Presentation: Privacy 101 for Psychologists

I was invited to present at an professional development event by the Association of Psychologists of Nova Scotia, on the topic of Privacy 101. In case it's of use to others, here's my slide deck:

Personal Health Information Act for Researchers

I was invited to give a presentation to staff and physicians at the IWK Health Centre in Halifax on the impact of the new Personal Health Information Act on researchers and research activities.

For anyone who may be interested, here is a copy of the presentation:

(If the embedding above is not working for you, this link should take you to the presentation: https://docs.google.com/present/view?id=ddpx56cg_32947mwh5hq&interval=30&autoStart=true&loop=true)

Nova Scotia to table health information legislation today

The Nova Scotia Minister of Health is expected to table the latest iteration of the Personal Health Information Act in the Nova Scotia legislature this afternoon. Expect to see the text of the bill here as soon as it's tabled.

See: Health minister expected to table personal information bill today - NovaScotia - TheChronicleHerald.ca.

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Update: The text of Bill 89 is available here.

Personal Health Information Act and health research

I have been invited to give a presentation to health researchers at Dalhousie, the IWK Health Centre and the Capital District Health Authority on the upcoming Personal Health Information Act and its impact on health research.

For any others who may be interested, here is the presentation:

The bill fell off the order paper of the Nova Scotia legislature when the house rose for the summer, but we are expecting it will be reintroduced sometime this fall.

Conference: Introduction to the Personal Health Information Privacy and Access Act

The Privacy Law section of the Canadian Bar Association (New Brunswick) is organizing a one-day professional development event on the province's new health privacy legislation. The keynote speaker will be Anne Cavoukian, speaking on her experience with PHIPA in Ontario.

More details here: CBA - An Introduction to the Personal Health Information Privacy and Access Act.

Add the event to your calendar: .

Text of Bill 64, Personal Health Information Act (Nova Scotia) now available

The text of Bill 64, the Personal Health Information Act has now been posted on the Nova Scotia Legislature website.

Personal Health Information Act introduced in Nova Scotia

The Minister of Health for Nova Scotia has today introduced the Personal Health Information Act in the legislature. I'll have a link to the text of the bill tomorrow, but in the meantime you can read the release:

Personal Health Information Legislation Introduced News Releases Government of Nova Scotia

Personal Health Information Legislation Introduced

Department of Health

November 4, 2009 2:46 PM

Nova Scotian's personal health information would be better managed under proposed legislation introduced today, Nov. 4.

The Personal Health Information Act would provide consistent provincial rules for the management of personal information in health care.

"Patient privacy is a fundamental principle in delivering health care. At the same time, it is important that health care professionals can share information in ways that can improve care," said Health Minister Maureen MacDonald. "This legislation balances these important objectives."

The proposed legislation sets out rules for how health information is collected, used, disclosed, retained and destroyed by the health-care sector in Nova Scotia. It better supports a system that uses electronic as well as paper health records and helps provide a more seamless flow of information.

Specific rules include provisions for privacy breach notification audit reports to track who has had access to electronic health records, and requests for people to access to their health information.

Nova Scotia does not have clear health information legislation. It is governed by a mix of federal and provincial laws, health profession codes, and organizational policies and procedures. Nova Scotia joins eight other provinces who have comprehensive legislation to manage personal health information.

I understand that the legislature session ends shortly, so the Bill will not be debated until the new year. It's also reported that the Department plans to have the Bill come into force in January 2011.

Nova Scotia begins consultation on Personal Health Information legislation

The Province of Nova Scotia has for some time been consulting with inside stakeholders on the development of health information legislation. It has just launched a consultation, seeking input from interested parties. I haven't had a chance to look at the discussion paper yet, but I understand they've been using Ontario's PHIPA as the model:

Personal Health Information Legislation for Nova Scotia Department of Health Government of Nova Scotia

For the past several years the Department of Health has been working with health sector partners on initiatives related to the protection and use of personal health information. As part of the evolution of standards, policy and law on these issues, .the Department is developing a Personal Health Information Act for the province.

The Department is pleased to present the Discussion Paper Personal Health Information Legislation for Nova Scotia (PDF: 70p). Throughout the Discussion Paper, key issues related to the collection, use, disclosure, retention and destruction of personal health information are discussed, and legislative provisions for a Personal Health Information Act are proposed.

Public and stakeholder input to this legislation is critical to its success. Any feedback on the issues raised in the paper, and on any issues related to the management of personal health information in Nova Scotia can be submitted through the online questionnaire, by e-mail to mailto:phia@gov.ns.caor by regular mail to the Personal Health Information Project, Department of Health, 1690 Hollis Street, P.O. Box 488 , Halifax , Nova Scotia , B3J 2R8

The deadline for comments is November 1, 2008.

• Personal Health Information Legislation for Nova Scotia Discussion Paper (PDF:70p)
• Frequently Asked Questions - Foire aux questions (PDF)
• Questionnaire (MS Word) Questionnaire French (MS Word)
• Personal Health Information Legislation Online Questionnaire