Confidentiality and Patient Rights

All visits to the SJSU Student Wellness Center are confidential, as the university complies with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Patient records are kept confidential and will not be released without written consent.

The entire SJSU Student Wellness Center team is dedicated to providing confidential services with constant attention to the following:

Patient/Student Bill of Rights

As a patient of the SJSU SWC, you will:

• Be treated with respect, consideration, and dignity.
• Be given privacy during discussion, check-in, evaluation, and treatment.
• Be given access to interpretation services.
• Be provided information concerning your diagnosis, evaluation, treatment and progress or, if it is medically advisable, to have the information provided to a person designated by you or to a legally authorized person.
• Have the opportunity to participate in decisions involving your care unless it is contraindicated for medical reasons.
• Be able to access your records. Note: Some records related to your care are directly available via the SWC Patient Portal and you can request further records.
• Be empowered to voice any comments, feedback, or grievances through the feedback link on our contact us page at sjsu.edu/wellness.
• Be given the option to change providers, if other providers are available.
• Be informed of the Student Wellness Center's policies regarding your rights and responsibilities and availability of service.
• Be able to refuse treatment at any time.
• Be able to refuse to participate in research.
• Be able to learn more information on consumer protections from the Medical Board of California visit www.mbc.ca.gov, Board of Psychology at www.psychology.ca.gov and the Board of Behavioral Sciences at www.bbs.ca.gov.

Patient/Student Responsibilities

As a patient of the SJSU SWC, you are expected to:

• Present accurate identifying information.
• Bring a picture I.D. to every visit. You may be asked to provide additional government-issued photo ID for some transactions.
• Arrive on time for appointments and to cancel appointments ahead of time so that other patients may utilize that time.
• Ask for clarification whenever information or instructions are not understood.
• Know the name of your healthcare professional.
• Provide complete and accurate information to the best of your ability about your health, any medications taken, including over-the-counter products and dietary supplements, and any allergies or sensitivities.
• Follow the agreed-upon treatment plan prescribed by your provider and participate in your care.
• Provide, if possible, a responsible adult to transport you from the Student Wellness Center and remain with you as directed by the provider.
• Pay for services received.
• Safeguard your data by ensuring you are not providing others access to your One.SJSU.edu username/password, Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) [Duo], which gives access to the SWC Patient Portal.
• Update your contact information when it changes.
• Opt out of texting if you don't wish to receive operational and promotional information related to appointments, services, etc.

Patient/Student Expectations

As a patient of the SJSU SWC, I understand that I am expected to practice:

• Respectful Communication
  • Students are expected to communicate with staff, clinicians, providers, and other students in a respectful and courteous manner, in alignment with SJSU's Student Code of Conduct.
  • Behavior not consistent with the Student Code of Conduct may result in referral to other university offices.
  • Abusive language, harassment, or threatening behavior may result in removal of access to services.
• Privacy and Confidentiality
  • As posted in the building, students are not permitted to record or videograph any areas of the SWC. As a reminder, California is a two-party consent state, which means that all parties involved must consent to a recording.
  • Students should be mindful of others’ privacy when in waiting rooms or other common areas.
• Appropriate Use of Facilities
  • Students are expected to use the Student Wellness Center's facilities and resources appropriately. Damaging property, misusing equipment, or engaging in disruptive behavior may result in disciplinary action.

Notice of Privacy Practices

This notice describes how your medical information may be used, when it may be disclosed, and how you can get access to this information. Please review it carefully. For more information about Privacy Practices please see this https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-individuals/notice-privacy-practices/index.html.

The SJSU SWC is committed to preserving the privacy and confidentiality of your health information that is created and/or maintained in our center. California and federal laws and regulations require the SWC to implement policies and safeguard the privacy of your information. This notice will provide you with information regarding our privacy practices and applies to all of your health information created /and or maintained through secure cloud-based services at our center, including information that we may receive from other healthcare providers or facilities. This notice explains the ways we may use or disclose your health information and your rights and our obligations concerning such uses or disclosures.

