InterMedical Hospital :. Privacy Practices

Intermedical Hospital of SC Inc. Joint Notice of Privacy Practices

THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW MEDICAL INFORMATION ABOUT YOU MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION. PLEASE REVIEW IT CAREFULLY.

Intermedical Hospital of SC, Inc.'s medical staff, practitioners and non-practitioners who provide services in any Intermedical Hospital of SC, Inc. facility may use and/or share your health information for treatment, to obtain payment for treatment, for administrative purposes, to evaluate the quality of care that you receive and for any and all other purposes described in this notice.

Understanding Your Health Record/Information

A record is created each time you receive services from Intermedical Hospital of Sc Inc., a physician or other healthcare provider associated with us. Typically, this record contains your symptoms, examination and test results, diagnoses, treatment, and a plan for future care or treatment. This information, often referred to as your health or medical record, serves as a basis for planning your care and treatment. It is communicated among the many health professionals who contribute to your care and enables you or a third-party payer to verify that services billed were actually provided. Your medical record is a legal document describing the care you received. It is a tool we use to educate health professionals and to assess and continually work to improve the care we provide and the outcomes we achieve. Your medical record may be a source of data for medical research, public health initiatives and facility planning.

The purpose of this Notice of Privacy Practices is to assist you in understanding what is in your medical record and who, what, when, where and why others may access your health information. This document will assist you in making more informed decisions when authorizing disclosures of your health information.

Your Health Information Rights

Although your health record is the physical property of the healthcare practitioner or facility that compiled it, the information belongs to you. You have rights afforded to you by The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), a federal regulation (42 CFR Part 164). These rights include:

The right to request a restriction on certain uses and disclosures of your information. Intermedical Hospital of Sc Inc. is not required to agree to a requested restriction. Requests for restrictions should be sent to the hospital's department of Health Information Management or the specific department maintaining your health information.

The right to obtain a paper copy of our Notice of Privacy Practices upon request. The Notice of Privacy Practices may be obtained from Intermedical Hospital of Sc Inc.'s registration areas.

The right to inspect and obtain a copy of your medical record. Intermedical Hospital of Sc Inc. charges a fee for copying medical records in accordance with South Carolina law. Copies may be obtained by contacting the hospital's department of Health Information Management or the specific department maintaining your health information.

The right to amend or correct your medical record. However, Intermedical Hospital of Sc Inc. is not required to agree to the requested amendment under certain circumstances. Requests for amendments should be sent to the hospital's department of Health Information Management or the specific department maintaining your health information.

The right to obtain an accounting of certain disclosures of your health information. An accounting of disclosures can be obtained from the hospital's department of Health Information Management or the specific department maintaining your health information. We will provide you with one free accounting each year. For subsequent requests, we will charge a $25.00 fee per request.

The right to request communication of your health information by alternative means or at alternative locations. Requests for alternative communications should be made to Health Information Management or the specific department maintaining your health information.