Notice of Privacy Practices at Shelby Dental Care Center

Uses and Disclosures

Your Privacy Rights

Additional Privacy Rights
Complaints

Notice of Privacy Practices

Your medical information is safe with us. We are following a privacy protocol that ensures the safe use of the medical information that you have entrusted to us. This notice details how your medical information will be used and disclosed, and how you can get access to it. As we keep your digital information, we urge our patients to read our privacy practices. 

Check out the guidelines we have set in place in our documents below. If you have any questions or concerns about your medical information at Shelby Dental Care Center, please contact the privacy officer at 704-481-6781 loc. 115, or in writing at P.O. Box 656, Shelby, NC 28151.

We are committed to protect the privacy of your personal health information (PHI).

Notice of Privacy Practices

Our Notice of Privacy Practices details how we, as a dental health provider,  may use your Personal Health Information or PHI within our practice or dental network. It also includes the details on how we may disclose or share your PHI outside our practice or network to carry out treatment, payment, or health care operations. 

We may also share your information for other purposes that are permitted or required by law. Our privacy notice also includes your rights to access and control your PHI. As dentists in Shelby, NC, we are required by law to maintain the privacy of your PHI and follow the terms outlined in this Notice.

 We may change our privacy notice, at any time. Any changes will apply to all PHI. Upon your request, we will provide you with any revised notice by:

$

Posting the new Notice
in our office.

$
If requested, making copies of the new Notice available in our office or by mail.
$

Posting the revised Notice on our website: www.shelbydentalcarecenter.com.

Website Accessibility

We work endlessly to broaden the content that is available on our website. The following list includes some tips to help improve your browsing experience and give you more access to the assistance you are looking for.

A. Visual Assistance: If you are having difficulty viewing web pages, the following tips can help.

  • Use your computer to read web pages aloud
  • Use the keyboard to navigate screens
  • Increase text size
  • Magnify your screen
  • Change background and text colors
  • Make your mouse pointer more visible (Windows only)

    B. Audio Assistance – Closed Captioning: If you have trouble hearing or are deaf, closed captioning allows you to follow the video by displaying the words on the screen as they are spoken in the video. Even if you are in a loud room and cannot catch the full audio, closed captioning can help ensure you don’t miss any of the audio.

    C. Audio Assistance – Volume Controls: All of your devices, including your phone, tablet and computer, should have volume controls. In addition, each video and audio service also has its own volume controls. Adjusting both of these controls can improve your experience.

    D. Keyboard and Mouse Alternatives: If you are in need of an alternative to using the mouse or keyboard, try utilizing speech recognition software. These programs, such as Dragon Naturally Speaking, can assist you in navigating online through web pages and other services. This software uses voice controls to allow the user to navigate where they need to go online, taking the place of a mouse or keyboard.

    E. Additional Assistance: If you need additional help after reading these tips, please feel free to call us for more assistance.

    Uses and Disclosures of Protected Health Information

    We may use or disclose (share) your PHI to provide health care treatment for you.

    Your PHI may be used and disclosed by your physician, our office staff and others outside of our office that are involved in your care and treatment for the purpose of providing health care services to you.

    EXAMPLE: Your PHI may be provided to a physician to whom you have been referred for evaluation to ensure that the physician has the necessary information to diagnose or treat you. We may also share your PHI from time- to-time with another physician or health care provider (e.g., a specialist or laboratory) who, at the request of your physician, becomes involved in your care by providing assistance with your health care diagnosis or treatment to your physician.

    We may also share your PHI with people outside of our practice that may provide medical care for you such as home health agencies.

    We may use and disclose your PHI to obtain payment for services. We may provide your PHI to others in order to bill or collect payment for services. There may be services for which we share information with your health plan to determine if the service will be paid for.

    PHI may be shared with the following:

    • Billing companies
    • Insurance companies, health plans
    • Government agencies in order to assist with qualification of benefits
    • Collection agencies

    EXAMPLE: You are seen at our practice for a procedure. We will need to provide a listing of services such as x-rays to your insurance company so that we can get paid for the procedure. We may at times contact your health care plan to receive approval PRIOR to performing certain procedures to ensure the services will be paid for. This will require sharing of your PHI.

    We may use or disclose, as-needed, your PHI in order to support the business activities of this practice which are called health care operations.

    EXAMPLES:

    • Training students, other health care providers, or ancillary staff such as billing personnel to help them learn or improve their skills.
    • Quality improvement processes which look at delivery of health care and for improvement in processes which will provide safer, more effective care for you.
    • Use of information to assist in resolving problems or complaints within the practice.

