Compliance

The Facility is committed to a culture of uncompromising integrity and professionalism. Our guiding principles rely on treating each other with dignity and respect to include relationships with employees, customers, contractors, and vendors. We believe in fostering a work environment that is productive, healthy, safe and strives for excellence in performance, governance, and service. We follow the highest ethical standards and comply with laws and regulations.

Our Code of Conduct sets the standard for how we work together to provide quality services to our customers, employees, and external partners. The responsibility to follow the Code of Conduct applies to employees, consultants, independent contractors, suppliers, and anyone who enters a business partnership with the Facility.

Your Rights

When it comes to your health information, you have certain rights. You have the right to:

Get an electronic or paper copy of your medical record

• You can ask to see or get an electronic or paper copy of your medical record and other health information we have about you. Ask us how to do this.
• We will provide a copy or a summary of your health information, usually within 30 days of your request. We may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee.

Ask us to correct your medical record

• You can ask us to correct health information about you that you think is incorrect or incomplete. Ask us how to do this.
• We may say “no” to your request, but we’ll tell you why in writing within 60 days.

Request Confidential communications

• You can ask us to contact you in a specific way (for example, home or office phone) or to send mail to a different address.
• We will say “yes” to all reasonable requests.

Ask us to limit what we use or share

• You can ask us not to use or share certain health information for treatment, payment, or our operations. We are not required to agree to your request, and we may say “no” if it would affect your care.
• If you pay for a service or health care item out-of-pocket in full, you can ask us not to share that information for the purpose of payment or our operations with your health insurer. We will say “yes” unless a law requires us to share that information.

Get a list of those with whom we’ve shared information

• You can ask for a list (accounting) of the times we’ve shared your health information for six years prior to the date you ask, who we shared it with, and why.
• We will include all the disclosures except for those about treatment, payment, and health care operations, and certain other disclosures (such as any you asked us to make). We’ll provide one accounting a year for free but will charge a reasonable, cost-based fee if you ask for another one within 12 months.

Get a copy of this privacy notice

• A copy of this notice is provided within your admission packet at the time of admission; should you be unable to locate the notice please feel free to ask for another copy.

Choose someone to act for you

• If you have given someone medical power of attorney or if someone is your legal guardian, that person can exercise your rights and make choices about your health information.
• We will make sure the person has this authority and can act for you before we take any action.

File a complaint if you feel your rights are violated

• You can complain if you feel we have violated your rights by contacting us directly at the facility, or by calling the Compliance Hotline at 1-844-773-8241. Calls to the Hotline are anonymous, unless you choose to give your name.
• You can file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights by sending a letter to 200 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20201, calling 1-877-696-6775, or visiting hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/complaints/.
• You may also file a complaint with the Agency for Healthcare Administration (AHCA) –
  • In writing at AHCA, 2727 Mahan Drive, Tallahassee, FL 32308
  • Via telephone toll free at 1-888-419-3456; or
  • Electronically at fdhc.state.fl.us/contact/index.shtml, and click on Health Care Facility Complaint form
• We will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.

For certain health information, you can tell us your choices about what we share. If you have a clear preference for how we share your information in the situations described below, talk to us. Tell us what you want us to do, and we will follow your instructions.

In these cases, you have both the right and choice to tell us to:

• Share information with your family, close friends, or others involved in your care
• Share information in a disaster relief situation
• Include your information in a facility directory

If you are not able to tell us your preference, for example if you are unconscious, we may go ahead and share your information if we believe it is in your best interest. We may also share your information when needed to lessen a serious and imminent threat to health or safety.

In these cases we never share your information unless you give us written permission:

• Marketing purposes
• Sale of your information
• Most sharing of psychotherapy notes

In the case of fundraising:

• We may contact you for fundraising efforts, but you can tell us not to contact you again.

The facility is required to maintain a record of all disclosures of information contained in the medical record to a third party, including the purpose of the disclosure. We typically use or share your health information in the following ways:

To treat you

We can use your health information and share it with other professionals who are treating you.

Example: A doctor treating you for an injury asks another doctor about your overall health condition.

To run our organization

We can use and share your health information to run our practice, improve your care, and contact you when necessary.

Example: We use health information about you to manage your treatment and services.

To bill for your services

We can use and share your health information to bill and get payment from health plans or other entities.

Example: We give information about you to your health insurance plan so it will pay for your services.

We are allowed, or required, to share your information in other ways – usually in ways that contribute to the public good, such as public health and research.

Help with public health and safety issues

We can share health information about you for certain situations such as:

• Preventing disease
• Helping with product recalls
• Reporting adverse reactions to medications
• Reporting suspected abuse, neglect, or domestic violence
• Preventing or reducing a serious threat to anyone’s health or safety

Do research

We can use or share your information for health research.

Comply with the law

We will share information about you if state or federal laws require it, including with the Department of Health and Human Services if it wants to see that we’re complying with federal privacy law.

Respond to organ and tissue donation requests

We can share health information about you with organ procurement organizations.

Work with a medical examiner or funeral director

We can share health information with a coroner, medical examiner, or funeral director when an individual dies.

Address workers’ compensation, law enforcement, and other government requests

We can use or share health information about you:

• For workers’ compensation claims
• For law enforcement purposes or with a law enforcement official
• With health oversight agencies for activities authorized by law
• For special government functions such as military, national security, and presidential protective services

Respond to lawsuits and legal actions

We can share health information about you in response to a court or administrative order, or in response to a subpoena.

We have to meet many conditions in the law before we can share your information for these purposes. For more information you can visit: www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/consumers/index.html.

Our Responsibilities

• We are required by law to maintain the privacy and security of your protected health information.
• We will let you know promptly if a breach occurs that may have compromised the privacy or security of your information.
• We must follow the duties and privacy practices described in this notice and give you a copy of it.
• We will not use or share your information other than as described here unless you tell us we can in writing. If you tell us we can, you may change your mind at any time. Let us know in writing if you change your mind.
• We never sell or market personal information
• We will make available copies of reports and records related to a person’s examination or treatment, in a timely manner, upon your request or that of your legal representative.
• When a patient’s psychiatric, psychological, or psych-therapeutic records are requested by the patient or the patient’s legal representative, the facility may provide a report of examination and treatment in lieu of copies of records. Upon a patient’s, or their legal representative’s, written request, complete copies of the patient’s psychiatric records must be provided directly to a subsequent treating psychiatrist.
• We will allow you to examine original records in our possession under reasonable terms to assure that the record will not be damaged, destroyed or altered.

For more information you can visit: www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/consumers/noticepp.html.

Changes to the Terms of this Notice

We can change the terms of this notice, and the changes will apply to all information we have about you. The new notice will be available upon request, in our office, and on our web site.