. After this period, records are securely destroyed.

Under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles, you have the right to request access to your personal and health information held by us, and to request corrections to information that is inaccurate, incomplete, out-of-date, or misleading.

To request access to or correction of your records, please contact us in writing at reception@brownsplainsmc.com.au or attend the Practice in person. We will respond to your request within 30 days. We may require proof of identity before granting access.

In limited circumstances, we may decline to provide access — for example, where access would pose a serious and imminent threat to the health or safety of any person, or where access would unreasonably impact the privacy of others. Where we refuse a request, we will provide written reasons.

A reasonable administrative fee may apply for the retrieval and provision of copies of medical records. We will advise you of any applicable fees in advance.

Where a patient is a child under 18 years of age, information will generally be collected from and disclosed to a parent or legal guardian. However, we recognise that older children and adolescents may have the capacity to make decisions about their own healthcare. We will exercise clinical and legal judgment in determining the appropriate level of parental access to information in such cases, consistent with Queensland law and the Medical Board of Australia's Good Medical Practice guidelines.

We participate in the My Health Record system. Unless you have opted out or applied access controls through your MyGov account, clinical documents including shared health summaries, event summaries, specialist letters, and pathology results may be uploaded to or accessed via your My Health Record.

You may opt out of the My Health Record system or restrict access to certain documents at any time by visiting www.myhealthrecord.gov.au or calling 1800 723 471.

Our website may use cookies and similar tracking technologies to improve user experience and gather anonymous analytics data about how visitors interact with our site. Cookies do not collect personally identifiable information.

You may configure your browser to refuse cookies or to notify you when cookies are being sent. Please note that some features of our website may not function correctly if cookies are disabled.

We may use third-party analytics tools (such as Google Analytics) to understand website traffic and usage patterns. These tools collect anonymised data and are subject to the respective providers' privacy policies.

If you believe we have not handled your personal or health information in accordance with this Policy or the Australian Privacy Principles, you are encouraged to raise your concern with us in the first instance. Please contact our Privacy Officer:

Email: reception@brownsplainsmc.com.au Phone: (07) 3445 3111 Mail: Privacy Officer, Browns Plains Medical Centre, 840 Wembley Road, Browns Plains QLD 4118

We will acknowledge your complaint within 5 business days and aim to resolve it within 30 days. If you are not satisfied with our response, you may lodge a complaint with:

• The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC): www.oaic.gov.au | 1300 363 992
• The Queensland Health Ombudsman: www.oho.qld.gov.au | 133 OHO (133 646)
• AHPRA (Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency) for concerns regarding registered health practitioners: www.ahpra.gov.au | 1300 419 495

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal obligations, or technology. The current version will always be available on our website at bpmcskin.com.au/privacy-policy.

Continued use of our services following notification of any changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated Policy. Material changes will be communicated to patients via our website or at the next point of contact.

This Policy was last reviewed on 21 May 2026.