    We may use and disclosure your PHI in other situations without your permission:

    • If required by law: The use or disclosure will be made in compliance with the law and will be limited to the relevant requirements of the law. For example, we may be required to report gunshot wounds or suspected abuse or neglect.
    • Public health activities: The disclosure will be made for the purpose of controlling disease, injury or disability and only to public health authorities permitted by law to collect or receive information. We may also notify individuals who may have been exposed to a disease or may be at risk of contracting or spreading a disease or condition.
    • Health oversight agencies: We may disclose protected health information to a health oversight agency for activities authorized by law, such as audits, investigations, and inspections. Oversight agencies seeking this information include government agencies that oversee the health care system, government benefit programs, other government regulatory programs and civil rights laws.
    • Legal proceedings: To assist in any legal proceeding or in response to a court order, in certain conditions in response to a subpoena, or other lawful process.
      Police or other law enforcement purposes: The release of PHI will meet all applicable legal requirements for release.
    • Coroners, funeral directors: We may disclose protected health information to a coroner or medical examiner for identification purposes, determining cause of death or for the coroner or medical examiner to perform other duties authorized by law.
    • Medical research: We may disclose your protected health information to researchers when their research has been approved by an institutional review board that has reviewed the research proposal and established protocols to ensure the privacy of your protected health information.
    • Special government purposes: Information may be shared for national security purposes, or if you are a member of the military, to the military under limited circumstances.
      Correctional institutions: Information may be shared if you are an inmate or under custody of law which is necessary for your health or the health and safety of other individuals.
    • Workers’ Compensation: Your protected health information may be disclosed by us as authorized to comply with workers’ compensation laws and other similar legally established programs.

    Other uses and disclosures of your health information.

    Business Associate(s): Some services are provided through the use of contracted entities called “business associate(s).” We will always release only the minimum amount of PHI necessary so that the business associate(s) can perform the identified services. We require the business associate(s) to appropriately safeguard your information. Examples of the business associate(s) include billing companies or transcription services.

    Health information exchange: We may make your health information available electronically to other healthcare providers outside of our facility who are involved in your care.

    Treatment alternatives: We may provide you notice of treatment options or other health related services that may improve your overall health.

    Appointment reminders: We may contact you as a reminder about upcoming appointments or treatment. This may be in written format, telephone or text. If we are unable to reach you by telephone a message will be left on your voicemail or with another member of your household.

    We may use or disclose your PHI in the following situations UNLESS you object.

    • We may share your information with friends or family members, or other persons directly identified by you at the level they are involved in your care or payment of services. If you are not present or able to agree/object, the healthcare provider using professional judgment will determine if it is in your best interest to share the information. For example, we may discuss post procedure instructions with the person who drove you to the facility unless you tell us specifically not to share the information.
    • We may use or disclose protected health information to notify or assist in notifying a family member, personal representative or any other person that is responsible for your care, general condition or making burial arrangements.
    • We may use or disclose your protected health information to an authorized public or private entity to assist in disaster relief efforts.

    The following uses and disclosures of PHI require your written authorization:

    • Marketing
    • Disclosures for any purposes which require the sale of your information

    All other uses and disclosures not recorded in this Notice will require a written authorization from you or your personal representative.

    Written authorization simply explains how you want your information used and disclosed. Your written authorization may be revoked at any time, in writing. Except to the extent that your doctor or this practice has used or released information based on the direction provided in the authorization, no further use or disclosure will occur.

    Uses and Disclosures of Protected Health Information

    We may use or disclose (share) your PHI to provide health care treatment for you.

    Your PHI may be used and disclosed by your physician, our office staff and others outside of our office that are involved in your care and treatment for the purpose of providing health care services to you.

    EXAMPLE: Your PHI may be provided to a physician to whom you have been referred for evaluation to ensure that the physician has the necessary information to diagnose or treat you. We may also share your PHI from time- to-time with another physician or health care provider (e.g., a specialist or laboratory) who, at the request of your physician, becomes involved in your care by providing assistance with your health care diagnosis or treatment to your physician.

    We may also share your PHI with people outside of our practice that may provide medical care for you such as home health agencies.

    We may use and disclose your PHI to obtain payment for services. We may provide your PHI to others in order to bill or collect payment for services. There may be services for which we share information with your health plan to determine if the service will be paid for.

    PHI may be shared with the following:

    • Billing companies
    • Insurance companies, health plans
    • Government agencies in order to assist with qualification of benefits
    • Collection agencies

    EXAMPLE: You are seen at our practice for a procedure. We will need to provide a listing of services such as x-rays to your insurance company so that we can get paid for the procedure. We may at times contact your health care plan to receive approval PRIOR to performing certain procedures to ensure the services will be paid for. This will require sharing of your PHI.

    We may use or disclose, as-needed, your PHI in order to support the business activities of this practice which are called health care operations.

    EXAMPLES:

    • Training students, other health care providers, or ancillary staff such as billing personnel to help them learn or improve their skills.
    • Quality improvement processes which look at delivery of health care and for improvement in processes which will provide safer, more effective care for you.
    • Use of information to assist in resolving problems or complaints within the practice.

