Privacy

Your personal health information must be kept private and secure. You or your Guardian/ Substitute Decision Maker can use and see it. Your personal health information is shared among the people who provide you with care. We may collect, use and give out your personal health information to others to:

• Provide you with health care,
• Communicate with or consult other health care providers or students in training for your health care,
• Get payment for your health care, including from OHIP and private insurance, and
• Report as required or permitted by law.

There are certain other circumstances where we may be required to give out some of your personal health information. If you want to know more, please visit our Access and Privacy page.

You or your Guardian/Substitute Decision Maker person have the right to:

• See and get a copy of your personal health information;
• Ask us to make corrections to inaccurate or incomplete personal health information;
• Ask us not to give out your personal health information to other healthcare providers – we will not give out this information unless required or permitted by law to do so; and
• Be told if your personal health information is stolen, lost or improperly accessed.

There are certain exceptions to these rights – please visit the Access and Privacy page. or contact our Privacy Office.

Grandview Kids Foundation is dedicated to raising money for Grandview Kids to help pay for programs, services, equipment, research, and other client and family needs. The Foundation is only given your name and address and may send you mail from time to time. It does not buy, sell or trade donor lists.

We are required to keep your personal health information safe and secure. We will get your permission before we give out your personal health information to others:

• Who want to offer you their products or services, or
• For certain research projects where your consent is required.

Where you give us permission to use or give out client information, you may change your mind at any time. However, sometimes the law allows or requires us to give out your information without your permission. To make your choices, please contact our Privacy Office.

A client is a child or youth receiving services at Grandview Kids.

A substitute decision-maker (SDM) is a parent or legal guardian of a client.

A client or their SDM has the right to make choices and control how the client’s health information is:

• Collected
• Used
• Shared

However, there are some limits to this control.

A client may make their own decisions if they are “capable.” The client’s physician, clinician, or healthcare provider will decide if the client is capable. Their decision is based on a test the law sets. The client may be capable of making some decisions and not other decisions. If the client is not capable – the client will have a substitute decision-maker (SDM) to make decisions.

The law says who can act as an SDM and what they must do. There is no set age at which you can make your own decisions about your health information.  If you are under the age of 16 years, there are some additional rules to know. If you are capable of making your own decisions, your parent(s) or a legal guardian will also be allowed to make some decisions about your health record. But they won’t be able to make decisions about any records about treatment or counselling where we asked for your permission alone. We encourage children under the age of 16 years to share information with their families to have the supports they need to ask their healthcare provider questions to find out more about privacy.

Grandview Kids collects, uses and shares client health information to:

• Treat and care for the client
• Provide appointment or preventative care reminders to the client of their SDM
• Invite the client or their SDM to participate in surveys or research projects
• Update the client or their SDM on upcoming events, activities and programs
• Determine if the client should be transferred to another service
• Coordinate client care with other healthcare providers, including through shared electronic health information systems. This may include the Ontario Health Teams, Ontario Laboratory Information Systems (OLIS), Connecting Ontario, eCHN and local, regional and provincial programs 
• Plan, administer and manage our internal operations
• Be paid or process, monitor, verify or reimburse claims for payment
• Conduct risk management, error management and quality improvement activities
• Educate our staff and students
• Respond to or initiate proceedings
• Compile statistics

Client health information may also be shared to:

• The Children’s Aid Society, where child abuse is suspected; the Children’s Lawyer
• The Public Guardian and Trustee
• Law enforcement officers who present a warrant or subpoena to aid in an investigation
• Comply with legal and regulatory requirements
• The Medical Officer of Health to report communicable diseases
• Fulfill other purposes permitted or required by law

Our collection, use and sharing of your child’s personal health information is done in accordance with Ontario law.

The client’s health record may include the following:

• Date of birth
• Contact information
• Health history
• Family health history
• Details of physical and mental health
• Record of client visits
• The care and support received during those visits
• Results from tests and procedures
• Information from other healthcare providers

The client record is the property of Grandview Kids. The information belongs to the client.

With limited exceptions, the client or their SDM has the right to access their child’s health information held by Grandview Kids.

A written request is required from a client to obtain a copy of their personal health information. Complete the Grandview Kids Consent to Release Client Health Information Form and email or fax it to:

Additionally, you can call us at 437-529-0044 and an automated voice messaging system will collect your question(s) or concern(s). We will return your call as soon as possible.

