Privacy & Security Policy

Last updated June 19, 2019

At Mikata Health, we take our responsibility for the privacy and security of your personal health information very seriously. This policy describes our approach to collecting, using, storing, and disclosing your personal health information as part of providing our services. Please read this policy carefully to make sure you understand this approach and are comfortable with it.

 

Authority

Mikata Health collects, uses, stores, and discloses personal health information as an information manager to the clinics that subscribe to its services, in accordance with the Health Information Act of Alberta 2016.

 

What do we do?

Mikata Health is an intelligent healthcare ally for clinics and you, their patient. The Mikata Health “service” consists of a secure, web-based software application for clinics, and a secure web-based application for you. Your application includes “Mika”, a personalized, automated chat.

Clinics use our service to automate tedious, time-consuming clinic management tasks such as scheduling, freeing up their doctors and staff to spend more time with you when you visit. In addition, our service helps you access personalized care more conveniently, whenever you need it. This means Mikata Health will contact you to provide or collect information on behalf of your clinic.

When your clinic subscribes to our service, they enter an agreement that makes Mikata Health an “information manager.” This agreement permits the clinic to share personal health information from their electronic medical record (or similar clinic management software) with us so we can provide our service.

 

What information do we collect?

We collect diagnostic, treatment and care information as well as registration information. We collect the minimum amount of information required to provide our service.

When using our service, we may collect and/or verify the following information:

  • Enter personal health information or allow us to use personal health information from your clinic’s electronic medical record, such as name, gender, date of birth, contact information, healthcare provider information, and physical and mental health
  • Ask you about your basic preferences, such as preferred contact method, so we can tailor our services to you
  • As you use our service, we ask you for additional information related to your ongoing physical and mental health (i.e., symptom information), as well as questions and concerns you may have

When using our service, we may collect additional information. This information cannot be used to identify you, and includes:

  • Device information, OS version, and location so we can understand how best to support your devices
  • Any other information needed for internal operations including trouble-shooting, data analysis, testing and research, and statistical and survey purposes.

Finally, we may collect additional personal information to verify your identity.

 

How do we use this information?

We may use the personal health information we collect from you to provide the following benefits to you: Access to personalized care: Conveniently book appointments that are right-sized to you and actually run on time. We ask a few questions about why you need to see the doctor to find an optimal date and time.

Appointment reminders and preparation: Remember appointments and book additional relevant care. Be better prepared for your visit to the doctor’s office. We ask a few questions to collect relevant information ahead of time and allow you to enter your own questions and concerns.

Follow-up in between appointments: No more “no news is good news.” We follow-up with you after your visit to see how it went, make sure you have everything you need to take next steps, and notify you when relevant lab/testing results are available.

Patient management: We provide clinics with an overview of how their patients are doing and provide personalized care recommendations.

Notifications related to your account, or substantial updates to our services, privacy policy, and/or terms and conditions.

Continuous improvement of our software.

 

How long do we use and store your information?

We use and store your data for as long as you have an account to access our services. In some cases, we may need to store your information longer to meet legal requirements.

 

How is your information stored?

As mentioned previously, the privacy and security of your personal health information is of utmost importance to Mikata Health. As information managers, we hold ourselves to the same standards as the clinics we partner with, including all applicable laws and regulations.

Your information is securely encrypted during transmission and storage. Our application and databases are hosted on secure servers, which are continuously monitored and regularly tested. In addition to these and other technical safeguards, we have put comprehensive administrative and physical safeguards in place to protect the privacy and security of your personal health information.

The open nature of the internet means that data may flow through networks that have not been secured and may be accessed and used by people for whom that data is not intended. Our intention is that this does not happen, and we actively put safeguards in place to prevent it from occurring.

If you have any concerns that your information is being misused or inappropriately disclosed in any way, please contact us immediately.

 

Where is your information stored?

Your personal health information is encrypted and stored on secure servers located within Canada. We may de-identify and aggregate your information for additional analysis in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations. In this case, de-identified, aggregated information may be transferred outside of Canada, and may involve the use of 3rd party services for analysis.

 

Will we disclose your information or share it with 3rd parties?

Mikata Health does not sell your information to third parties. We will share the information we collect from you with your clinic, so they can provide you with better care. At that point, your information becomes part of their medical record and is subject to your clinic’s privacy and security policies and procedures.

 

How can you access information relating to you?

Our software is designed to make it easy for you access, edit, or delete the personal health information within your account. You can also completely deactivate and delete your account, which will result in the removal and secure destruction of your information from our database. However, any information that has been disclosed to your clinic and has become part of their medical record will remain there. It is your responsibility to contact your clinic to access, edit, or delete that information.

 

How will we update this privacy policy?

Our privacy and security practices are continuously evolving to take into account changes in best practices, new technologies, and privacy and security trends. When we make changes to our privacy policy we will update this page, so check back often to see what’s changed. In the case of substantial updates, we will also send out an email notification.

 

How to contact us

If you have any questions or concerns about Mikata Health’s privacy policy, please email us at privacy@mikatahealth.com or write to:

Mikata Health Inc.
Attn: The Privacy Officer
110 12 Ave SW
Calgary, AB
T2R 0G7
Canada

Website: www.mikatahealth.com
Email: privacy@mikatahealth.com