Printed from https://fyi.org.nz/request/23315-accs-documents-regarding-expert-medical-advice-breaches-of-the-privacy-act on November 22, 2024 01:39

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ACCs documents regarding expert medical advice, breaches of the Privacy Act

AS Van Wey (Account suspended) made this Official Information request to Accident Compensation Corporation

This request has an unknown status. We're waiting for AS Van Wey (Account suspended) to read a recent response and update the status.

From: AS Van Wey (Account suspended)

Dear Accident Compensation Corporation,

This is a request for all of the documents, forms, checklists, manuals, guidelines, forms, examples, and policies pertaining to ACCs seeking and obtaining expert medical advice when evaluating cover for a claim.

Please include the documents, checklists, policies, guidelines, processes and forms pertaining to informing the claimant of the decision to seek expert medical advice and to obtain the consent of the claimant prior to disclosure to a medical expert.

Please include the documents, checklists, policies, guidelines, processes and forms pertaining to when a medical expert expresses that ACC requested they comment on a claim outside their vocational scope of practice.

All internal policies, processes, manuals, guidelines, documents pertaining to reporting breaches of the privacy act. For example when a expert medical advisor notifies ACC that they had not been provided any relevant health information (i.e., ACC unlawfully obtained, disclosed, used, or retained medical records unrelated to a claim). Or when a claimant complains to an ACC that ACC had disclosed medical records without their informed consent and had obtained, disclosed, used or retained medical records unrelated to their claim.

All internal policies, processes, manuals, guidelines, documents pertaining to communicating with the claimant prior to making a decision to ensure that the records they have in a claim file are accurate and complete.

All policies, guidelines, process, manual and other documents, pertaining to the steps ACC takes when a claimant complains about breaches of privacy and requests that records and reports be corrected to ensure accuracy and completeness, including reports by expert medical advisors contracted by ACC.

Yours faithfully,

AS Van Wey

Link to this

From: Government Services
Accident Compensation Corporation

Kia ora

 

Thank you for contacting ACC; this is an automatic reply to confirm we
have received your email.

 

We will try to respond your query as quickly as possible. However,
depending on the nature of your request you may not receive a response for
up to 20 working days. You can check the [1]Ombudsman OIA response
calculator to find when your request for official information will be due

 

In cases where ACC’s response provides information that is identified to
be of general public interest, the response may also be published on the
ACC’s website. If ACC publishes the response to your OIA request, all
personal information, including your name and contact details, will be
removed.

 

The information you have requested may involve documents which contains
the names of our staff. Please let us know whether you require these
names. We may need to consult our staff before deciding whether we can
release this information, and this may take a bit more time. If we do not
hear from you, we will assume that you do not require staff names.

 

Our [2]website provides up to date news and information about our work.
You can also follow us on [3]Facebook and [4]Twitter. Further information
about how to contact us is also available [5]here.

 

Ngâ mihi,

Government Engagement Team

 

Government Engagement, ACC

' 0800 101 996
* Box 242, Wellington 6011

[6]www.acc.co.nz

 

 

Disclaimer:

"This message and any attachments may contain confidential and privileged
information. If you believe you have received this email in error, please
advise us immediately by return email or telephone and then delete this
email together with all attachments. If you are not the intended
recipient, you are not authorised to use or copy this message or any
attachments or disclose the contents to any other person."

References

Visible links
1. http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/agenc...
2. http://www.acc.co.nz/
3. http://www.facebook.com/ACCNewZealand/
4. https://twitter.com/accnz
5. http://www.acc.co.nz/contact/
6. https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...

Link to this

From: Government Services
Accident Compensation Corporation

Attachment GOV 026095 Appendix 1.pdf
4.3M Download View as HTML

Attachment GOV 026095 Response.pdf
311K Download View as HTML

Kia ora

Please find attached our response to your official information request
dated 29 June 2023. If you have any questions about the response you can
contact us at this [1]address, for all other matters please use our
contact form at: [2]https://www.acc.co.nz/contact/ alternatively give us a
call on 0800 101 996.

If you are having trouble viewing the PDF, please ensure you have the
latest version of Adobe Acrobat Reader. To download this freeware please
click [3]here. 

