Health Services Act 2016

In this section —

is about a person who is receiving or has received a health service; and

could identify the person;

means any record of information, irrespective of how the information is recorded or stored or able to be recovered; and

includes —

anything from which images, sounds or writings can be reproduced, with or without the aid of anything else; and

anything on which information is recorded or stored, whether electronically, magnetically, mechanically or by some other means.

For the purposes of an inquiry, the inquirer (if the Department CEO) —

may, by written notice, require the attendance of a person at a place and time specified in the notice; and

may, by written notice, require a person to produce at a place and time specified in the notice a document that is in the possession or under the control of that person; and

may inspect any document produced and retain it for any reasonable period that the inquirer thinks fit, and may make copies of it or any of its contents; and

may require a person to take an oath or make an affirmation and may administer an oath or affirmation to a person; and

may require a person to answer any question put to that person; and

may exercise powers under subsections (1A) and (1B).

The inquirer may enter the premises of a health service provider (including any hospital or other facility controlled or managed by the health service provider) for the purposes of an inquiry.

On entering premises under this section the inquirer may do 1 or more of the following —

inspect the premises;

generally make any investigation or inquiry that is relevant to the functions, management or operations of the health service provider;

examine any records of the health service provider, including records containing confidential information, that are relevant to the inquirer’s functions;

make copies of records referred to in paragraph (c) or any part of them and, for that purpose, take away and retain any of those records or any part of them for any time that may be reasonably necessary;

require a person in or about the premises to provide information or answer questions in connection with the inquirer’s functions;

require any person to produce any record or other thing in the possession or under the control of the person that relates to, or that the inquirer believes on reasonable grounds relates to, the functions, management or operations of the health service provider;

require the owner or occupier of the premises to provide the inquirer with such assistance and facilities as is or are reasonably necessary to enable the inquirer to exercise functions under this section.

For the purposes of an inquiry, the inquirer (if not the Department CEO) has whichever of the powers set out in subsections (1), (1A) and (1B) that the statement in writing required by section 184(1)(c) states that the inquirer is to have for that purpose.

A person required by a notice under this section to attend or to produce a document is entitled to be paid the prescribed allowances (if any) for the person’s travelling and other expenses.