RESPECT:

Clients, their families and carers attending Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates receive respectful care and are not discriminated against on the basis of their age, gender, ethnicity, beliefs, sexual preference or health status. Practice staff understand that information they communicate or record about clients is not to be derogatory, prejudiced, or prejudicial.

CLIENT RIGHTS:

Clients at Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates have the right to know the qualification of their treating health professional and the right to see the physiotherapist of their choice, refuse intervention or seek a further opinion. Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates records such information in the client health record including an explanation of the action taken.

Clients are encouraged to provide feedback or make a complaint. This information is included in the Office Policy which is provided to all patients at their initial appointment..

DISCONTINUING CLIENT’S EPISODE OF CARE:

At times, a physiotherapist may not be able to effectively treat their patient due to such factors as a breakdown in the therapeutic relationship (e.g. the patient is behaving in a threatening or violent manner), cultural reasons, conflict of interest or range of professional scope. A patient may be discharged from care for repeated failures to attend appointments or repeated late cancellations, as outlined within the Office Policy.

In these cases, the physiotherapist is not required to continue with the care of the patient but refer them to another physiotherapist or practice that would better suit the patient’s needs. This ensures appropriate care is provided to the patient and also to prevent potential litigation.

Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates consults with State or Territory and/or Federal legislation with regard to cessation of patient care and transfer of patient health records.

Health Professionals at Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates understand that they have the right to protect their professional reputations and take reasonable steps to avoid any possible misunderstanding of professional boundaries.

PRIVACY OF CLIENTS:

Practice staff at Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates are familiar with key aspects of privacy legislation and the APA and Physiotherapy Code of Conduct to ensure they manage health information appropriately. Clients at Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates are made aware that the have the right to expect privacy in the provision of their healthcare.

IDENTIFY INDIVIDUAL PRIVACY NEEDS:

Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates understand that each client has a unique need for privacy during a consultation. This need may vary according to personal preference, natural modesty, the type of care being provided and the client’s familiarity with the intervention. Practice staff at Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates avoid stereotyping and generalising when determining the individual privacy needs of a client.

VISUAL PRIVACY:

Health professionals at Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates provide a clear explanation of ‘adequate undress’ and the reason it is important when a client needs to disrobe for a particular intervention. The health professional offers suitable cover (such as a gown, shorts or drape) if it is necessary to protect the client’s dignity.

In some circumstances, the client is invited to disrobe behind a privacy screen. Alternatively, the health professional will turn their back or choose to leave the room while a client disrobes.

Where a client is particularly vulnerable and/or there is potential for the client-practitioner relationship to be particularly sensitive, the health professional will seek the client’s consent to have a third party present in a chaperone role if the client needs to disrobe for an intervention. 

AUDITORY PRIVACY:

Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates has available facilities that provide satisfactory auditory privacy so that discussions with clients can be conducted in private.

These facilities include:

Private treatment rooms or private consultation prior to treatment

Discussion and telephone communication at the reception area is conducted discreetly, in the interests of respecting clients and protecting the privacy of health information.

Similarly, discussions between health professionals, about a client are conducted discreetly and they do not take place in the presence of other clients or administrative staff.

USE OF PRACTICE MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE:

Our practitioners may record consultations within our practice management software to ensure they can fully focus on listening to you while accurately documenting important information for your treatment.

INFORMED CONSENT:

Clients are given sufficient information to enable them to make informed decisions about their health care. Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates seek prior consent from the patient (or their representative) for a third party or student to be present during a consultation and prior to participating in any approved research projects.

Consent and any subsequent withdrawal of consent are documented.

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BENEFITS, RISKS AND COST:

Clients are given a reasonable level of information in advance about the relative benefits of a proposed program of healthcare. Where relevant, clients are also given a reasonable level of information about alternative options and the implications of having no intervention. Some clients may be advised to seek information from other health professionals about the relative benefits of different forms of intervention and the coordination of various interventions such as surgery and physiotherapy or psychology and physiotherapy.

COSTS OF INTERVENTION:

In addition to obtaining informed consent for client healthcare, Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates also obtains informed financial consent.

Clients are given advanced information about consultation costs and billing systems including acceptable methods of payment, discounts that may apply and the costs incurred for late cancellations or failure to attend appointments.

Standard information such as this is provided in:

• Client information packs, brochures, notices at reception and when booking initial consultations
• SMS appointment reminders

In addition, clients are given an estimated number of consultations for the proposed episode of care. This is provided
in the form of a Recommended Action Plan at the client’s second consultation.

Clients covered by a third party compensable body are given information that clarifies:

•  Whether the service is bulk-billed by the practitioner;
• Whether the client needs to pay up-front and then claim a rebate from the third party payer;
• Whether a gap payment applies; and
• Who is responsible for the costs of healthcare provided by Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates if the claim is denied. Written consent is obtained from clients on their registration form.

CULTURALLY APPROPRIATE CARE:

At Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates all staff avoid making general assumptions about a client’s individual needs when dealing with clients from different cultural backgrounds.

Staff at Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates are educated about culturally appropriate care and are aware of cultural groups likely to have higher incidence of post-traumatic stress so that staff are well-placed to identify individual clients who may require a special approach to their healthcare.

Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates ensures languages of predominant cultural groupings within the local base are considered in written information.

INTERPRETERS:

Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates will use an interpreter at the request of a client or if a health professional has concerns about the client’s capacity to comprehend information communicated in English.

Where possible Whittlesea Physiotherapy and Clinical Pilates will provide an independent and formally accredited interpreter and will communicate any fee involved in advance. TIS ( Translating and Interpreting Service) ph: 131450 is our preferred phone interpreting service.

A family member or child will be used as an interpreter is circumstances where no other feasible option is available. In such situations, the health professional takes all reasonable care to cross-check that information is being communicated accurately.

If a client refuses language services against the advice of the health professional, this is documented in the client health record.