    We may use and disclosure your PHI in other situations without your permission:

    • If required by law: The use or disclosure will be made in compliance with the law and will be limited to the relevant requirements of the law. For example, we may be required to report gunshot wounds or suspected abuse or neglect.
    • Public health activities: The disclosure will be made for the purpose of controlling disease, injury or disability and only to public health authorities permitted by law to collect or receive information. We may also notify individuals who may have been exposed to a disease or may be at risk of contracting or spreading a disease or condition.
    • Health oversight agencies: We may disclose protected health information to a health oversight agency for activities authorized by law, such as audits, investigations, and inspections. Oversight agencies seeking this information include government agencies that oversee the health care system, government benefit programs, other government regulatory programs and civil rights laws.
    • Legal proceedings: To assist in any legal proceeding or in response to a court order, in certain conditions in response to a subpoena, or other lawful process.
      Police or other law enforcement purposes: The release of PHI will meet all applicable legal requirements for release.
    • Coroners, funeral directors: We may disclose protected health information to a coroner or medical examiner for identification purposes, determining cause of death or for the coroner or medical examiner to perform other duties authorized by law.
    • Medical research: We may disclose your protected health information to researchers when their research has been approved by an institutional review board that has reviewed the research proposal and established protocols to ensure the privacy of your protected health information.
    • Special government purposes: Information may be shared for national security purposes, or if you are a member of the military, to the military under limited circumstances.
      Correctional institutions: Information may be shared if you are an inmate or under custody of law which is necessary for your health or the health and safety of other individuals.
    • Workers’ Compensation: Your protected health information may be disclosed by us as authorized to comply with workers’ compensation laws and other similar legally established programs.

    Other uses and disclosures of your health information.

    Business Associate(s): Some services are provided through the use of contracted entities called “business associate(s).” We will always release only the minimum amount of PHI necessary so that the business associate(s) can perform the identified services. We require the business associate(s) to appropriately safeguard your information. Examples of the business associate(s) include billing companies or transcription services.

    Health information exchange: We may make your health information available electronically to other healthcare providers outside of our facility who are involved in your care.

    Treatment alternatives: We may provide you notice of treatment options or other health related services that may improve your overall health.

    Appointment reminders: We may contact you as a reminder about upcoming appointments or treatment. This may be in written format, telephone or text. If we are unable to reach you by telephone a message will be left on your voicemail or with another member of your household.

    We may use or disclose your PHI in the following situations UNLESS you object.

    • We may share your information with friends or family members, or other persons directly identified by you at the level they are involved in your care or payment of services. If you are not present or able to agree/object, the healthcare provider using professional judgment will determine if it is in your best interest to share the information. For example, we may discuss post procedure instructions with the person who drove you to the facility unless you tell us specifically not to share the information.
    • We may use or disclose protected health information to notify or assist in notifying a family member, personal representative or any other person that is responsible for your care, general condition or making burial arrangements.
    • We may use or disclose your protected health information to an authorized public or private entity to assist in disaster relief efforts.

    The following uses and disclosures of PHI require your written authorization:

    • Marketing
    • Disclosures for any purposes which require the sale of your information

    All other uses and disclosures not recorded in this Notice will require a written authorization from you or your personal representative.

    Written authorization simply explains how you want your information used and disclosed. Your written authorization may be revoked at any time, in writing. Except to the extent that your doctor or this practice has used or released information based on the direction provided in the authorization, no further use or disclosure will occur.

    Your Privacy Rights

    You have certain rights related to your protected health information. All requests to exercise your rights must be made in writing to the Privacy Officer, at P.O. Box 656, Shelby, NC 28151.

    You have the right to see and obtain a copy of your protected health information.

    This means you may inspect and obtain a copy of protected health information about you that is contained in a designated record set for as long as we maintain the protected health information. If requested we will provide you a copy of your records in an electronic format. There are some exceptions to records which may be copied and the request may be denied. We may charge you a reasonable fee for a copy of the records.

    You have the right to request a restriction of your protected health information.

    You may request for this practice not to use or disclose any part of your protected health information for the purposes of treatment, payment or healthcare operations. We are not required to agree with these requests. If we agree to a restriction request we will honor the restriction request unless the information is needed to provide emergency treatment.

    There is one exception: We must accept a restriction request to restrict disclosure of information to a health plan if you pay out-of-pocket in full for a service or product, unless it is otherwise required by law.

    You have the right to request for us to communicate in different ways or in different locations.

    We will agree to reasonable requests. You may also request alternative address or other method of contact such as mailing information to a post office box. We will not ask for an explanation from you about the request.

    You may have the right to request an amendment of your health information.

    You may request an amendment of your health information if you feel that the information is not correct along with an explanation of the reason for the request. In certain cases, we may deny your request for an amendment at which time you will have an opportunity to disagree.

    You have the right to a list of people or organizations who have received your health information from us.

    This right applies to disclosures for purposes other than treatment, payment or healthcare operations. You have the right to obtain a listing of these disclosures that occurred after April 14, 2003. You may request them for the previous six years or a shorter timeframe. If you request more than one list within a 12 month period you may be charged a reasonable fee.

    Additional Privacy Rights
    • You have the right to obtain a paper copy of this notice from us, upon request. We will provide you a copy of this Notice the first day we treat you at our facility. In an emergency situation we will give you this Notice as soon as possible.
    • You have a right to receive notification of any breach of your protected health information.
    Complaints
    If you think we have violated your rights or you have a complaint about our privacy practices, you can contact the Privacy Officer at 704-482-7986 x115.

    You may also complain to the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services if you believe your privacy rights have been violated by us.

    If you file a complaint we will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.

    This notice was published and becomes effective on January 1, 2014

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