 

Ngâ mihi

Sara Freitag (she/her)
Acting Manager | OIA Services

' 027 973 7330
* PO Box 242, Wellington 6011

ACC cares about the environment – please don’t print this email unless it
is really necessary. Thank you.

 
 

show quoted sections

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From: AS Van Wey (Account suspended)

Dear Government Services,

Thank you for responding to my request so quickly.

I have done a key word search in the documents, and I can find no information regarding ACC policies and guidelines about disclosure of personal health information, which cannot be done without the claimant's consent in accordance with the Health Information Privacy Code 2020 (Rules 5, 8, and 11), or Privacy Act 2020, s 22, IPP 5, IPP 8, and IPP 11.

The Arrange Medical Case Review (MCR) Assessment v7 document, states it's objective is "To clarify diagnoses and the cause of a client’s injury or current condition and get recommendations for further investigations, treatment or rehabilitation." Section 2 is titled: "Contact client and explain need for assessment", and part (c) states:
"Explain that you are referring them for the assessment, the purpose and any potential implications, as well as what their rights and responsibilities are.
NOTE What else do you need to discuss with the client?
• that the specialist may suggest a telehealth (virtual) assessment if it is clinically appropriate - the client must give their consent for this, otherwise it should be in person. Explore any concerns about a potential virtual assessment and confirm their agreement/disagreement at this point."

Please provide me with ACC's consent document for disclosure. This is not the ACC6300 form, which is for obtaining records, nor is it the ACC45 form, which is the form providers submit on behalf of claimants pursuant to section 49 of the Act.

Thus, I request the following information:
Privacy Check Before Disclosing Information Policy
Disclosure of Care Indicator Information to Third Parties Policy,
Medical Case Review and Medical Single Discipline Assessment Service Page,
Client Legislative Rights and Responsibilities Policy,
Client choice of providers Policy
Health Information Privacy Code
Medical Case Review Providers
Service Contracts and Contracted Providers - MFP spreadsheet
Manage Participants (Eos Online Help)
ACC7395 form
SMR12 Medical case review appointment - client
SMRIS02 Medical case reviews - client
GUIDELINES Client Face to Face Meetings
Privacy - Authority Principles

Please specify if section 5 of the ACC2187 Treatment injury advice is supposed to include the list of health information ACC disclosed to the clinical advisor, and which is information required by ACC's contractual agreement, which is for clinical advisors to comply with the High Court Rules Code of Conduct of Expert Witnesses. Or, does ACC provide the list of documents to the clinical advisor, which they are supposed to include in their final report.

If there is a separate form that ACC uses to list the documents they have disclosed to a third party, then I request a copy of that form.

By the way, is there a list online of all all policies, forms, guidelines, and other documents held by ACC, with descriptors? For instance, the Privacy Policies are not linked to the ACC's Privacy webpage. If there is, would you please direct me to ACC's web address(es) where I can find this information. If not, then I request such a list to be made publicly available to assist the public to make requests with specificity.

Thank you for working so diligently to help me find the relevant information.

AS Van Wey

Link to this

From: Government Services
Accident Compensation Corporation

Kia ora

 

Thank you for contacting ACC; this is an automatic reply to confirm we
have received your email.

 

We will try to respond your query as quickly as possible. However,
depending on the nature of your request you may not receive a response for
up to 20 working days. You can check the [1]Ombudsman OIA response
calculator to find when your request for official information will be due

 

In cases where ACC’s response provides information that is identified to
be of general public interest, the response may also be published on the
ACC’s website. If ACC publishes the response to your OIA request, all
personal information, including your name and contact details, will be
removed.

 

The information you have requested may involve documents which contains
the names of our staff. Please let us know whether you require these
names. We may need to consult our staff before deciding whether we can
release this information, and this may take a bit more time. If we do not
hear from you, we will assume that you do not require staff names.

 

Our [2]website provides up to date news and information about our work.
You can also follow us on [3]Facebook and [4]Twitter. Further information
about how to contact us is also available [5]here.

