Privacy Policy

This Notice describes how health information about you may be used and disclosed and how you may access this information. Please review this Notice carefully.

Introduction
Welcome to South Bay Community Services (SBCS), a community development nonprofit organization that provides children, youth, and families in the South Bay area with services, which reinforce the family’s role in our community and assist individuals to aspire realistically to lives of self-fulfillment. While participating in our services, we expect families and/or individuals may come to us with concerns such as: difficulties getting along with others, trouble following rules, problems with authorities, sadness, anxiety, violence and/or may come from environments where substances are abused or dependency on substances have occurred. SBCS will ensure services are provided to serve all your needs.

At SBCS we are committed to treating and using protected health information (PHI) about you responsibly. This Notice of Privacy Practices and Policies describes the personal information we collect, and how and when we use or disclose that information. It also describes your rights as they relate to your protected health information. This Notice is effective April 14, 2003, and applies to all protected health information as defined by federal regulations.

Understanding Your Client File/Health Information
Each time you visit SBCS a record of your visit is made. Typically this record contains your situation, treatment provided, a plan for future care or treatment and diagnoses, when necessary or appropriate. This information, often referred to as your client or case file, serves as a:

• Basis for planning your care and treatment,
• Means of communication among the many health professionals who contribute to your care,
• Legal document describing the care you received,
• Means by which you or a third-party payer can verify that services billed were actually provided,
• A tool in educating heath professionals,
• A source of data for research, auditing and contract evaluation purposes,
• A tool with which we can assess and continually work to improve the care we render and the outcomes we achieve.

Understanding what is in your record and how your health information is used helps you to: ensure its accuracy, better understand who, what, when, where, and why others may access your health information, and make more informed decisions when authorizing disclosure to others

SBCS’s responsibilities for protecting health information
SBCS is required to:

• Maintain the privacy of your health information,
• Provide you with this notice, upon your request, as to our legal duties and privacy practices and policies with respect to information we collect and maintain about you,
• Abide by the terms of the notice currently in effect,
• Notify you if we are unable to agree to a requested restriction, and
• Accommodate reasonable requests you may have to communicate health information by alternative means or at alternative locations.

SBCS reserves the right to change our Notice of Privacy Practices and to make those changes effective for all protected health information we maintain. If we change our Notice, you may obtain a copy of the revised Notice by visiting our website at www.southbaycommunityservices.org or request a copy from your Associate.