Confidentiality information for young people

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This information is for young people aged 12‑24

Everyone who works for NSW Health has to respect your privacy. The information on this webpage tells you only about how things work in the health services you access. It does not cover other organisations like your school or social services (for example housing services, Centrelink or law courts etc).

What is confidentiality?

Confidentiality means information you share with a NSW Health worker is kept private and used only for your health care. This includes:

• your personal health information
• what a health worker writes about you
• details of any past treatments you have had.

For your safety, sometimes we may need to share this information outside the health service, but we will always try to discuss this with you first.

When does my information have to be shared with others?

There are specific situations where others need to be informed about your health and your information may be shared without asking you first. This could be:

• if we are concerned that you might harm yourself or someone else
• if we feel that you are being harmed or at risk of being harmed by somebody else
• if we have concerns about your safety, welfare or wellbeing.

If any of these situations happen, we would have to make sure that you are safe. Your safety is our priority. But we would try to talk to you about it first before contacting anyone.

Are there other situations where my information may be shared?

We will not share your information unless it is necessary.

There are some other situations where the doctor or health worker may share your information without you agreeing to it. This could be:

• when the doctor or health worker is required by law to share your information. This includes:
• reporting diseases like cancer and infectious diseases to health authorities
• reporting births and deaths
• providing Medicare details.
• when the doctor or health worker shares your information with the police or other authorities to prevent a serious threat to someone's life, health or welfare
• when the police require your information to help investigate a serious crime or provide evidence in court
• when NSW Health requires your information to conduct approved research projects that will benefit the public.