 

Ngâ mihi,

Government Engagement Team

 

Government Engagement, ACC

' 0800 101 996
* Box 242, Wellington 6011

[6]www.acc.co.nz

 

 

Disclaimer:

"This message and any attachments may contain confidential and privileged
information. If you believe you have received this email in error, please
advise us immediately by return email or telephone and then delete this
email together with all attachments. If you are not the intended
recipient, you are not authorised to use or copy this message or any
attachments or disclose the contents to any other person."

References

Visible links
1. http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/agenc...
2. http://www.acc.co.nz/
3. http://www.facebook.com/ACCNewZealand/
4. https://twitter.com/accnz
5. http://www.acc.co.nz/contact/
6. https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...

Link to this

From: Government Services
Accident Compensation Corporation

Attachment GOV 026284 Appendix 1.pdf
3.6M Download View as HTML

Attachment GOV 026284 Appendix 2 Service Contracts and Contracted Providers MFP spreadsheet.xlsb
4.6M Download

Attachment GOV 026284 Response.pdf
157K Download View as HTML

Kia ora 
Please find attached our response to your official information request
dated 9 July 2023. If you have any questions about the response you can
contact us at this [1]address, for all other matters please use our
contact form at: [2]https://www.acc.co.nz/contact/ alternati... give us a
call on 0800 101 996.
If you are having trouble viewing the PDF, please ensure you have the
latest version of Adobe Acrobat Reader. To download this freeware please
click [3]here. 
Ngâ mihi

Sara Freitag (she/her)
Acting Manager | OIA Services

' 027 973 7330
* PO Box 242, Wellington 6011
ACC cares about the environment – please don’t print this email unless it
is really necessary. Thank you.
 

Disclaimer:

"This message and any attachments may contain confidential and privileged
information. If you believe you have received this email in error, please
advise us immediately by return email or telephone and then delete this
email together with all attachments. If you are not the intended
recipient, you are not authorised to use or copy this message or any
attachments or disclose the contents to any other person."

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[email address]
2. https://www.acc.co.nz/contact/
3. https://get.adobe.com/nz/reader/

Link to this

From: AS Van Wey (Account suspended)

Dear Government Services,

I am writing to request clarification regarding the response in GOV-026284, in which ACC stated: Section 5 of the ACC2187 form This section asks the treatment injury external clinical advisor to list literature (such as journal articles or best practice guidelines) they have used or referenced in providing their advice.

When providing a report to ACC, the ECA agrees to comply with the High Court Rules Code of Conduct for Expert Witnesses, which states:
Evidence of expert witness
3 In any evidence given by an expert witness, the expert witness must—
(a) acknowledge that the expert witness has read this code of conduct and agrees to comply with it:
(b) state the expert witness’ qualifications as an expert:
(c) state the issues the evidence of the expert witness addresses and that the evidence is within the expert’s area of expertise:
(d) state the facts and assumptions on which the opinions of the expert witness are based:
(e) state the reasons for the opinions given by the expert witness:
(g) describe any examinations, tests, or other investigations on which the expert witness has relied and identify, and give details of the qualifications of, any person who carried them out.
4 If an expert witness believes that his or her evidence or any part of it may be incomplete or inaccurate without some qualification, that qualification must be stated in his or her evidence.
5 If an expert witness believes that his or her opinion is not a concluded opinion because of insufficient research or data or for any other reason, this must be stated in his or her evidence.

Please specify the section of the ACC2187 Treatment Injury Advice form where the ECA must include the:
(a) acknowledgment "that the expert witness has read this code [High Court Rules Code of conduct for expert witnesses] of conduct and agrees to comply with it"; and
(b) statement of the "expert witness’ qualifications as an expert"; and
(c) statement of the "issues the evidence of the expert witness addresses and that the evidence is within the expert’s area of expertise"; and
(d) list a description of "any examinations, tests, or other investigations on which the expert witness has relied and identify, and give details of the qualifications of, any person who carried them out" and
(e) statement as to whether they believe or not "that his or her evidence or any part of it may be incomplete or inaccurate without some qualification"; and
(f) statement as to whether the expert "believes [or not] that his or her opinion is not a concluded opinion because of insufficient research or data or for any other reason".

