top of page

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

​

Effective Date Of This Notice: October 15, 2025

​

PLEASE REVIEW IT CAREFULLY.

​

If you have any questions about this Notice, please contact our Privacy Officer, who may be reached at 45-181 Waikalua Road, Kaneohe, HI 96744, Phone: (808) 562-3796

 

WHO WILL FOLLOW THIS NOTICE

 

This Notice describes the privacy practices at Ohana Pacific Health (“OPH”) facilities and of OPH service providers that are designated as a single “affiliated covered entity” under the federal law known as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (“HIPAA”). The affiliated covered entities that are included may be found at the following link: www.ohanapacific.com This Notice also applies to and will be followed by:

​

  • The health care providers, such as physicians, nurses, or other clinical staff who provide services at an OPH facility or for an OPH service provider, whether or not they are employed by the facility or the OPH service provider; and

  • Other persons who are employed by or work at OPH facilities or for an OPH service provider. 

 

All of these persons are referred to as “we” or “us” in this Notice.

 

OUR PLEDGE REGARDING YOUR HEALTH INFORMATION

​

We understand that health information about you and your healthcare is personal.  We are committed to protecting health information about you in accordance with the requirements of HIPAA.  We will create a record of the care and services you receive from us.  Your protected health information (“PHI”) is health information that contains identifiers, such as your name, e-mail address, Social Security number, or other information that reveals who you are.  For example, your medical record is PHI because it includes your name and other identifiers.  This Notice applies to all of the PHI we generate or receive about you, whether we documented the PHI or another provider sent it to us.  This Notice will tell you the different ways we may use or disclose PHI about you.  This Notice also describes your rights regarding the PHI we keep about you and describes certain obligations we have regarding the use and disclosure of your PHI.

​

In addition to protecting the privacy and security of your PHI, HIPAA requires us to notify you of our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to PHI about you; to notify you in the event there is a breach of your unsecured PHI; and to follow our Notice of Privacy Practices currently in effect.

​

HOW WE MAY USE AND DISCLOSE PHI ABOUT YOU

​

The following categories describe different ways that we may use or disclose PHI about you. Unless otherwise noted, each of these uses and disclosures may be made without your specific permission. For each category of use or disclosure, we will explain what we mean and give some examples.  Not every use or disclosure in a category will be listed.  However, unless we ask you for a separate authorization, all of the ways we are permitted to use and disclose information will fall within one of the categories.

 

For Treatment.  We may use PHI about you to provide you healthcare treatment and services.  We may disclose PHI about you to doctors, nurses, technicians, health students, volunteers or other personnel who are involved in taking care of you.  For example, a doctor treating you at another facility may need to know if you have diabetes or other conditions, so we may provide that information to the doctor.

 

For Payment.  We may use and disclose PHI about you so that the services you receive from us may be billed to and payment collected from you, an insurance company, a state Medicaid agency or another third party.  For example, we may need to give your health insurer or Medicare or QUEST information about your treatment so we can be paid for our care or receive prior approval for your care.

 

For Healthcare Operations.  We may use and disclose PHI about you for our healthcare operations, as appropriate to run our operations and make sure that our patients receive quality care.  For example, we may use PHI to review our treatment and services, for quality and utilization purposes, to obtain legal advice, or to evaluate the performance of our staff in caring for you.

 

Directory (as available).  Unless you object, we will include certain limited information about you in the facility’s directory while you are an inpatient at our facility.  This information may include your name, location in the facility, your general condition (fair, stable, etc.), and your religious affiliation.  With the exception of your religious affiliation, the directory information may be released to people who ask for you by name.  Your religious affiliation may be given to a member of the clergy, such as a priest or rabbi, even if they don’t ask for you by name.  If you do not want this information listed in the directory, you must notify the Administrator.

