How will my personal information be managed if I use the Medicare Mental Health – National Mental Health Website (medicarementalhealth.gov.au)

Your personal information is protected by law, including the Privacy Act 1988 and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs).
 

Who is collecting your personal information?

Your personal information is being collected by the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing (the department/ we). 

The Medicare Mental Health website is maintained by the department. The collection, use and disclosure of your personal information will be managed in accordance with the department’s Privacy Policy.
 

What information will be collected?

We collect your personal information for the purposes of: 

• helping you to find mental health centres or Primary Health Networks which are close to your postcode,
• arranging a call-back to your preferred name and telephone number from your closest Primary Health Network, and
• displaying suitable mental health services through the self-assessment quiz

The information collected in the quiz includes information about your age, gender, mental health, social, emotional and wellbeing needs, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander status, multicultural status, parental status, sexuality, military or veteran status, carer status and email address.

The information collected to request a call-back from the Medicare Mental Health 1800 595 212 Phone Service includes information about your postcode, age, preferred name, phone number and email address. You can also choose to share a copy of your quiz results with the Medicare Mental Health Phone Service team to discuss during the call-back. 

If you are currently seeing a health service provider, your health service provider can also provide information about you (only with your consent) to find appropriate online resources for you and provide you with information about these resources.

Why does the department collect your personal information?

Some features of the website require some of your personal information to provide you with information and assistance. The website may not be able to provide information or assistance in the same way (or at all) if your personal information is not provided.

The website will not collect your personal information unless you choose to provide it or request a carer or support person to provide it for you. You can use the website either anonymously or by using a name which is different to your real name. However, the website will need to collect some information about you to present you with content which may be useful to you.

Who will my personal information be shared with?

The website will share your information with other parties when you have requested a service such as a call-back from a health service provider. You will be asked to consent to share your information prior to disclosure of that information.

We may disclose a limited set of personal information about you to representatives of the Medicare Mental Health 1800 595 212 Phone Service and St Vincents Health Australia (service provider delivering Medicare Mental Health Check In on behalf of the Australian Government). Your information is disclosed for the purpose of fulfilling a call-back request to assess your suitability to access Medicare Mental Health Check In. Information will only be disclosed to the Medicare Mental Health Phone Service and St Vincents Health Australia if you request a call-back.

The department may need to share your information with another party if it is required to do so by law, or if the information needs to be shared in order to lessen or prevent a serious threat to the life, health or safety of any individual, or to public health and safety.

How can I access or correct my personal information, or make a complaint about how my personal information is managed?

The department’s Privacy Policy has details about how you can access your personal information, and how you can ask the department to correct your information if it is wrong. However, please note that the department does not keep any record of the personal information you provide through the website as your information is sent directly to a relevant health service provider. For example, the details you provide in a call-back request such as your phone number, preferred name (including any nicknames) and your postcode or suburb will be sent directly to your selected Primary Health Network.

The department’s Privacy Policy also has details about how you can make a complaint if you believe the Department has breached the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) or the Privacy (Australian Government Agencies — Governance) APP Code 2017 or mishandled your personal information.
 

Overseas disclosure of your personal information

We will not disclose your personal information to any overseas recipients.
 

Further information

You can read the department’s privacy policy here. You can obtain a copy of the APP privacy policy by contacting the department using the contact details set out at the end of this notice.  

Consent 

By providing your sensitive information to us, you consent to the department collecting your sensitive information for the purposes indicated above. 

When you tick the tick box on the website relating to the Terms of Use and the Privacy Notice, you are giving the department consent to collect your information through the Medicare Mental Health website and to manage that information in accordance with this privacy notice and the department’s Privacy Policy.

If you are providing the department with personal information about another individual, unless you are authorised to consent on their behalf, you will need to inform that individual of the contents of this notice and obtain their consent to the department collecting their personal information. 

Departmental privacy enquiries

If you wish to contact the department about a privacy-related matter, including questions about this notice, please contact the department’s Privacy Officer by one of the following methods:

• Post 
  Privacy Officer 
  Department of Health, Disability and Ageing 
  23 Furzer Street 
  WODEN ACT  2606 
• Email 
  privacy@health.gov.au  
• Telephone 
  02 6289 1555