1. Our commitment to your privacy

Your personal and health information is among the most sensitive information you will ever share. We treat it that way.

Dr Mary-Anne Slater Dental Practice is committed to protecting your privacy and handling your information with care, discretion and integrity. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, why we collect it, how we use and protect it, who we may share it with, and how you can access or correct it.

This policy has been prepared in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs), the Health Records and Information Privacy Act 2002 (NSW), and our professional and ethical obligations under the Dental Board of Australia and Ahpra.

2. Who we are

Dr Mary-Anne Slater Dental Practice is a family dental practice in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales. We have cared for adults and children in the Riverina for more than 40 years, providing general, preventive, restorative and cosmetic dental care.

Contact details

Dr Mary-Anne Slater Dental Practice

4/24 The Esplanade

Wagga Wagga NSW 2650

Phone: (02) 6921 6035

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.mslaterdental.com.au

3. Information we collect

3.1 Personal information

To provide safe and appropriate dental care, we may collect:

• Your name
• Date of birth
• Residential and postal address
• Telephone numbers
• Email address
• Emergency contact details
• Details of a parent, guardian or authorised representative (where relevant)
• Occupation, where relevant to your dental health

3.2 Health information

Health information is a special category of sensitive information. We may collect:

• Medical history and current health conditions
• Current medications and supplements
• Allergies and adverse reactions
• Previous dental history and treatment
• Smoking, alcohol, diet and other lifestyle factors relevant to your oral health
• Anxiety, sedation and anaesthetic history
• Clinical examination findings and diagnoses
• Dental radiographs (X-rays) and digital jaw scans
• Clinical photographs
• Treatment plans, clinical notes and progress records
• Referral correspondence and reports from specialists and other practitioners

3.3 Administrative and financial information

• Medicare and Child Dental Benefits Schedule details
• Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) details
• Private health insurance details
• Payment, billing and account information
• Appointment history, including cancellations and non-attendance

4. Why we collect your information

We collect, hold, use and disclose your information so that we can:

• Assess your oral health and diagnose dental conditions
• Plan, discuss and provide dental treatment
• Communicate with you about appointments, treatment and results
• Send appointment reminders and routine check-up recalls
• Arrange referrals to specialists, laboratories and other health providers
• Arrange treatment under sedation or general anaesthetic where appropriate
• Process Medicare, DVA and private health fund claims, and manage billing
• Maintain accurate and complete clinical records
• Meet our legal, regulatory, professional and insurance obligations
• Review and improve the quality and safety of our care

If you choose not to provide certain information, we may be unable to treat you safely, arrange referrals, or process claims on your behalf. We will always explain why a particular piece of information is needed.

5. How we collect your information

5.1 Directly from you

We collect most information directly from you, through:

• New patient forms and medical history questionnaires
• Updates to your medical history at subsequent visits
• Consent and treatment discussions
• Consultations and clinical appointments
• Telephone calls, SMS, emails and other correspondence
• Forms and enquiries submitted through our website

5.2 From other people

Where you have consented, or where the law allows, we may also collect information from:

• Your general practitioner or other medical practitioners
• Referring or previous dentists
• Dental specialists
• Radiology and pathology providers
• Hospitals and day surgeries
• Health insurers, Medicare and DVA
• A parent, guardian, carer or person authorised to act on your behalf

5.3 Children and people who need support with decisions

Where a patient is under 18, or otherwise does not have capacity to make their own healthcare decisions, we may collect information from — and disclose relevant information to — a parent, guardian, carer or other person legally authorised to make decisions on that patient’s behalf, as permitted by law.

5.4 Unsolicited information

If we receive information about you that we did not ask for and do not need, we will destroy or de-identify it where it is lawful and reasonable to do so.

6. Digital records, imaging and clinical technology

Modern dentistry relies on digital tools to improve diagnosis, planning and communication. As part of your care we may create and store:

• Digital radiographs and digital jaw scanning images
• Clinical photographs
• Digital treatment plans and design files
• Laboratory prescriptions and design files for crowns, bridges, veneers, dentures and implant restorations

These records form part of your dental record and are kept in accordance with professional, ethical and legal requirements.

We may also use software that includes artificial intelligence or machine-learning features to assist with tasks such as image assessment, clinical documentation or administration. These tools are decision-support aids only. They never replace the clinical judgement of your dentist, and any patient information handled through them is subject to appropriate privacy, confidentiality and security safeguards.

7. Clinical photography

Clinical photographs may be taken during examination, treatment planning, treatment and review.

We use these photographs to:

• Document your dental condition over time
• Plan and explain treatment options to you
• Monitor treatment progress and outcomes
• Communicate with dental laboratories
• Communicate with specialists and other practitioners involved in your care

Clinical photographs form part of your confidential dental record.

We will not use your photographs for marketing, advertising, social media, teaching or publication without your specific, separate written consent. You may withdraw that consent at any time, and we will stop using the images for those purposes from that point forward.

8. Referrals, specialists and dental laboratories

Good dental care often involves working alongside other health professionals. With your consent, we may share relevant information with:

• Dental specialists, including oral and maxillofacial surgeons, periodontists, endodontists, prosthodontists and orthodontists
• Your general practitioner, medical specialists and anaesthetists
• Hospitals and day surgery facilities, where treatment is provided under general anaesthetic
• Radiology and pathology providers
• Dental laboratories and technicians

We share only what is reasonably necessary for your care. This may include your medical history, clinical notes, radiographs, scans, photographs and digital design files.

