Privacy and Confidentiality Policy
The Cancer Council of the Northern Territory (CCNT) is a non government, not for profit, community based organisation whose aim is to minimise the impact of cancer on Territorians. The Australian Government introduced legislation that came into force on 21 December 2001 to protect the privacy of individuals. This legislation comprises ten National Privacy Principles that apply to private sector organisations. To ensure compliance with this legislation the following principles will apply to all data bases containing personal / sensitive information held by any member of staff or volunteer in relation to any program or activity. The Cancer Council of the Northern Territory respects and upholds your rights to privacy protection under the National Privacy Principles in regulating how we collect, use, disclose and hold your personal information. We have a detailed policy and set of procedures to ensure that only authorised staff have access to your personal information and that it remains confidential and only used for appropriate purposes and in accordance with this policy.

Principles

Collection of Information:
Your personal and sensitive information, including health information, is only collected as is necessary for a function or activity to enable the CCNT to carry out its work and deliver services to the community. CCNT is very grateful to the people around the NT who provide financial support to allow us to continue our important work. When you give us personal information such as your name and address, we record it on our database and use it to contact you. We may use your personal information to send you information about our programs or to let you know about our special fundraising events. Each time that we send you a direct marketing communication we will provide you with a simple way to OPT OUT of receiving similar communications in the future. You can also let us know that you do not wish to receive any further mail by phoning (08) 89 27 4888.

Use and Disclosure of Information:
Personal information about an individual is not used or disclosed for a secondary purpose unless:

• the purpose is closely related to the primary purpose and the individual would reasonably expect the information to be used in this way, or
• the information is health information and its use is part of the process of referral to health professionals for benefit of the client
• the information is health information and its use is necessary for research or statistical analysis relevant to public health, or
• the individual has consented.

Quality of Information:
Reasonable steps are taken to ensure that all personal information collected and used is accurate, complete and up to date.

Security of Information:
Reasonable steps are taken to protect personal information from misuse, loss, unauthorised use, modification or disclosure. Information is destroyed or permanently de-identified when it is no longer needed for any purpose for which it was collected

Openness of Information:
This policy document is available to anyone who asks for it. Reasonable steps are taken to let any person, on request, know generally what sort of personal information is held, for what purpose, how it is collected, stored and used.

Accessibility of Information:
Information held about an individual is accessible at no charge to that individual on request (except where the request is frivolous or vexatious), and reasonable steps taken to ensure the information is accurate and up to date.

Identifiers:
Identifiers used will be unique to this organisation.

Anonymity:
Individuals have the option of not identifying themselves when dealing with the Cancer Council of the Northern Territory.

Sensitive Information:
Sensitive information about an individual is not collected without that individual's consent, or the information is collected in the course of the Cancer Council’s activities where the individual is in regular contact in relation to those activities and the individual understands that the information will not be disclosed without consent, or the information is necessary for the management or monitoring of a health service, or is necessary for research relevant to public health, compilation or analysis of public health statistics, and that purpose cannot be served by collection of non-identified information and it is impracticable to seek the individual's consent.

Confidentiality:
Personal / sensitive information is collected and recorded on confidential data bases in support of agreed Cancer Council programs and activities. Staff and volunteers, who have access to the information in the course of their duties, respect its confidentiality and do not disclose it to any third party. Breaches of confidentiality attract severe penalties.