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Privacy Policy
The protection of your private personal information (PI) is one of the priorities at this website of The Dr. Malak Psychology Group. Due to the nature of the business of The Dr. Malak Psychology Group, they are required to collect essential Personal Identifiable Information (PII) as dictated by law. Additionally, The Dr. Malak Psychology Group is committed to collecting, using and disclosing your PII responsibly, and only to the extent necessary for the goods and services The Dr. Malak Psychology Group provides to you. This document describes how The Dr. Malak Psychology Group’s privacy policies are in alignment with PHIPA, PIPEDA, the Digital Privacy Act, and Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy (FIPP) in addition to The Dr. Malak Psychology Group’s own strict privacy policies & procedures.
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PHIPA:Â Â The Provincial; (Ontario) Personal Health Information Protection Act was established in Ontario in 2004. This legislation governs the collection, use and disclosure of personal health information, which is confidential data regarding a patient's mental and physical health.
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FIPPA:Â Â The Provincial; (Ontario) Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act
purpose:
(a) to provide a right of access to information under the control of institutions in accordance with the principles that,
   (i) Information should be available to the public,
   (ii) necessary exemptions from the right of access should be limited and specific, and
   (iii) decisions on the disclosure of government information should be reviewed independently of the government; and
(b) to protect the privacy of individuals with respect to personal information about themselves held by institutions and to provide individuals with a right of access to that information. R.S.O. 1990, c. F.31, s. 1.
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PIPEDA: Â The Federal; (Canada) Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act sets the ground rules for how private-sector organizations collect, use, and disclose personal information in the course of for-profit, commercial activities across Canada. PIPEDA generally applies to personal information held by private sector organizations that are not federally-regulated, and conduct business everywhere in Canada.
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Digital Privacy Act: Â Â The Federal; (Canada) The requirement for "valid consent" to the collection, use and disclosure of personal information. Every organization that collects, uses and discloses personal information in the course of commercial activity in Canada (with a few exceptions) must follow new mandatory data breach record-keeping, reporting and notification rules or face significant non-compliance consequences.
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What Is Personal Information (PI)/ Personally Identifiable Information (PII)?
Personal information is information about an identifiable individual. PII includes information that relates to their personal characteristics (e.g., gender, age, income, home address or phone number, ethnic background, family status), their health (e.g., health history, health conditions, health services received by them) or their activities and views (e.g., religion, politics, opinions expressed by an individual, an opinion or evaluation of an individual).
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What Is NOT Personal Information?
What is not considered to be Personal Information is business-related information (e.g., an individual's business address, business title, business email address and business telephone number), all of which are not protected by privacy legislation.
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Your Personal Information:
The Dr. Malak Psychology Group is required to collect PII information in regards to yourself which will include; legal name, date of birth, and place of residence; basically all contact information in addition to an emergency contact with their contact information, in order to provide you with optimal service. There will be requirements to provide your age, health history, current health condition(s), assessment results or diagnoses from other health providers; health services provided to or received by you.
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Currently The Dr. Malak Psychology Group, support personnel (accountants, legal representatives, IT techs) and administrative staff, etc; are all required to uphold The Dr. Malak Psychology Group’s strict policies and procedures in addition to the stringent protection and management of your confidential PII.
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In the course of doing business, The Dr. Malak Psychology Group may use a number of consultants, agencies and resources that may, in the course of their duties, have access to your personal information. Including but not limited to; computer consultants & technicians; office security; legal service providers; etc. The Dr. Malak Psychology Group proactively restricts access to your PII and has engaged these resources and possibly others under strict contracts to ensure they follow appropriate privacy policies and procedures which are required by law to protect your PII.
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Collection of Personal Information: Primary Purposes
About Patients/Clients (Patients)
Like all health service providers, The Dr. Malak Psychology Group may collect, use and disclose PII in order to serve you the patient.
The primary purpose; for collecting personal information, is to provide The Dr. Malak Psychology Group services and treatments. For example, The Dr. Malak Psychology Group may collect information on health history, including family history, physical condition, physical function and social situation in order to assess what your health needs are and to advise you of your options.
The secondary purpose; is to obtain a baseline of health and social information to facilitate the provision of ongoing optimum health services, and identify changes that are occurring over time. In the event, The Dr. Malak Psychology Group should need to collect such information without the patient's express consent, as might occur in an emergency (e.g., the patient is unconscious) or where The Dr. Malak Psychology Group reasonably believes the patient would consent if asked and it is impractical to obtain consent (e.g., a family member passing a message to us, from you the patient and The Dr. Malak Psychology Group has no reason to believe that the message is not genuine due to the reasonable nature of it).
