Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to communicate clearly the personal information handling practices of the Australasian College of Health Service Management ACN 41 008 390 734 ('College', 'we', 'us', 'our'), in accordance with relevant legislation.

Introduction

The College is committed to ensuring the privacy of individuals.

We handle your personal information in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (Privacy Act) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs).

This policy outlines the way the College collects, uses and discloses personal information, and the procedures that allow access to this information.

We take your privacy very seriously and treat all user information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

Definitions

In this Policy:

• personal information means information or an opinion about an identified individual, or an individual who is reasonably identifiable, whether the information or opinion is true or not, and whether the information or opinion is recorded in a material form or not.
• sensitive information means personal information that includes information about an individual's health, racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, criminal record, biometric information, or membership of a professional or trade association.
• health information means personal information about the health of an individual, an individual's expressed wishes about the future provision of health services, or a health service provided or to be provided to the individual.

This Policy does not apply to employee records held by the College in the context of a current or former employment relationship, which are exempt under s 7B(3) of the Privacy Act.

What kinds of information do we hold?
During the course of carrying on our business or providing services to you, we may collect personal information. The kinds of personal information we usually collect, include:

• your name, address, occupation and contact information;
• information about your areas of interest as nominated by you;
• financial information such as credit card details or bank account details;
• your employment history, professional qualifications, and other information contained in your curriculum vitae ;
• information about your dealings with us; and
• if you are an administrator or a member of the Website, information about the organisation which administers the website and its and its users, including details required to manage Website accounts and services; and
• Professional development results and event registrations.

We may collect sensitive information (including health information) where you provide it to us or where we are otherwise permitted or required by law to do so, for example in connection with accessibility or dietary requirements for events, or membership applications. We will only collect sensitive information with your consent or where otherwise authorised by law.

If you are a contractor, or are applying for a job with us, we collect information, including:

• employment history and qualifications;
• academic records;
• references;
• medical information;
• personal alternative contact details;
• superannuation fund details; and
• criminal history record.

Dealing with us anonymously or using a pseudonym

Where practicable, you may deal with us anonymously or using a pseudonym. For example, if you contact us with a general enquiry, we will not require you to identify yourself. However, for many of our functions and activities (such as processing your membership application or providing services to you), we will need to be able to identify you.

How we collect your personal information

We collect personal information in a number of ways, including:

• directly from you when you apply for or renew membership, register for events, courses or conferences, correspond with us by email, telephone or in writing, complete surveys or feedback forms, or visit our website;
• through cookies and analytics tools when you use our website (see below); and
• from third parties such as referees, professional bodies, or publicly available sources.

If you apply for a job or hold a volunteer or contract position with us, we may also collect personal information about you from third parties and publicly available sources, including:

• recruiters;
• government departments to verify your entitlement to work in Australia;
• police agencies to obtain your criminal history record;
• academic institutions;
• consulting medical practitioner;
• superannuation fund provider;
• your current or previous employers; or
• your referees.

Cookies and collection of information via our website

When you visit our website, we also use 'cookies' or other similar tracking technologies that help us track your website usage and remember your preferences. Cookies are small files that store information on your computer, mobile phone or other device. They enable the entity that put the cookie on your device to recognise you across different websites, services, devices and/or browsing sessions. You can disable cookies through your internet browser but our website may not work as intended for you if you do so.

Whilst we do not use browsing information to identify you personally, we record certain information about your use of our website, such as which pages you visit, the time and date of your visit, search engine referrals and the internet protocol address assigned to your computer.

Our web pages contain electronic images, known as web beacons. These electronic images enable us to count users who have visited certain pages on our website. Web beacons are not used by us to access your personal information, they are simply a tool we use to analyse which web pages are viewed, in an aggregate number.

Purposes for collection, use and disclosure of your personal information

We collect, use and disclose your personal information for various purposes, including:

• provide our services to you including administering your membership; providing education, training and professional development services; organising and run events and conferences;
• to procure goods and services from suppliers, and allows the College to contact individuals;
• to manage and improve our services;
• manage our relationships with you;
• to communicate with you from time to time about the Website and about our, and third parties, goods and services;
• to analyse statistical trends and demographics to assist us to improve our services.
• facilitate our internal business operations, including to fulfil our legal requirements, quality assurance and management, processing payments and donations;
• to communicate with you about our activities, news and publications;
• to obtain and manage feedback, or respond to complaints and queries;
• to comply with our legal obligations, resolve any disputes and enforce our agreements and rights with third parties.