I'm not seeing any tick boxes, or places on the form for this information. Is there a secondary form that the ECAs must provide in order to provide reports consistent with the High Court Rules?

Professional standards (MC of NZ and HDC) require the claimant's consent for ACC to seek advice from a ECA. Where on the form does the ECA state that they personally confirmed, with the claimant, that the claimant had consented to the ECA to obtain the claimant's records and write the report (rather than just take ACC's word for it, especially as the ACC45 does not pertain to ECAs or MCRs).

Please also provide the ACC notice to claimants that ACC are seeking external clinical advice, or a medical committee review, which includes the list of exact documents ACC intends to disclose, and requests the claimant's consent.

The the notice to claimants that ACC received the ECA or MCR report, and the next steps to be taken (such as discuss the report, request changes under the Privacy Act, or request additional information).

Please provide a comment as to whether a cover assessor is supposed to make a decision to not cover a Treatment Injury Claim,
(a) without having ever spoken with the claimant to ensure they understood the nature of the claim;
(b) without having requested any information from the claimant; or
(c) without having notified the claimant or sought the claimants consent to requested health records; or
(d) without having obtained the relevant health information from the relevant health providers; or
(e) without having provided any notices to a claimant that an ECA or MCR was requested and seeking the claimant's consent; or
(f) without having provided the claimant with a choice of ECA providers; or
(g) without having notified the claimant that ACC received an ECA or MCR and requested to discuss the report or allow the claimant to provide additional information before a cover decision was made against the claimant.

Please provide me with a list of relevant instructions, guidelines, policies and processes which detail the exact steps a claim assessor must take when investigating a claim and making a decision on a claim.

Please provide me with a single document which details the steps that must be taken, from the moment a claimant lodges a claim with ACC (or their treatment provider lodges a claim on behalf of the claimant), until the final decision on the claim. Please include who has access and performs which task, with detailed, exact steps that are are taken in the registration, allocation, investigation and decision making in a claim. A flow chart or step by step instruction would be helpful.

Thank you.

Kind regards,

AS Van Wey

Link to this

From: AS Van Wey (Account suspended)

Dear Government Services,

To clarify my earlier request, this is made under the Code and the OIA.

For clarity, when providing a description of the the steps taken by ACC, from the moment ACC receives a lodged claim, until a decision is made, please refer to the specific policy, process or guideline, that ACC follows for that step.

Thanks.

Yours sincerely,

AS Van Wey

Link to this

From: Government Services
Accident Compensation Corporation

Kia ora

 

Thank you for contacting ACC; this is an automatic reply to confirm we
have received your email.

 

We will try to respond your query as quickly as possible. However,
depending on the nature of your request you may not receive a response for
up to 20 working days. You can check the [1]Ombudsman OIA response
calculator to find when your request for official information will be due

 

In cases where ACC’s response provides information that is identified to
be of general public interest, the response may also be published on the
ACC’s website. If ACC publishes the response to your OIA request, all
personal information, including your name and contact details, will be
removed.

 

The information you have requested may involve documents which contains
the names of our staff. Please let us know whether you require these
names. We may need to consult our staff before deciding whether we can
release this information, and this may take a bit more time. If we do not
hear from you, we will assume that you do not require staff names.

 

Our [2]website provides up to date news and information about our work.
You can also follow us on [3]Facebook and [4]Twitter. Further information
about how to contact us is also available [5]here.

 

Ngâ mihi,

Government Engagement Team

 

Government Engagement, ACC

' 0800 101 996
* Box 242, Wellington 6011

[6]www.acc.co.nz

 

 

Disclaimer:

"This message and any attachments may contain confidential and privileged
information. If you believe you have received this email in error, please
advise us immediately by return email or telephone and then delete this
email together with all attachments. If you are not the intended
recipient, you are not authorised to use or copy this message or any
attachments or disclose the contents to any other person."

References

Visible links
1. http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/agenc...
2. http://www.acc.co.nz/
3. http://www.facebook.com/ACCNewZealand/
4. https://twitter.com/accnz
5. http://www.acc.co.nz/contact/
6. https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...

