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Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy

Important Notice Regarding This English Version

This English translation is provided for reference purposes only. The original Japanese version is the official version of this Privacy Policy. In the event of any discrepancy or inconsistency between the English and Japanese versions, the Japanese version shall prevail.

Japanese version

Kobe City Eye Hospital is guided by a core mission: to protect the eye health of the people of Kobe and of every patient who visits us. As a leading center for ophthalmic care, we provide a full range of services, from standard treatment to highly advanced medical care, and serve as the heart of a one-stop center for eye health that connects patients with the care and support they need. To provide prompt and appropriate care tailored to each patient’s condition, we must handle a wide range of personal information related to your health and medical care.

We believe that every patient has a fundamental right to have the personal information obtained during their care strictly protected, and to have their privacy respected and free from intrusion. Accordingly, we manage medical information in accordance with the basic policy set out below and take the utmost care to protect our patients’ personal information.

I. Our Basic Policy on the Protection of Personal Information

  1. We comply with all applicable laws, regulations, and other standards concerning the protection of personal information. We have also established internal rules under which we manage patient information, and we review these rules as appropriate to ensure continuous improvement.
  2. We collect patients’ personal information only to the extent necessary for medical care, education, clinical training, research, and the management and administration of the hospital. We inform patients of the purposes for which their information is used in advance. Because determining what information is necessary may sometimes require medical or professional judgment, we will gladly explain at any time if you have any questions.
  3. To ensure that patients’ personal information is handled properly, we have appointed a person responsible for its management and provide training to our staff and all others working at the hospital.
  4. We strive to manage personal information safely and accurately, and to prevent unauthorized access to, or the loss, destruction, alteration, or leakage of, patients’ personal information.
  5. We may outsource certain tests and examinations to external medical facilities or clinical laboratories, and certain administrative tasks, such as reception and billing, to external contractors. In such cases, it may be necessary to share patients’ personal information with these parties. We select only reliable facilities and contractors, and we enter into contracts with them to ensure that your personal information is not handled inappropriately.
  6. When it is medically necessary to provide personal data to a third party in order to protect a patient’s health or life, we carefully assess whether doing so is truly necessary and make every effort to protect the patient’s personal information to the greatest extent possible.
  7. Upon request, we will disclose a patient’s medical information. Upon request, we will also disclose records of access to the patient’s personal information.
  8. For inquiries regarding this basic policy, please contact our Patient Consultation Desk.

II. Purposes of Use of Personal Information

Kobe City Eye Hospital has established a basic policy on personal information and takes the utmost care to protect patients’ personal information. To ensure that you receive prompt, appropriate, and safe medical care, we kindly ask for your consent to our use of your personal information for the purposes described below.

(1) Use within the Hospital

  1. To provide you with prompt, appropriate, and safe medical care.
  2. For health insurance administration, ward management, reception, billing, accounting, patient safety measures, and the improvement of our medical services.

(2) Provision of Personal Information to Third Parties

  1. To exchange information with other hospitals, clinics, midwifery centers, pharmacies, home-visit nursing stations, long-term care service providers, and similar organizations to ensure smooth coordination of your care.
  2. To respond to medical inquiries from other healthcare institutions.
  3. To obtain or provide information when the opinion or advice of external physicians or other specialists is needed to provide more appropriate care.
  4. To explain your medical condition to your family members or other relevant persons.
  5. To prevent misidentification when specimen testing is outsourced to external laboratories or in similar situations.
  6. For health insurance administration, including the outsourcing of insurance-related tasks, the submission of medical fee claims to the organizations that review and process health insurance claims in Japan, inquiries to these organizations or to insurers, and responses to inquiries from them.
  7. To outsource administrative tasks such as ward management, reception, and billing.
  8. To notify employers or other commissioning organizations of the results of health checkups or similar services we perform on their behalf.
  9. To consult with or notify insurance companies, such as providers of medical liability insurance, where necessary.

(3) Other Purposes of Use

  1. Use within the Hospital

    • As basic data for maintaining and improving our medical services and hospital operations.
    • To support internal case studies, clinical training, education, and student practical training.
    • For the planning and conduct of clinical trials and clinical research.

  2. Provision of Personal Information to Third Parties

    • To provide information to external auditors when the hospital’s management and operations are subject to an external audit.
    • As an exception, we may provide information without your consent when required by law; when necessary to protect a person’s life, physical safety, or property; when necessary to improve public health or promote the healthy development of children; or when a government agency requests our cooperation in accordance with the law.

  3. Research, Including Presentations at Academic Conferences and Publications in Scholarly Journals

    • We may use anonymized information to contribute to the advancement of medicine and healthcare.
    • If the details of a case make sufficient anonymization difficult, we will, in principle, obtain your consent before using the information.

Of the purposes listed above, if there is any aspect of sharing your personal information with other healthcare institutions or similar organizations that you do not agree to, please let us know.

Declining to consent will not result in any disadvantage to you. If we do not hear from you, we will assume that you have consented to the uses described above.

You may withdraw or change your consent, or any reservations you have expressed regarding the purposes above, at any time.

If you have any other questions, please contact our Patient Consultation Desk.

Established: December 1, 2017
Kobe City Eye Hospital
2-1-8 Minatojima Minamimachi, Chuo-ku, Kobe 650-0047, Japan
Yasuhiko Hirami, Hospital Director

Security Control Measures

1. Establishment of Rules and Policies

  • To ensure the proper handling of personal data, we have established this Personal Information Protection Policy, which covers matters such as compliance with relevant laws, regulations, and guidelines, and the designation of a contact point for questions and complaints.
  • We have established Rules for the Handling of Personal Information, which set out, for each stage of handling (acquisition, use, storage, provision, and deletion or disposal), the methods of handling, the persons responsible and in charge, and their respective duties.

2. Organizational Security Measures

  • We have appointed an administrator responsible for the handling of personal data, clearly defined which employees handle personal data and the scope of the data each of them handles, and established a reporting system to ensure that any actual or suspected violation of Japan’s Act on the Protection of Personal Information or of our internal rules is promptly reported to the administrator.
  • We regularly conduct self-inspections of how personal data is handled, as well as audits by other departments or external parties.

3. Human Security Measures

  • We provide employees with regular training on key considerations in the handling of personal data.
  • Confidentiality obligations concerning personal data are set out in our work regulations.

4. Physical Security Measures

  • In areas where personal data is handled, we control employee entry and exit, restrict the devices and equipment that may be brought in, and take measures to prevent unauthorized persons from viewing personal data.
  • We take measures to prevent the theft or loss of equipment, electronic media, and documents used to handle personal data. When such equipment or media is carried, including within our premises, we take measures to ensure that personal data cannot be easily identified.

5. Technical Security Measures

  • We implement access controls to limit the persons in charge and the scope of the personal information databases they handle.
  • We have introduced systems to protect the information systems that handle personal data from unauthorized external access and malicious software.