 

Individuals Involved in Your Care or Payment for Your Care and Notification.  Unless you object, we may disclose to a member of your family, a relative, a close friend, or any other person you identify, information that directly relates to that person’s involvement in your health care.  We also may give information to someone who helps pay for your care.  In addition, we may disclose PHI about you to disaster relief agencies, such as the Red Cross, so that your family can be notified about your condition, status, and location. We also may share PHI with these people to notify them about your location and general condition.  You can object to these releases by telling us that you do not wish any or all individuals involved in your care to receive this information.  If you are not present or cannot object, we will use our professional judgment to determine whether the disclosure is in your best interests and whether the person may act on your behalf to pick up filled prescriptions, medical supplies, x-rays, or other similar items. 

 

Research.  We may use and disclose PHI about you for research purposes, for example, to compare the effectiveness of one medication over another.  Health information about you that has had identifying information removed may be used for research without your consent.  If any research project uses your PHI, we will either obtain an authorization directly from you or obtain a wavier of the authorization requirement from an Institutional Review or Privacy Board based on assurances that the researchers will adequately protect your PHI.

 

As Required By Law.  We will disclose PHI about you when required to do so by federal, state, or local law, such as in compliance with a court order requiring us to do so.

 

To Avert a Serious Threat to Health or Safety.  We may use and disclose PHI about you when necessary to prevent a serious threat to your health and safety or the health and safety of the public or another person.  For example, if you threaten violence to a family member, we may report information to the police to allow them to protect the family member.

 

Active Duty Military Personnel and Veterans.  If you are an active duty member of the armed forces or Coast Guard, we must give certain information about you to your commanding officer or other command authority so that your fitness for duty or for a particular mission may be determined.  We may also release medical information about foreign military personnel to the appropriate foreign military authority.  We may use and disclose to components of the Department of Veterans Affairs medical information about you to determine whether you are eligible for certain benefits.

 

Health Oversight Activities.  We may disclose PHI to a health oversight agency for activities authorized by law.  These oversight activities include, for example, audits, investigations, inspections, and licensure.  These activities are necessary for the government to monitor the health care system, government programs, and compliance with civil rights laws.

 

Public Health Activities.  We may disclose PHI about you for public health activities.  These activities generally include preventing or controlling disease, injury, or disability; reporting births, deaths, child or vulnerable adult abuse or neglect, domestic violence or other violent injuries, reactions to medications or product injuries or recalls; and for organ or tissue donation.

 

Judicial and Administrative Proceedings.  If you are involved in a lawsuit or a dispute, we may disclose PHI about you in response to an order issued by a court or administrative tribunal; or pursuant to a legally authorized request, such as a subpoena, discovery request, or other lawful process, so long as the person requesting the information has complied with HIPAA requirements to notify you and provide you a reasonable time for objections, or has made reasonable efforts to obtain an order protecting the information requested.

 

Law Enforcement Purposes.  We may release PHI if asked to do so by a law enforcement official:

  • In response to a court order or court-ordered subpoena, warrant, summons or similar process;

  • to identify or locate a suspect, fugitive, material witness, or missing person;

  • about the victim of a crime if, under certain limited circumstances, we are unable to obtain the person’s agreement;

  • about a death or injury we believe may be the result of criminal conduct;

  • about suspected criminal conduct at OPH or on OPH property; and

  • in emergency circumstances to report a crime; the location of the crime or victims; or the identity, description or location of the person who committed the crime.
     

Coroners, Health Examiners and Funeral Directors.  We may release PHI to a coroner or health examiner if necessary to identify a deceased person or determine the cause of death, or to funeral directors as necessary to carry out their duties.

 

Inmates.  If you are an inmate of a correctional institution or under the custody of a law enforcement official, we may release PHI about you to the correctional institution or law enforcement official, if such information is necessary for the institution to provide you with healthcare or to protect your health and safety or the health and safety of others.

​

Marketing.  Most uses and disclosures of your PHI for marketing purposes require your prior written authorization.

​

Psychotherapy Notes.  Most uses and disclosures of psychotherapy notes require your prior written authorization.

​

Sale of Your PHI.  We do not sell your PHI. If in the future we decide to sell your PHI, we would obtain your written authorization before doing so.