9. How we use and disclose your information

We may use and disclose your information for purposes directly related to your care and to running the practice, including:

• Providing dental treatment
• Appointment scheduling, reminders and recalls
• Communicating with you about your treatment
• Referrals and shared care
• Medicare, DVA, CDBS and health fund claiming
• Billing, payment processing and debt recovery
• Quality assurance, clinical audit and staff training
• Managing complaints, insurance and legal claims
• Meeting obligations under law, including to courts, tribunals, Ahpra and public health authorities

We may also disclose information where required or authorised by law, or where we reasonably believe disclosure is necessary to lessen or prevent a serious threat to someone’s life, health or safety.

We do not sell your personal information, and we do not disclose it to third parties for their own marketing purposes.

9.1 Service providers

We use trusted third-party providers to help us run the practice — for example, practice management and clinical software, appointment reminder and communication services, secure IT support and backup services, payment processing, and accounting and debt recovery services. These providers may access personal information only to the extent needed to perform their role, and are bound by confidentiality and privacy obligations.

9.2 Marketing and communications

We may send you appointment reminders, recall notices and information about your oral health. These are part of providing your care.

We will only send you promotional or marketing communications where you have consented or where permitted by law. Every marketing message includes a simple way to opt out, and you can ask us to stop at any time by contacting reception. Opting out of marketing will not affect appointment reminders or clinical communications.

10. Anonymity and pseudonymity

Where it is lawful and practicable, you may deal with us anonymously or under a pseudonym — for example, when making a general enquiry about fees or services.

However, to provide dental treatment safely, maintain accurate clinical records and process claims, we need to know who you are and hold accurate identifying information.

11. Storage and security of your information

We hold patient information in secure electronic practice management and clinical software, supported by encrypted backups.   

Our security measures include:

• Restricting access to patient records to authorised team members who need it for their role
• Firewalls, antivirus protection and regular software updates
• Physical security of the premises and records
• Written confidentiality obligations for all staff and contractors
• Ongoing staff privacy and security training

We review our systems and procedures regularly. While no system can be guaranteed completely secure, we take all reasonable steps to protect your information from misuse, interference, loss, and unauthorised access, modification or disclosure.

Further detail about the privacy practices of our software providers is available from reception on request.

12. Overseas disclosure

We prefer to use Australian-hosted systems where possible; our in-house software runs on-site from our file server.

Some supporting services — such as email, SMS delivery, cloud backup or website hosting — may involve storage or processing outside Australia. Where this occurs, we take reasonable steps to ensure those providers handle information consistently with the Australian Privacy Principles.

You can ask us at any time for further information about where your information is held.

13. Our website and online services

When you visit www.mslaterdental.com.au, some information may be collected automatically, including:

• Your IP address
• Device and browser type
• Pages viewed and time spent on the site
• The website you arrived from

We use this information to maintain and improve the website. It is not used to identify you personally.

Our website may use cookies and similar technologies, including analytics tools, to understand how the site is used. You can manage or disable cookies through your browser settings, though some parts of the site may not work as intended if you do.

Our website may link to other websites. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those sites, and we encourage you to read their privacy policies.

Email and online forms are convenient but are not completely secure. Please avoid sending detailed health information by email unless we have agreed on a secure method.

14. Accessing your information

You may request access to the personal and health information we hold about you at any time.

Please make your request in writing to [email protected] or by post to 4/24 The Esplanade, Wagga Wagga NSW 2650.

• We may ask you to verify your identity before releasing records.
• We will respond within 30 days.
• We will usually provide access in the form you ask for, where it is reasonable to do so.
• Access may be limited or refused in the circumstances permitted by law — for example, where providing access would pose a serious threat to someone’s life, health or safety, or unreasonably affect another person’s privacy. If we refuse, we will explain why in writing and tell you how to complain.
• A reasonable administrative fee may apply where extensive copying, imaging transfer or record retrieval is required. We will tell you the cost before proceeding.

If you are moving to another dentist, we are happy to transfer a copy of your records directly to your new practitioner with your written authority.

15. Correcting your information

We take reasonable steps to make sure the information we hold is accurate, up to date, complete and relevant.

Please tell us if your contact details, medical history or medications change, or if you believe any information we hold is incorrect. We will correct it, or — where we disagree that a correction is required — we will record your statement alongside the information and explain our position in writing.

There is no charge for correcting your information.

16. Retention and secure disposal of records

We retain dental records for as long as required by law and professional standards. In New South Wales this generally means:

• For adults: at least seven years from the date of your last visit.
• For patients treated as children: until they turn 25

Records may be kept longer where there is an ongoing clinical, legal or insurance reason to do so.

When records are no longer required, they are securely destroyed or permanently de-identified. Some information may remain in secure encrypted backups for a limited period as part of routine disaster recovery, and is destroyed as those backups cycle out.

17. Data breaches

We have procedures in place to detect, contain and assess suspected data breaches.

If a breach occurs that is likely to result in serious harm, we will comply with the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme and notify affected individuals and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) as required.

18. Questions and complaints

If you have a question about this policy, or a concern about how we have handled your information, please contact us first. Most issues can be resolved quickly and directly.

Practice Manager

Dr Mary-Anne Slater Dental Practice

4/24 The Esplanade, Wagga Wagga NSW 2650

Phone: (02) 6921 6035

Email: [email protected]

We will acknowledge your complaint promptly, investigate it, and respond in writing within 30 days.

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may contact:

Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC)

Phone: 1300 363 992

Web: www.oaic.gov.au

Information and Privacy Commission NSW

Phone: 1800 472 679

Web: www.ipc.nsw.gov.au

19. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in the law, technology or the way we operate.

The current version is always available on our website and from reception on request.

This policy was last reviewed on 30^th August 2026.