Your rights & responsibilities

The Illawarra Women’s Trauma Recovery Centre is a women-only safe space.

Your rights

The Illawarra Women’s Health Centre is committed to assisting women to be aware of their rights as health care clients, and to helping women put these rights into action.

You have the right to:

A welcoming, safe and supportive environment in the Centre
Be treated with dignity, courtesy and respect, including respect for your culture
Receive service in a safe, non-discriminatory manner at all times
Confidentiality and privacy
Make choices about your own supports
Be supported to say yes or no to services and supports and to have your decision respected
Access your records and notes
Provide feedback or lodge a complaint and to have your feedback addressed safely and quickly
Know the name of the staff member assisting you
Have the services of an interpreter

Your responsibilities

Be on time for appointments and contact the Centre if you are unable to keep your appointment
Respect the rights of other women using the Centre, including their right to privacy and confidentiality
Treat the staff of the Centre with courtesy and respect
Help make this Centre a safe place for all women
Provide clinicians with information they need to assist with treatment
Keep the Centre updated about any changes that may affect services at the Centre
Ask questions about your situation and any suggested treatments
Inform Centre workers if you are seeing someone else for the same problem

Complaints policy

You can be confident that:

• The Illawarra Women’s Trauma Recovery Centre wants to resolve your concerns to your satisfaction
• Your complaint will be dealt with quickly
• Your complaint will remain confidential and will not affect the service you receive

To make a complaint:

If you are unhappy with our service please let us know. We will do our best to try and fix the problem. It is important to us to hear what you have to say.

If you want to make a complaint, talk to one of our staff members. They will try to sort out the problem straight away. If they can’t, they will arrange for the Manager to talk with you. The manager will talk with you at the first opportunity (within 3 working days). Resolution of the problem may take longer, as an investigation may need to be considered. You will be kept up to date with progress on the matter. 

If things are not resolved to your satisfaction, there are several options you can consider. For example, the Manager can assist you to bring the complaint to the Council of Women (the governing body of the Centre) for consideration, or offer other suggestions.

Bringing children to appointments
Babies, toddlers, and children (boys are to be under 12 years of age) are very welcome in the Centre. 

We seek your consideration regarding children’s safety whilst they are here, as the Centre is very busy and reception staff are not always able to keep an eye on children who are in the waiting room.

Your health record

Your health record is a legal document. It is kept securely at the Centre. You are welcome to read your record at any time, in the company of a staff member, and can be given a copy of any part of it with a written consent form (signed by you).

On your first visit, we ask you to complete a client registration form. You can choose not to answer some questions but we do need your name, date of birth and telephone number. The information in your notes may be shared by more than one worker if, for example, you see the caseworker and a counsellor. Each health professional writes into the one record. This helps us to provide you with the best co-ordinated care. If you choose, any sensitive information can be restricted to a particular health care worker and the written notes in respect of this can be kept in a sealed envelope in your file.

From time to time the health records are audited by staff members or external assessors to ensure that appropriate standards of record keeping are met. All care is taken to preserve the confidentiality of clients.

It is possible at some stage that we may undertake some research or data collection which will involve examination of health record data. If this occurs we will not allow the use of any information which would identify you or link with you in any way.

Please inform your health care worker if you do not wish your record to be included in the data.

Confidentiality

Your information remains confidential to our health care team. If it is necessary to refer you to another service, we will always ask your explicit consent, in writing, before we transfer any information verbally or otherwise, to another service. Similarly, if you have been referred to this service by someone else, we will not give them any feedback about you without your written consent.

Limits of confidentiality

There are specific instances where confidentiality around a particular matter cannot be maintained, namely, the case of child abuse or neglect, stated intention to harm self or others, or disclosure regarding a serious crime. In these instances, staff are required by law to notify the appropriate authorities.

Your medical record can also be subpoenaed to court, as can individual members of staff who are bound to be truthful witnesses.

Our fees policy

We provide a variety of health and wellbeing services for women at no cost.

Alcohol and other drugs policy

The Centre has a duty of care to all women who attend the Centre.

Women who attend and are noticeably intoxicated with any drug may not be in a position to participate meaningfully in their health care planning. They will not receive service and will be asked, respectfully, to leave.