Your Personal Health Information

Personal Health Information Access/Disclosure Inquiries

The Personal Health Information Protection Act, 2004 (PHIPA) is an Ontario law that governs the collection, use, and disclosure of personal health information within the health sector. Our objective is to keep your personal health information confidential and secure, while allowing for the effective delivery of health care.

 

ConnectingOntario

The ConnectingOntario ClinicalViewer is a secure, provincial electronic health record (EHR) system that allows Ontario clinicians, and authorized members of their health care teams, to access their patients’ personal health information (e.g. lab results, diagnostic imaging reports, discharge summaries, details of a prior visit to the emergency or other department). Access to the viewer is restricted to those who provide or assist with patient care. The program is funded and overseen by eHealth Ontario. For more information on the ConnectingOntario program please visit www.ehealthontario.on.ca

 

Queensway Carleton Hospital is a contributing organization and will provide its health care providers with access to the provincial EHR through the ConnectingOntario ClinicalViewer. This is done to improve the patient experience and ensure that hospital patients receive the care that we would want for our loved ones. Queensway Carleton Hospital, along with all other organizations participating in the ConnectingOntario program, must follow all applicable health privacy laws (including the Personal Health Information and Protection Act,2004) as well as the EHR privacy policies and procedures.

 

 

Consent Directives 

You have the right to block access to your personal health record in the viewer by placing a consent directive (often referred to as a lock-box). It is best to discuss the implications of placing a consent directive with a member of your treatment team. Please note that a consent directive may be overridden with your express consent, or in other circumstances permitted by law. For more information, please contact our Information and Privacy Office at 613-721-2000 ext. 5611.

 

Access and Correction 

You have the right to request copies of your health records contained in the viewer or request that your record be corrected if you believe it contains an error. Please contact our Health Records Department at 613-721-200 ext. 2802 if your request relates to information about a previous visit to QCH. For all other access or correction requests in the EHR, please refer to the eHealth Ontario website here.

 

Inquiries and Complaints About ConnectingOntario 

For privacy-related inquiries and complaints about Queensway Carleton Hospital’s participation in the ConnectingOntario program, please contact our Information and Privacy Office at or i . For all other inquiries and complaints about the EHR program or the viewer, please refer to the eHealth Ontario website here.
 

For more information about Connecting Ontario - please read their patient information brochure

 

Requesting Access to Personal Health Information at QCH

Under the Act, you (or someone acting on your behalf i.e. a lawyer) have the right to access and request a copy of your personal health information. If you would like to access your personal health information, please complete the Health Records Department Consent to Disclose Personal Health Information form.

 

Please print and complete this form and mail it to:

Queensway Carleton Hospital

ATTN: Medical Health Records Department

3045 Baseline Road

Ottawa, Ontario, K2H 8P4

 

A fee of $30 will be charged for requests of 20 pages or less. Pages beyond this will cost an additional $0.25 per page.   

If you have questions about how to access your Personal Health Records, please contact us at 613-721-2000 ext. 2802.

 

When a request is received, the Information and Privacy Office may contact you to clarify your request, if additional information is required. Queensway Carleton Hospital is committed to respond to your request within 30 days, in accordance with the PHIPA. For patients 12 years of age or older, a written request signed by the patient or the patient's substitute decision maker is required before a request can be fulfilled.  

 

Looking for information on how to request hospital information? Please refer to the 'Request for Information' tab.