In rare situations, the client or their SDM may be denied access to some or all of the client’s health records. Grandview Kids would only deny access when following what is said in the law.

We try to keep the client record up-to-date. If a client or their substitute decision-maker (SDM) believes that their health information is inaccurate or not complete, they may request a correction. To make a correction to personal health information, please complete the Request to Correct Personal Health Information Form and email or fax it to:

Additionally, you can call us at 437-529-0044 and an automated voice messaging system will collect your question(s) or concern(s). We will return your call as soon as possible.

Grandview Kids’ confidentiality agreement binds all staff, physicians, volunteers, and students. We protect client information from loss or theft. We make sure no one looks at it. We make sure no one does something with the client’s information if they are not involved with the client’s care or allowed as part of their job. If there is a privacy breach of a client’s information, we will contact the client or their substitute decision-maker (SDM).

Grandview Kids maintains health records according to the Public Hospitals Act (Regulation 965, Section 20) and Regulated Health Professions College standard practices as follows:

1. For a client who is 18 years of age or older, records are retained for at least ten years after the date of the last visit or death of the client.
2. For a client who is under 18 years of age, records are retained for at least ten years after the 18th anniversary of the birth of the client.

After this period the Clinical Information and Systems (CIS) department disposes of the health records accordingly. You can request a copy of your health records before disposal by completing the Consent to Release Client Health Information Form. Complete the Grandview Kids Consent to Release Client Health Information Form and email or fax it to:

Additionally, you can call us at 437-529-0044 and an automated voice messaging system will collect your question(s) or concern(s). We will return your call as soon as possible.

Consent

Consent means giving permission. A client or their substitute decision-maker (SDM) can provide consent to Grandview Kids to collect and share personal health information. Following the law, Grandview Kids can share information without knowledge or consent in certain cases.

Sometimes, we cannot assume we have the client’s or SDM’s consent to share information. We may need permission to communicate with family members or friends if you want us to share information about the client’s health. For example, we need the client’s or the SDM’s consent to give health information to the client’s school, lawyer or insurance company.

Withdrawal of consent

A client or SDM has the right to take back their consent for information sharing unless otherwise stated by the law or a court.

Once the client or SDM gives consent, we will act upon that consent until you tell us that the service provider is no longer involved in your client’s care or that you request to withdraw consent.

Limiting Collection

Grandview Kids collects personal health information only for lawfully authorized purposes. We only collect what is needed to:

• Provide care
• Help a team provide care
• Document and report.

Information is only collected fairly and lawfully.

Lockbox

Grandview Kids uses many technical and administrative privacy safeguards to protect the personal health information of clients. We track all user accesses to your personal health information through GoldCare. GoldCare is our electronic health record system. Our staff is trained to protect client privacy. Legislation and Grandview Kids policies require staff to only access the information they need to give or support client care.

The client or their SDM has the right to withdraw consent for users to access their personal health information at Grandview Kids. You can do so by placing a consent directive on the client’s information. This is known as a “lockbox.”

A consent directive is privacy control. This control may give peace of mind regarding the safekeeping of the client’s personal health information. However, it may also impact care if a healthcare provider is not able to see the client’s entire health record. Please discuss with our Privacy Office what happens if you place a consent directive or “lockbox” on the client’s health record.

Grandview Kids cannot completely restrict access to a client’s personal health information. There are specific situations which still allow for access without consent, including:

• Risk of serious bodily harm to the client or another person
• Billing
• Error management
• Investigating incidents
• Investigating complaints

Grandview Kids regularly checks whom on staff accesses client health records to ensure they are allowed to.

If you would like to know more about locking a client record, please contact the Privacy Office.

Families may be contacted to donate to the Grandview Kids Foundation. Only names and addresses are used for fundraising purposes. No personal health information is used. Your donation to the Grandview Kids Foundation helps to support programs, equipment, research, and education. 

You may have your name removed from the fundraising mailing list by contacting the Grandview Kids Foundation at 905-728-1673 or toll-free at 1-800-304-6180 (press “6” to connect with the Grandview Kids Foundation). The care you receive will not be affected if you decide not to contribute.