Link to this

From: Government Services
Accident Compensation Corporation

Kia ora

 

Thank you for contacting ACC; this is an automatic reply to confirm we
have received your email.

 

We will try to respond your query as quickly as possible. However,
depending on the nature of your request you may not receive a response for
up to 20 working days. You can check the [1]Ombudsman OIA response
calculator to find when your request for official information will be due

 

In cases where ACC’s response provides information that is identified to
be of general public interest, the response may also be published on the
ACC’s website. If ACC publishes the response to your OIA request, all
personal information, including your name and contact details, will be
removed.

 

The information you have requested may involve documents which contains
the names of our staff. Please let us know whether you require these
names. We may need to consult our staff before deciding whether we can
release this information, and this may take a bit more time. If we do not
hear from you, we will assume that you do not require staff names.

 

Our [2]website provides up to date news and information about our work.
You can also follow us on [3]Facebook and [4]Twitter. Further information
about how to contact us is also available [5]here.

 

Ngâ mihi,

Government Engagement Team

 

Government Engagement, ACC

' 0800 101 996
* Box 242, Wellington 6011

[6]www.acc.co.nz

 

 

Disclaimer:

"This message and any attachments may contain confidential and privileged
information. If you believe you have received this email in error, please
advise us immediately by return email or telephone and then delete this
email together with all attachments. If you are not the intended
recipient, you are not authorised to use or copy this message or any
attachments or disclose the contents to any other person."

References

Visible links
1. http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/agenc...
2. http://www.acc.co.nz/
3. http://www.facebook.com/ACCNewZealand/
4. https://twitter.com/accnz
5. http://www.acc.co.nz/contact/
6. https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...

Link to this

From: AS Van Wey (Account suspended)

Dear Accident Compensation Corporation,

In your response dated 19 July 2023 (GOV-026284), you stated: "ACC does not have a form for documents disclosed to third parties"; however, the ACC7395 Form, which was included in the appendix for that request (GOV-026284), specifically references the "ACC6246 Relevant documents list".

Clearly, ACC does have a form for documents disclosed to third parties. Please provide me with a copy of the ACC6246 Relevant documents list form.

Yours faithfully,

AS Van Wey

Link to this

From: Government Services
Accident Compensation Corporation

Kia ora

 

Thank you for contacting ACC; this is an automatic reply to confirm we
have received your email.

 

We will try to respond your query as quickly as possible. However,
depending on the nature of your request you may not receive a response for
up to 20 working days. You can check the [1]Ombudsman OIA response
calculator to find when your request for official information will be due

 

In cases where ACC’s response provides information that is identified to
be of general public interest, the response may also be published on the
ACC’s website. If ACC publishes the response to your OIA request, all
personal information, including your name and contact details, will be
removed.

 

The information you have requested may involve documents which contains
the names of our staff. Please let us know whether you require these
names. We may need to consult our staff before deciding whether we can
release this information, and this may take a bit more time. If we do not
hear from you, we will assume that you do not require staff names.

 

Our [2]website provides up to date news and information about our work.
You can also follow us on [3]Facebook and [4]Twitter. Further information
about how to contact us is also available [5]here.

 

Ngâ mihi,

Government Engagement Team

 

Government Engagement, ACC

' 0800 101 996
* Box 242, Wellington 6011

[6]www.acc.co.nz

 

 

Disclaimer:

"This message and any attachments may contain confidential and privileged
information. If you believe you have received this email in error, please
advise us immediately by return email or telephone and then delete this
email together with all attachments. If you are not the intended
recipient, you are not authorised to use or copy this message or any
attachments or disclose the contents to any other person."

References

Visible links
1. http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/agenc...
2. http://www.acc.co.nz/
3. http://www.facebook.com/ACCNewZealand/
4. https://twitter.com/accnz
5. http://www.acc.co.nz/contact/
6. https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...

