Patient Rights and Responsibilities

Our Pledge Regarding Your Health Information

We understand that medical information about you and your health is personal. We limit the availability of information to the specific, defined conditions you consent to share. You may request to share or withhold your information at any time. We are committed to protecting medical information about you. This applies to all of the records of your care generated by us, whether made by our personnel or doctors involved in your care.

We create a record of the care and services you receive from us. We need this record to provide you with quality care and to comply with certain legal requirements.

You have the following rights regarding medical information we maintain about you:

Right to Access  

You have the right to access medical information that may be used to make decisions about your care. Usually, this includes medical and billing records, but does not include psychotherapy notes. To access medical information that may be used to make decisions about you, you must submit your request in writing to the address listed at the end of this Notice. If you request a copy of the information, we may charge a fee for the costs of copying, mailing or other supplies associated with your request.

We may deny your request to access your information in certain limited circumstances. If you are denied access to medical information, you may request that the denial be reviewed. Another licensed healthcare professional chosen by management will review your request and the denial. The person conducting the review will not be the person who denied your request. We will comply with the outcome of the review.

Right to Amend or Correct  

If you feel that medical information we have about you is incorrect or incomplete, you may ask us to amend or correct the information. You have the right to request an amendment for as long as the information is kept by or for us.

To request an amendment, your request must be made in writing and submitted to the address listed at the end of this Notice. In addition, you must provide a reason that supports your request.We may deny your request for an amendment if it is not in writing or does not include a reason to support the request. In addition, we may deny your request if you ask us to amend information that:

  • Was not created by us, unless the person or entity that created the information is no longer available to make the amendment
  • Is not part of the information which you would be permitted to access
  • Is not part of the medical information kept by or for us
  • Is already accurate and complete

Amendment of PHI Patient Request

Right to an Accounting of Disclosures

You have the right to request an “accounting of disclosures.” This is a list of the disclosures we made of medical information about you, other than for treatment, payment or healthcare operations as described above.

To request an accounting of disclosures, you must submit your request in writing to the address listed at the end of this Notice. Your request must state a time period which may not be longer than six years and may not include dates before April 14, 2003. The first list you request within a 12-month period will be free. For additional lists, we may charge you for the costs of providing the list. We will notify you of the cost involved and you may choose to withdraw or modify your request at that time before any costs are incurred.

To see a complete list of patient rights and responsibilities and our full policies regarding disclosure of patient information, see our Notice of Privacy Practices.

Information for Patients

FloridaHealthFinder.gov was created to give patients access to data that will allow them to find accessible, affordable and quality healthcare. The website provides detailed healthcare information and data that will help consumers make informed health care decisions.

*Price Transparency. Payment on Defined Bundles of Services and Procedures – Florida Statute
§ 395.301(1)(a), F.S.

Florida Law on Social Security Numbers

The following are the general scenarios under which Halifax Health must collect and use social security numbers: insurance and health benefit eligibility; classification of accounts; customer identification and verification; credit worthiness; customer billing and payments; payroll and human resource functions; benefit processing, tax reporting, and any other lawful purpose necessary to conduct medical business.

Social Security numbers are NOT public records, but may be released to other governmental or commercial entities as required by law in Section 119.071(6), Florida Statutes.

Social Media

We welcome your input and participation.  Please note, however, Halifax Health is unable to respond to any specific patient care comments on social media and reserves the right to remove any comments which may represent a breach of HIPAA or applicable laws/regulations. In pursuant to the regulatory guidelines any patient care related concerns for which you request a response must be processed through the Formal Grievance process. Contact Patient Relations at 386.425.4874.

Patient Relations

As a healthcare facility, we strive to provide high quality, compassionate care to the community we serve. When we learn that a patient or family member has not had a completely positive experience, we welcome the opportunity to improve ourselves. In pursuant to the regulatory guidelines any patient care related concerns for which you request a response must be processed through the Formal Grievance process, we must obtain personal, private patient information and statement from the patient to properly review the patient care concerns.

Please contact Patient Relations 386.425.4874 or email patientrelations@halifax.org directly so that we may discuss your experience.

Corporate Compliance Department

To contact the Corporate Compliance Department please  call 386.425.4278 or email Compliance@halifax.org