This Privacy Notice explains how J.R. Borja General Hospital (JRBGH) will collect, hold, use, share and discard your personal information, how you may access that information, and how you may seek the correction of your information. It explains how you may make a complaint about any breaches in privacy. It also details your rights as a data subject under the Data Privacy Act of 2012. Please review it carefully.
This Notice is current from April 2021 and is reviewed annually. Changes to our policy, processes and systems in relation to how we handle your personal information may be done to adapt to new laws and technology. We reserve the right to make revisions effective for health information we already have about you as well as any information we receive in the future. We will post updated notices on our website to reflect these changes.
This Notice covers all individuals, departments and units at JRBGH who have access to, use, or disclose protected health information. It is administered by the Privacy Committee headed by our Data Protection Officer.
Our Pledge
JRBGH is committed to protecting the privacy and security of patients’ personal information, particularly health information. We will handle your personal information in a responsible manner in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.
Data Collection
We will ask your consent prior to collecting information that is necessary and relevant to provide you with quality medical care and treatment. This information will include your name, address, date of birth, gender, health information, family history, government IDs numbers and contact details. Information will be stored on our computer medical records and in handwritten records. It will be available to all health care and allied health professionals who need access in as much as they will be involved in your treatment.
Wherever practicable, we will only collect information from you personally. However, we may also need to collect information from other sources such as other doctors, hospitals you may have been previously admitted to, and your previous records.
We collect information in various ways, such as over the phone, in writing, in person in our hospital, or over the internet if you transact with us online. This information may be collected by both medical and non-medical staff. In emergency situations we may also need to collect information from your relatives or friends.
Data Quality and Security
We will take reasonable steps to ensure that your personal information is accurate, complete, up to date, and relevant. For this purpose our staff may ask you to confirm that your contact details are correct when you attend a consultation. We request that you let us know if any of the information we hold about you is incorrect or out of date.
Personal information that we hold is protected by securing our premises and by placing passwords and varying access levels on databases to limit access and protect electronic information from unauthorized interference, access, modification and disclosure.
Communication
Electronic exchange of information helps ensure better coordination of care. Our staff may utilize digital technology in order to facilitate quicker and prompt referrals within the health care team. They may use messaging platforms such as SMS, emails, FB messenger, Viber and other similar services in order to communicate with the team.
Use and disclosure
We will treat your personal information as strictly private and confidential. We will only use or disclose it for purposes directly related to your care and treatment, in the conduct of our professional operations, to collect payment for the services we provide, and to comply with the laws that govern health care.
a.Treatment
Your health information is used to provide you with medical treatment or services. We may use and share health information about you with physicians, nurses, allied medical staff, residents, and consultants from JRBGH or non-JRBGH health care providers, agencies or facilities in order to coordinate your care, such as in case of hospital transfers, to the receiving hospital.
b. Payment
We may use and disclose your information to confirm, bill and receive payment for health care services that we or others provide to you. This includes submission of your health information to receive payment from the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (Philhealth), other government programs or other parties that pay for your healthcare.
c. Healthcare operations
We may use and disclose information about you for JRBGH operations. This is done to enhance quality of care and for medical staff activities, and general business activities. This will include disclosing information to medical and other students, staff for performance
improvement, and other educational activities. We may also disclose information about you to outside contractors to carry out activities on our behalf such as IT service providers. We impose security and confidentiality requirements on how they handle your personal information. Outside contractors are required not to use information about you for any purpose except for those activities we have asked them to perform.
d. Research
All research activities conducted at JRBGH must be approved through a special review process to protect patient safety, welfare, and confidentiality. When we use information for research, we will de-identify your personal information.