Link to this

From: Government Services
Accident Compensation Corporation

Attachment GOV 027819 Attachment.pdf
714K Download View as HTML

Attachment GOV 027819 Response.pdf
315K Download View as HTML

Kia ora Amy
Please find attached our response to your official information request
dated 15 September 2023. If you have any questions about the response you
can contact us at this [1]address, for all other matters please use our
contact form at: [2]https://www.acc.co.nz/contact/ alternati... give us a
call on 0800 101 996.
If you are having trouble viewing the PDF, please ensure you have the
latest version of Adobe Acrobat Reader. To download this freeware please
click [3]here. 
Ngâ mihi

Sara Freitag (she/her)
Acting Manager | OIA Services

' 027 973 7330
* PO Box 242, Wellington 6011
ACC cares about the environment – please don’t print this email unless it
is really necessary. Thank you.
 

Disclaimer:

"This message and any attachments may contain confidential and privileged
information. If you believe you have received this email in error, please
advise us immediately by return email or telephone and then delete this
email together with all attachments. If you are not the intended
recipient, you are not authorised to use or copy this message or any
attachments or disclose the contents to any other person."

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[email address]
2. https://www.acc.co.nz/contact/
3. https://get.adobe.com/nz/reader/

Link to this

From: AS Van Wey (Account suspended)

Dear Government Services,

Thank you.

Yours sincerely,

AS Van Wey

Link to this

From: Government Services
Accident Compensation Corporation

Kia ora

 

Thank you for contacting ACC; this is an automatic reply to confirm we
have received your email.

 

We will try to respond your query as quickly as possible. However,
depending on the nature of your request you may not receive a response for
up to 20 working days. You can check the [1]Ombudsman OIA response
calculator to find when your request for official information will be due

 

In cases where ACC’s response provides information that is identified to
be of general public interest, the response may also be published on the
ACC’s website. If ACC publishes the response to your OIA request, all
personal information, including your name and contact details, will be
removed.

 

The information you have requested may involve documents which contains
the names of our staff. Please let us know whether you require these
names. We may need to consult our staff before deciding whether we can
release this information, and this may take a bit more time. If we do not
hear from you, we will assume that you do not require staff names.

 

Our [2]website provides up to date news and information about our work.
You can also follow us on [3]Facebook and [4]Twitter. Further information
about how to contact us is also available [5]here.

 

Ngâ mihi,

Government Engagement Team

 

Government Engagement, ACC

' 0800 101 996
* Box 242, Wellington 6011

[6]www.acc.co.nz

 

 

Disclaimer:

"This message and any attachments may contain confidential and privileged
information. If you believe you have received this email in error, please
advise us immediately by return email or telephone and then delete this
email together with all attachments. If you are not the intended
recipient, you are not authorised to use or copy this message or any
attachments or disclose the contents to any other person."

References

Visible links
1. http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/agenc...
2. http://www.acc.co.nz/
3. http://www.facebook.com/ACCNewZealand/
4. https://twitter.com/accnz
5. http://www.acc.co.nz/contact/
6. https://aus01.safelinks.protection.outlo...

Link to this

From: Government Services
Accident Compensation Corporation

Attachment GOV 027796 appendix 1.pdf
1.6M Download View as HTML

Attachment GOV 027796 Response.pdf
278K Download View as HTML

Kia ora AS Van Wey

Please find attached our response to your official information request
dated 14 September 2023. If you have any questions about the response you
can contact us at this [1]address, for all other matters please use our
contact form at: [2]https://www.acc.co.nz/contact/ alternatively give us a
call on 0800 101 996.

If you are having trouble viewing the PDF, please ensure you have the
latest version of Adobe Acrobat Reader. To download this freeware please
click [3]here. 

Ngâ mihi

Sara Freitag (she/her)
Acting Manager | OIA Services

' 027 973 7330
* PO Box 242, Wellington 6011

ACC cares about the environment – please don’t print this email unless it
is really necessary. Thank you.
 

Disclaimer:

"This message and any attachments may contain confidential and privileged
information. If you believe you have received this email in error, please
advise us immediately by return email or telephone and then delete this
email together with all attachments. If you are not the intended
recipient, you are not authorised to use or copy this message or any
attachments or disclose the contents to any other person."

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[email address]
2. https://www.acc.co.nz/contact/
3. https://get.adobe.com/nz/reader/

Link to this

We don't know whether the most recent response to this request contains information or not – if you are AS Van Wey (Account suspended) please sign in and let everyone know.

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