Privacy Policy
Your Privacy and CFWH
The CFWH is committed to upholding the confidentiality and security of your personal information. We respect your right to privacy and have instituted policies and practices that will help ensure that your personal information is handled responsibly.
As of January 1, 2004 the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) is in full force. The obligations in PIPEDA apply to all organizations in Canada, except in British Columbia, Alberta, and Quebec, which have substantially similar provincial legislation. The CFWH Privacy Policy is guided by the 10 principles of the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) Model Code for the Protection of Personal Information. The (CSA) Model Code is the basis for the federal Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA).
In this privacy statement, we describe how we protect the personal information of our members, our stakeholders, and other third parties, such as consultants.
Personal Information
We often communicate with our supporters regarding CFWH activities and during the grant application and volunteer recruitment process. As a result, we require current contact information and email addresses. Any personal information provided to the CFWH remains confidential in accordance with the CSA Model Code. CFWH use the term “personal information” to describe most types of information such as: your name, date of birth, home address and telephone number. Information on your business card (such as your job title, business address, business telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail address) is not typically considered personal information.
The Ten Privacy Principles
CFWH needs to collect, use and retain information to provide services. We will request from you only the personal information necessary to provide our services, and will tell you how we intend to use this information. You will have the right the refuse having your information disclosed to outside sources and or for publication purposes. To ensure that your privacy is protected, CFWH is committed to honouring the ten principles as outlined by CSA.
Accountability
CFWH is structured in such a way that information is maintained primarily by certain employees. CFWH has given those employees the responsibility of addressing your privacy concerns. Should you have concerns about how your information is handled, or any questions about our privacy policy, feel free to contact us at kpodolak@cfwh.org.
Identifying Purposes
If we intend to use or disclose your information in ways other than those described to you at the time of collection, we will ensure that you are informed and that consent is given. On occasion, the CFWH may release limited data to third parties such as university departments, or to members involved in research activities. Data released for this purpose may include names, business addresses and specialties, but does not include business phone/fax numbers, or email addresses. Our agreements with organizations restrict use to the approved purposes.
The CFWH does not sell or rent member information to telemarketers, mailing list brokers, or pharmaceutical companies.
The CFWH does hire on occasion external companies/individuals to provide certain administrative services that require access to volunteer information. These services can include document management services and mailing and distribution services. In addition, the CFWH may share statistics and non-personal information with the media, other medical organizations, government agencies, and other third parties. For example, we may publish statistics on the geographic distribution of our volunteers or grantees. This data, however, does not allow anyone to identify individual names or link to other personal information.
Consent
The CFWH respects your rights to privacy. For this reason, we obtain your consent whenever we collect your personal information. Depending on the nature of the information, your consent may be collected on a form, within a letter, orally, or in some instances, consent will be implied. You have the right to withhold your consent on any request to use your personal information. To exercise your choices, or ask questions about your personal information, please contact: kpodolak@cfwh.org.
Limiting Collection
The CFWH does not collect personal information indiscriminately and limits collection to what is necessary to carry out its mission. By collecting information limited to these purposes, CFWH helps protect you from unnecessary or accidental uses of your information. The CFWH prohibits its staff from collecting information through deception or misrepresentation.
Limiting Use, Disclosure, and Retention
We do not use your information for purposes other than those to which you have consented. CFWH does not sell or trade personal information for commercial purposes. CFWH is committed to retaining your personal information only as long as is necessary for the purposes for which it is collected. CFWH is also committed to deleting or destroying the records containing that information when they are no longer required; this will be done in ways that will ensure your continued privacy. Should CFWH require the services of third parties to handle your information, we will require them to adhere to privacy procedures that will keep your information confidential. These third parties will be given only the information necessary for performing their information-handling services.
Accuracy
We are committed to ensuring that our records of your personal information are accurate, complete, and up-to-date. It is your responsibility to inform CFWH of any relevant changes in your personal information. We will take steps to ensure that you are able to verify the information in your file from time to time.
Safeguards
CFWH uses appropriate safeguards to protect the privacy of your personal information. These safeguards are designed to prevent unauthorized access, loss or theft, disclosure, copying, use or modification. Your records are accessible only to staff who have been given the authority to access them and only as is necessary to provide services to you.
The CFWH is committed to ensuring the protection of your personal information. Security measures are in place to protect our building, the computer systems, and your files from unauthorized access and use. The safeguards used vary, and depend on the sensitivity of the information being protected; that is, a higher level of protection is used to safeguard more sensitive information.
Openness
So that you can be confident that CFWH is handling your personal information appropriately, CFWH will make information about its policies and practices concerning management of personal information readily available.
Individual Access
If at any time you have a question about our records containing your personal information, we will do our best to answer it. You have the right to be told about the kind of personal information CFWH maintains, how it is used, and with whom it is shared. Incorrect information will be promptly corrected upon your request. You can help us maintain your record up to date by keeping us informed of any modifications such as address changes or legal name changes.
Addressing Comments and Concerns
An important measure of CFWH’s compliance with the ten (10) privacy principles is your perception of our practices and procedures. We welcome your comments and suggestions concerning this Privacy Policy Statement and will respond to any concerns you may have about its application. Please visit our Web site at www.cfwh.org for contact information and links to additional privacy related materials.
Changes to your personal information can be made by contacting:
The Canadian Foundation for Women’s Health
780 Echo Drive
Ottawa ON
K1S 5R7
1-800-561-2416 ext: 238 or 613-730-4192 ext: 238
Fax: 613-730-4314
Email: kpodolak@cfwh.org
This document has been adapted from the Privacy Policy of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecology of Canada.