​

Fundraising. We may use certain information about you (name, address, telephone number, dates of service, age, and gender) to contact you in the future to raise money for OPH, but if we do this we will provide you a way to opt out of such communications. Even if you have opted out, we may send you non-targeted fundraising materials that we send out to the general community and that are not based on information we have obtained from your treatment.

 

Transitions of Care.  When working with other health care providers such as local hospitals, physician offices and other skilled nursing facilities, we will securely send your health information electronically through private networks.  This technology allows us to send continuity of care documents, care summaries, lab results and more to help ease transitions of care.

​

Health Information Exchanges.  We participate in one or more Health Information Exchanges (“HIEs”), including the Hawai‘i Health Information Exchange (Hawai‘i HIE). These exchanges allow health care providers and organizations to securely share your health information electronically to improve the quality, safety, and coordination of your care. Your health information may be shared through an HIE with other providers involved in your care, unless you choose to opt out.

​

If you do not want your health information to be viewable through the Hawai‘i HIE Health eNet

Community Health Record (“CHR”), you must complete a Request to Stop Individual Participation form, available at www.hawaiihie.org.  Submit the completed form to your health care provider, who will forward it to Hawai‘i HIE.  Your request will be processed within 10 business days, and you will receive confirmation from Hawai‘i HIE.  Even while opted out, your health information may still be contributed to the CHR but will not be viewable by providers (including emergency room physicians).  You may opt back in at any time by submitting a Request to Resume Individual Participation form.  For questions or assistance, contact Hawai‘i HIE at (808) 441-1374 or visit their Policies page.

​

YOUR RIGHTS REGARDING YOUR PHI

​

You have the following rights regarding PHI we maintain about you:

​

Right to Inspect and Copy.  You have certain rights to inspect and copy PHI that may be used to make decisions about your care (such as health and billing records), to the extent provided by law.  This does not include psychotherapy notes or other records covered by a separate legal privilege or other legal protection.  To inspect and copy PHI, your request must be in writing on a form provided by or agreeable to us and submitted to the facility’s or other OPH service provider’s Administrator or our Privacy Officer.  We may charge a reasonable fee for the costs of copying, mailing or other supplies associated with your request, in accordance with applicable law.  For any electronic health records we maintain about you, you may request that we provide the information in paper format or electronic format and that we provide the copy to you or to another person.  We may charge a reasonable fee for the cost of providing electronic information you request, not greater than our labor costs in responding to the request.  We may deny your request to inspect and copy in certain limited circumstances.  If you are denied access to PHI, you may request that the denial be reviewed. Another licensed health care professional chosen by OPH will review your request and the denial.  The person conducting the review will not be the person who denied your initial request.  We will do what this reviewer decides.

 

Right to Amend.  If you believe PHI we keep about you is incorrect or incomplete, you may ask us to amend the information.  To request an amendment, your request must be made in writing on a form provided by us and submitted to the facility’s or other OPH service provider’s Administrator or our Privacy Officer.  We may deny your request for an amendment if the information was not created by us, unless the person who created the information is no longer available to make the amendment; if the information is not part of the PHI kept by or for OPH; if it is not part of the information which you would be permitted to inspect and copy; or if we determine the information is accurate and complete. If we deny your request for an amendment, you may submit a written statement of disagreement and ask that it be included in your medical record. Any amendment we make to your PHI will be disclosed to those who need to know of the amendment, to the extent required by law.

 

Right to an Accounting of Disclosures.  You have the right to request an accounting (a list) of any disclosures of your PHI we have made, except for uses and disclosures for treatment, payment, and health care operations. To request this list of disclosures, your request must be in writing on a form provided by us, and the form must be submitted to the facility’s or other OPH service provider’s Administrator or our Privacy Officer.  Your request must state a time period that may not be longer than six years before the date of your request.  The first accounting of disclosures you request within a 12-month period will be free. We may charge you for the costs of providing additional accountings within that period, but 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.  We will provide you an accounting of disclosures within 30 days of your request, or notify you if we are unable to supply the accounting within that time period and by what date we can supply the accounting, not to exceed a total of 60 days from your request.

