PADI RTO First Aid Student Manual

You can breach confidentiality by: • Showing or giving records to people within or outside the workplace without the patient’s written consent; • Talking about patients or leaving records lying about; • Discussing a patient with someone over the telephone. It is essential that accurate records are maintained for all first aid treatment given. These records will be required by law and regulation (WHS Act 2011). They also serve other purposes, for example they: • Ensure the continuity of care by allowing others who have the care of the person to see what has been done before; • Protect employer (PCBU) and worker by ensuring that a record of the injury is made and that the circumstances of the treatment and injury are recorded; • Protect the first aid officer; and, • Assist in any investigation If the records are to serve any useful purpose, they must be: • Legible; • Accurate; and, • Written at the time that the treatment is given; or as soon as possible afterwards. A number of bodies may be involved in the investigation of workplace illness or injury; these can include the employer (PCBU), the police, the coroner, the relevant workplace inspection authority and the courts. All of these bodies may refer to the records retained in relation to an accident; including the records maintained by the first aid officer. Documents, including medical records, are the property of the person who created them. Where documents are produced by a worker in the course of their employment, then the records remain the property of the employer (PCBU). An employer (PCBU) may have a legitimate interest in inspecting first aid records for example, to ensure that the injury was work related or to assist in identifying the cause of the incident or illness. Where a claim is made by an employer (PCBU) for Worker’s Compensation, the employer will be required to produce the relevant records to the insurance company that will handle the claim. National Privacy Act One of the most important pieces of legislation for the health industry is the National Privacy Act. The Privacy Act (Private Sector) 2000, formally the Privacy Act 1988, includes the 10 National Privacy Principles that became effective from December 2001. These principles set the minimum standard that health service providers must abide by when they collect, use, disclose and store patient information. Whether you are working in the public sector or the private sector, if you are working with patient records, either clinical or financial, you are legally obligated to observe confidentiality and privacy of information according to the Privacy Act. The Internet site to visit for these principles is http://www.privacy.gov.au/health/pubs/ index.html#2 Although there is generally no obligation to disclose information about a fellow employee, an occupational first aider may be required to disclose information that indicates that another worker is at risk or poses a risk to others in their current occupation (for example, where a forklift driver discloses that they are an epileptic).

HLTAID008 MANAGE FIRST AID SERVICES AND RESOURCES

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PADI RTO