Privacy Statement
Maintaining your privacy is important to us. That’s why we follow established guidelines to protect it.
The Mary J. Wright Child and Youth Development Clinic (MJW-CYDC) at Western University will collect client data through normal operating processes. The information is collected, used and disclosed in a manner consistent with provincial legislation, such as:
- the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA), R.S.O. 1990 and
- the Personal Health Information Protection Act (PHIPA), 2004, S.O. 2004.
Ontario legislation requires anyone who provides you with health care to protect your personal health information.
Personal health information is information that identifies an individual, which might include:
- The client’s physical or mental health (possibly including information about the health history of the client’s family);
- Details related to the provision of health care to the client and/or family (family doctor, etc.);
- Any other information that is included in a record containing personal health information and which is maintained for the purpose of providing health care or health services.
Employees and students who work in the MJW-CYDC are required to advise you of how your personal health information is used, stored and shared.
In certain situations, we must ask your permission before we collect, use or disclose it. We’re not permitted to collect personal health information that’s not relevant to your health needs or to collect, use or disclose more information than is necessary.
Those accessing your personal health information through the normal course of operations, or in gathering aggregate research data, are required to abide by the applicable provisions of the following governing elements: Ontario privacy legislation (PHIPA); Western University’s confidentiality and security of information policies; the Standards of Professional Conduct (2009) of the College of Psychologists of Ontario; all other relevant national and provincial professional associations, such as the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA).
MJW-CYDC will engage in research projects over the course of operations. The clinic will abide by the guidelines set forth (where applicable) by:
- Western Research Ethics,
- the Canadian Code of Ethics for Psychologists (Canadian Psychological Association, 2000),
- and the Tri-Council Policy Statement for Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans.
Network Security
Client information is stored in a secure database and is housed within Western University’s data centre. The information doesn’t depart Western University’s network environment.
In Case of Privacy Breach
Despite best effort and secure design, data breaches have happened in public and private sector clinics. While MJW-CYDC makes every effort to protect your information, the following outlines how a breach would be handled should it occur:
Once MJW-CYDC and/or Western University become aware of a possible or known breach, we’ll take the following steps:
- Contain the breach to the best of our ability, including the following:
- Retrieve hard copies of your personal health information that have been disclosed;
- Ensure copies have not been made;
- Take steps to prevent further unauthorized access;
- Report the breach to Western University Campus Police, Western University Campus Information Security Officer and the office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario.
- Notify those affected by the breach by:
- Providing our contact information in case there are any questions.
- We’ll investigate and remediate the problem by:
- Internal investigation;
- Taking steps to prevent further breaches;
- Ensuring all those who provide care and support staff are appropriately trained and conduct any further training as required.
How to Contact Us
Our privacy contact person is Dr. Colin King, Director of The Mary J. Wright Child and Youth Development Clinic.
For more information about our privacy protection practices or to raise a concern you have with our practices, contact us at:
The Mary J. Wright Child and Youth Development Clinic
Western University
1163 Richmond St.
London, ON N6A 3K6
Tel: 519-661-4257
Fax: 519-661-3809
Information & Privacy Commissioner
You have the right to contact the office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner/Ontario if you have a complaint about our privacy policies. The commissioner can be reached at:
Information and Privacy Commissioner/Ontario
2 Bloor Street East, Suite 1400
Toronto, ON M4W 1A8
Tel: 1-800-387-0073
TDD/TTY: 1-416-325-7539
Fax: 1-416-325-9195
Website: www.ipc.on.ca