e. Other uses of medical information
Other uses not covered by this Policy will be made only with your written authorization. However, we may use and disclose your personal information for other purposes which does not require your prior consent as it is mandated by law, such as in the following circumstances:
- To prevent or control disease, injury, or disability
- To report births and deaths
- To report the abuse or neglect of children, elders, and dependent adults • To notify a person who may have been exposed to a diseases or may be at risk for contracting or spreading a disease or condition
- To notify the appropriate government authority if we believe you have been a victim of abuse, neglect or domestic violence – we will only make this disclosure when required or authorized by law
- To notify the Department of Health, the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, and other appropriate authorities when you seek treatment at JRBGH for certain diseases or conditions required to be reported by law
- To respond to a court or administrative order in response to a subpoena, legally enforceable discovery request, or other lawful process or to defend ourselves against a lawsuit brought against us
- To law enforcement officials as authorized or required by law
Retention, Storage and Destruction
JRBGH will ensure that personal and health information under its custody are protected against any accidental or unlawful destruction, alteration and disclosure as well as against any other unlawful processing. All health information in the medical records in shall be retained for certain periods of time as required by law. Hard copies and electronic copies shall be brought to an appropriate facility for melting and destruction with secure protocols in place.
Patients Rights as Data Subjects
1. Right to Be Informed
The publication of this Notice serves as the de facto proof of JRBGH’s compliance of your right to be informed about the processing of your data. You have the right to a paper copy of this Policy at any time. You can contact the JRBGH Data Privacy Officer or obtain an electronic copy at the JRBGH website.
2. Right to Access
You have the right to obtain a copy of your pertinent health information. The medical information available to you are the following:
- Clinical Abstract/Discharge Summary
- Laboratory and other diagnostic results
- Consent for admission and procedure
- Record of Operation of Delivery
- Operative Technique
- Medical Certificate or Certificate of Confinement
To request for a copy of your medical records, please proceed to the Medical Records Office and fill out an Authorization to Release Patient Health Information Form. The following requirements will be needed before release can be given:
- Valid ID of patient and,
- If requesting in behalf of patient, authorization letter and valid ID of representative
We may deny access to your medical records in certain circumstances permitted by law, for example if disclosure may cause a serious threat to your health or safety. We will always tell you why access is denied and the options you have to respond to our decision.
3. Right to Rectification
If you believe that the personal information JRBGH has on file about you is incorrect or incomplete, you may ask us to correct the information. Please proceed to the Medical Records Office and fill out a Personal Data Correction Form. Documentation required as proof before processing requests are the following:
- Valid ID of patient
- For name change and/or change to date of birth, a copy of the Birth or Marriage Certificate or passport
- For change of date of death, a copy of the Death Certificate
- If requesting in behalf of patient, authorization letter and valid ID of representative
Please note that we cannot change what is in the record but can add the supplemental information by an addendum. If the information was not created by the hospital, if there are no documents to support your request, or if the information is determined by us to be accurate and complete, we may deny your request. We will provide you with a written explanation of our reason for doing so.
4. Right to Request Restrictions
You have the right to request a restriction or limitation on the medical information we use or disclose about you. You may submit a written request to the Medical Records Office. We are, however, not required to agree to your request, especially in cases where the information is needed to provide you with emergency treatment or we are required or permitted by law to disclose it.
5. Right to Damages
You will be indemnified for any damages sustained if the data we obtained was inaccurate, incomplete, outdated, false, unlawfully obtained, or used without authorization, taking into account any violation of your rights and freedoms as a data subject.
Notification in Case of a Breach
We will notify you in case your medical information has been “breached,” which means that your medical information has been used or disclosed in a way that is inconsistent with law and results in it being compromised.
Complaints
If you have a complaint or would like further information about the privacy of your personal information, we request that you contact us (see contact details at the end of this Notice). Upon receipt of a complaint we will consider the details and attempt to resolve it in accordance with our complaints handling procedures.
If you are dissatisfied with our handling of a complaint or outcome you may contact the National Privacy Commission at Trunkline No. 8234-2228 (114) or access their website at privacy.gov.ph.
Please direct any queries or complaints about privacy issues to:
Ms. Anna Lissa P. Nery
Data Protection Officer
JR Borja General Hospital
J.V. Seriña St., Carmen, Cagayan de Oro City
email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Please direct requests for access to medical records to:
Mr. Michael Iyoy
Medical Records Supervisor
JR Borja General Hospital
J.V. Seriña St., Carmen, Cagayan de Oro City
email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Cell phone no. (office hours only): 09679726898