If you have applied for employment, or are engaged as a contractor or volunteer we may also collect your personal information for the following purposes, including (but not limited to):

• to consider your suitability for employment or a contractor or volunteer position and (if successful) engaging the applicant or contractor;
• administering the individual's employment or contract; or
• for insurance purposes.

Disclosing your information

In the course of providing our products and services to you, we may need to disclose your personal information to third parties, including:

• organisations we contract to provide services on our behalf such as software suppliers;
• third party web developers and administrators to perform functions on our behalf. These functions may include, trend analysis, marketing and promotions. Information will only be used to perform appropriate functions and not for other usage;
• our professional advisers, including lawyers, accountants and auditors;
• government agencies, regulatory bodies and law enforcement agencies, or other similar entities;
• where disclosure will prevent or lessen a serious or imminent threat to the life, health or safety of any individual, or to public health or safety;
• where the disclosure is reasonably necessary to take appropriate action in relation to a suspected unlawful activity or serious misconduct;
• with your consent; or
• where otherwise required or permitted by law.

Sending and storing information overseas

We may disclose your personal information to recipients located outside Australia. This may occur where we use cloud-based software or service providers located or operating overseas. We may also disclose your personal information to other Branch Councils. These organisations may be located in New Zealand, Hong Kong, Fiji, Myanmar and Papua New Guinea.

Where we disclose your personal information overseas, we take reasonable steps to ensure the recipient handles your information in accordance with the APPs. 

Direct marketing

We may use your personal information to send you information about our services, events, publications and other activities that may be of interest to you. You may opt-out of receiving marketing communications from us at any time by using the unsubscribe function in our emails, text messages, letters or as advised to you on the phone, or by contacting us using the details below. We will process your opt-out request as soon as practicable.

Automated decision-making

We use personal information in the operation of computer programs to make, or assist us in making, certain decisions (automated decisions).  The personal information we use for this purpose is event registration details, membership status and data about your engagement with the College member portal.  The decisions we make using this personal information in the operation of computer programs, are as follows:

• [Recommending College professional development programs, membership advancement and events; and
• other decisions as notified by us from time to time.

Protection and security of information

We take reasonable steps to protect all information which we hold (including your personal information) from misuse, loss, unauthorised access, modification or

All information submitted to the Website is secured using Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) software. Information contained in on the Website is protected by encryption and firewall technology.

We take reasonable steps to hold information securely in electronic or physical form. We store information in access-controlled premises or in electronic databases requiring logins and passwords.

Period of retention
The College shall not retain the personal information of any person for longer than necessary.

When your personal information is no longer required for any purpose for which it was collected, and we are no longer required by law to retain it, we will take reasonable steps to destroy or de-identify that information securely.

Access and Correction

The College seeks to maintain the accuracy of personal information. Individuals are encouraged to contact the College if the information held is incorrect or to notify the College if personal information has changed.

You can request access to, or correction of, the personal information we hold about you at any time by contacting the Privacy Officer using the contact details set out below.

A request in writing from that individual will be required to access or correct their information. Access will be provided unless the request is unreasonable or the Australian Privacy Principles permit or require the College to decline that access. We will need to verify your identity before responding to your request. Subject to any applicable exceptions or requirements, we will provide you with access to the personal information you request within a reasonable time and usually within 28 days. If we decide to refuse your request, we will tell you why in writing and how to complain.

As permitted by law, a fee may be requested to cover the cost of access. Any queries regarding an individual’s personal online information should be checked by that individual prior to any such request.

We will respond to your access or correction request within 30 days. If we refuse your request, we will provide written reasons and information about how you may complain.

Complaints and contact us

If you have a question about this Policy, wish to make a complaint, or wish to exercise any of your privacy rights, please contact our Privacy Officer:

Title: Catherine Chaffey - CEO

Address: PO Box 959, Ryde, NSW 1680

Email: membership@achsm.org.au

Telephone number: 02 8753 5100

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may lodge a complaint with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC): Website: www.oaic.gov.au; Phone: 1300 363 992; Post: GPO Box 5218, Sydney NSW 2001.

Changes To This Policy

The College may modify or amend this Policy at any time. Any changes will be published on our website. The latest version of this Policy can be accessed via the College website.

Last updated: 1 July 2026