• A) How this Medical Practice May Use or Disclose Your Health Information

  • The law permits the SWC to use or disclose your health information without your explicit consent or authorization for the following purposes:

    1) Treatment

    2) Payment

    3) Health Care Operations

    4) Appointment Reminders

    5) Checking in for Appointments

    6) Notification and communication with support persons

    7) Required by law

    8) Public health

    9) Health oversight activities

    10) Judicial and administrative proceedings

    11) Law enforcement

    12) Coroners or Medical Examiners

    13) Public Safety

    14) Specialized government functions

    15) Worker's compensation

    16) Research

    17) Change of Ownership

• B) When We May Not Use or Disclose Your Health Information

  • Except as described in this Notice of Privacy Practices, The SWC will not use or disclose health information which identifies you without your written authorization. If you do authorize the SWC to use or disclose your health information for another purpose, you may revoke your authorization in writing at any time.

• C) Your Health Information Rights

  • 1) Right to Inspect and Copy

    2) Right to Amend or Supplement.

    3) Right to an Accounting of Disclosures

    4) Right to Request Special Privacy Protections

    5) Right to Request Confidential Communications

    6) Right to a Paper Copy of this Notice

• D) Patient Correspondence

  • The SWC may need to contact you regarding lab results or other important health information. We utilize the following methods of communication:

    a. The SWC Patient Portal, a secure patient portal is utilized by SWC employees to correspond confidentially with patients. Laboratory results, health education materials and other health information may be sent to your account using this method.

    
    b. Healthcare staff may utilize phone calls to notify patients of abnormal lab results and other important health information. Team members may also send text messages in limited circumstances when trying to reach you or advise you of appointments or other reminders.

    
    c. In the event that our staff cannot reach you by one of these methods, our staff may send a letter via United States Postal Service to the address that we have on file for you or attempt to contact the person that you have designated as an emergency contact.

• E) Open Payment Database

  • Pursuant to California regulations, we are required to notify you of the following:

    The Open Payments database is a federal tool used to search payments made by drug and device companies to physicians and teaching hospitals. It can be found at https://openpaymentsdata.cms.gov.

    For informational purposes only, a link to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Open Payments web page is provided here. The federal Physician Payments Sunshine Act requires that detailed information about payment and other payments of value worth over ten dollars ($10) from manufacturers of drugs, medical devices, and biologics to physicians and teaching hospitals be made available to the public.

• F) Questions or Complaints

  • If you have any questions regarding the Notice of Privacy Practices or wish to receive additional information about this SWC's privacy practices, please contact our Privacy Officer:

    SWC HIPAA Privacy Official, Mai Mai Cantos MPH

    Phone: (408) 924-4567

    Fax: (562) 951-4695

    E-mail: immaculate.cantos@sjsu.edu

    
    If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may file a complaint with our Privacy Officer or with the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services:

    Department of Health and Human Services 

    Office of Civil Rights

    Hubert H. Humphrey Bldg.

    200 Independence Avenue, S.W.

    Room 509F HHH Building

    Washington, DC 20201

Privacy Practices and Open Payments Data

The Notice of Privacy Practices and Open Payments Database describes how medical information about you may be used and disclosed and how you can get access to this information. This notice also includes information pertaining to the Open Payments Database. 

For informational purposes only, visit the federal Centers for Medicaid Services (CMS) Open Payments web page. The federal Physician Payments Sunshine Act requires that detailed information about payment and other payments of value worth over ten dollars ($10) from manufacturers of drugs, medical devices and biologics to physicians and teaching hospitals be made available to the public.

Limits of Confidentiality

California law places some limits on confidentiality:

• If you tell your provider you were abused as a child, and you are under 18 years of age at the time you tell your provider, they must report the abuse to a county Child Protective Services agency.
• If you are over 18 when you tell the provider, but there is a child currently at risk by the same abuser, then the provider may be required to make a report to a county agency.
• If you tell your provider about being sexually assaulted, the provider is not required to make a report unless you are under 18 at the time you tell the provider.
• If you tell your provider about elder or dependent adult abuse, the provider may be required to make a report.
• If you pose a danger to yourself, the provider may be legally obligated to take whatever actions necessary to protect you from harm.
• If you tell your provider that you intend to do imminent harm to a specific person(s), your provider is required by law to inform the authorities, intended victim(s) and take additional action if necessary.
• If a court of law orders a provider to release information, that person is bound by law to comply with such an order.