Psychologists are regulated by the College of Psychologists of Ontario;
Who may inspect your records as a part of their regulatory activities, and in the public interest.
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As part of The Dr. Malak Psychology Group Duty of Care requirement(s);
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The Dr. Malak Psychology Group is mandated to report serious misconduct, incompetence or incapacity of any practitioner.
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Various government agencies (e.g., Canada Revenue Agency, Information and Privacy Commissioner, Human Rights Commission, etc.) have the authority to review your files as a part of their mandates.
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In these circumstances, The Dr. Malak Psychology Group may consult with professionals (e.g., legal representatives, or accountants) who investigate the matter on their behalf.
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The cost of some goods/services provided by The Dr. Malak Psychology Group to patients is paid for by third parties (e.g., WSIB, or private insurance).
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These third-party payers often have your consent or by the legislative authority to direct us to collect and disclose to them certain information in order to demonstrate patient entitlement to their funding.
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The Dr. Malak Psychology Group also provides ongoing services for many patients over a period of months or years for which previous records are essential resources.
  The Dr. Malak Psychology Group will retain patient information for a minimum of ten years after the last contact/entry or ten years after the patient reaches or would have reached, the age of eighteen or as is mandated by the current laws or regulatory bodies.
  Patients or other individuals The Dr. Malak Psychology Group has dealt with may have questions about their goods or services after they have been received years later.
If The Dr. Malak Psychology Group's practice or its assets were to be sold, the purchaser would conduct a "due diligence" review of The Dr. Malak Psychology Group records to ensure that it is a viable business which has been honestly portrayed. This due diligence may involve some review of the accounting and service files. The purchaser would not be able to remove or record personal information. Additionally, before being provided access to the files, the purchaser must provide a written promise/agreement to keep all PII confidential. Only reputable purchasers who have already agreed to purchase the organization's business or its assets would be provided access to personal information, and only for the purpose of completing their due diligence search prior to closing the purchase.
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Members of the General Public;
The Dr. Malak Psychology Group’s primary purpose for collecting a limited amount of your personal information including your email address; is to provide notice of appointments or other services.
Upon your request, The Dr. Malak Psychology Group will remove any reasonable personal information from the contact list. The Dr. Malak Psychology Group does not use, share, sell, or in any way distribute your information in any manner other than its original intended use as was provided by you.
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Collected Personal Information: Related and Secondary Purposes
The Dr. Malak Psychology Group will also collect, use and disclose information for purposes related to or secondary to the primary purposes and only in compliance with Government Regulations. The most common examples of the related and secondary purposes are as follows, and only upon your consent, would The Dr. Malak Psychology Group share essential information with third parties to provide you with their services under the following circumstances, to name but a few;
invoice patients for goods or services that were not paid for at the time they were provided, to process credit card payments or to collect unpaid accounts.
advise patients that their product or service should be reviewed (e.g., to ensure a product is still functioning properly and appropriate for their then current needs and to consider modifications or replacement).
advise patients and others of special events or opportunities (e.g., a seminar, development of a new service, the arrival of a new product).
additionally; external consultants (e.g., auditors, legal service providers, practice consultants, voluntary accreditation programs) may conduct audits and reviews for continuous quality improvements.
You can decline at any time, or discontinue the participation of some of these related or secondary purposes, (e.g., by declining to receive notice of special events or opportunities, and by paying for your services in advance).
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Protecting Your Personal Information
The Dr. Malak Psychology Group understands the importance of protecting all private information. For that reason, The Dr. Malak Psychology Group has taken the following steps:
Paper information is either under constant supervision or secured in a locked or restricted area.
Digital information is secured by passwords & electronic hardware either constantly under supervision or secured in a locked or restricted area at all times. In addition; strong passwords are used on all computers.
When paper information is transferred, it is in sealed, envelopes or boxes, and by reputable bonded courier companies.
Electronic/Digital information is transmitted either through a direct line (fax), is anonymized and/or is encrypted.
The Dr. Malak Psychology Group is trained to collect, use and disclose personal information only as necessary to fulfill the duties, in accordance with this strict privacy policy and the guidelines of Government Regulations.
External consultants and agencies with access to your personal information must enter into privacy agreements with The Dr. Malak Psychology Group, or sign confidentiality agreements prior to any transfer of private information or access to any PII in the course of providing their services to The Dr. Malak Psychology Group.
Unauthorized or unnecessary access to any personal information is prohibited.