​

Right to Request Restrictions.  You have the right to request a restriction or limitation on the PHI we use or disclose about you (1) for treatment, payment, or health care operations, or (2) to someone who is involved in your care or the payment for your care.  While we may accommodate reasonable requests for restrictions, we are not required to do so (for example, if it is not feasible for us to ensure our compliance with law or we believe it will negatively impact the care we may provide you).  If we do agree, we will comply with your request unless the information is needed to provide you emergency treatment.  To request a restriction, you must make your request in writing on a form provided by or agreeable to us, and submit the form to the facility’s or other OPH service provider’s Administrator or our Privacy Officer.  In your request, you must tell us what information you want to limit and to whom you want the limits to apply.  You also have the right to request a restriction on the PHI we may disclose to your health plan about the care or services you receive from us, so long as you (or anyone other than your health plan) have paid in full for that care or those services at the time services are rendered.  We are required to, and will, comply with any such request.

 

Right to Request Confidential Communications.  You have the right to request that we communicate with you about health matters in a certain manner or at a certain location.  For example, you can ask that we only contact you at work or by mail to a post office box.  During our intake process, we will ask you how you wish to receive communications about your health care or for any other instructions on notifying you about your PHI.  We will accommodate all reasonable requests.

 

Right to a Paper Copy of This Notice.  You have the right to obtain a paper copy of this Notice at any time upon request, even if you have previously agreed to receive an electronic copy of the Notice.  You may also obtain a copy of this Notice on our website at www.ohanapacific.com.

​

MINORS AND PERSONS WITH GUARDIANS

​

Married minors have all the confidentiality rights outlined in this Notice. Unmarried minors who are at least 14 years old have all the confidentiality rights outlined in this Notice regarding health care they obtain relating to treatment of venereal disease, pregnancy and family planning services, and alcohol and drug abuse counseling. Minors who are at least 14 years old and who do not have the support of a parent or guardian also have all the rights outlined in this Notice regarding primary care services they obtain.  Except as described in this section, for unmarried minors and persons with a legal guardian, a parent or legal guardian generally has the right to access the medical record of the minor or ward and make certain decisions regarding the uses and disclosures of that information, in accordance with applicable law.

 

Changes to This Notice.  We reserve the right to change this Notice and to make the changed Notice effective for PHI we already have about you as well as any information we receive in the future.  If we make an important change to our privacy practices, we will promptly change this Notice and the new Notice will be posted at the facility or other OPH service provider’s office and on our website.  A paper or electronic copy of the revised Notice will be distributed to new patients at our facility or of our other OPH service providers and will be available to you upon request.

​

Investigations of Breaches of Privacy.  We will investigate any discovered unauthorized use or disclosure of your health information to determine if it constitutes a breach of the federal privacy or security regulations addressing such information.  If we determine that such a breach has occurred, we will provide you with notice of the breach and advise you what we intend to do to mitigate the damage (if any) caused by the breach, and about the steps you should take to protect yourself from potential harm resulting from the breach.

​

Complaints

​

If you have a complaint about your privacy rights or our privacy and security practices or breach notification procedures, you may file a complaint with us (contact our Privacy Officer at the address or telephone number listed at the top of this Notice). You also may send a complaint to Centralized Case Management Operations, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,  200 Independence Avenue S.W., Room 509F HHH Bldg., Washington D.C. 20201, or you may email a complaint to OCRComplaint@hhs.gov. You will not be penalized for filing a complaint.

​

Other uses of PHI

​

Other uses and disclosures of PHI not covered by this Notice or the laws that apply to us will be made only with your written permission.  If you provide us authorization to use or disclose PHI about you, you may revoke that authorization, in writing, at any time.  If you revoke your authorization, we will no longer use or disclose PHI about you for the reasons covered by your written authorization.  However, you should understand that we are unable to take back any disclosures we have already made, and that we are required to retain the records of the care that we provided to you.

​

Participants in the OPH Affiliated Covered Entity

 

For the list of participants, go to www.ohanapacific.com

* * * * *

Last Updated: 11/06/2025

bottom of page