At the BC Pharmacy Association our commitment to protecting the confidentiality and security of our members’ Personal Information has, will, and always, be a very integral part of our core values. We do not sell, trade or rent any Personal Information to any organization for any purpose at anytime.
What is Personal Information?
Under the Personal Information Protection Act, Personal Information is broadly defined as information (data), oral, written or electronic, about an identifiable individual. Personal Information includes, but is not limited to, the following:
- Name, home address, home telephone number and home fax number
- Age, gender, family and marital status
- Identification numbers (such as Diploma, Social Insurance or driver’s license)
- Financial and employment information
- Credit rating, payment records
- Medical and health information
What is Not Personal Information?
The name, title, business address, business telephone number, business fax number or business email address of an employee of an organization (“business card information”) is not considered Personal Information. Any data that we have collected in which all the “personal identifiers” have been removed, making it impossible to determine the identity of the person to whom it relates, is also not considered Personal Information.
Why We Ask For Your Personal Information?
The BCPhA collects the following personal information, either directly or indirectly, to provide a variety of benefits and services to BCPhA members.
Demographic Information
Name, date of birth, home address, home telephone number, home fax number, home email address
Education Information
Diploma number, graduation year, date of CPBC licensure, additional certification
Financial Information
Payment records of membership and services (by cash, cheque or credit card)
Your Demographic Information is collected solely for your participation in BCPhA membership benefits and services, such as association communications and insurance information as well as maintaining a demographic profile of BCPhA members. Your Education Information confirms qualification for a particular BCPhA membership category. Your Financial Information is necessary for processing your BCPhA membership or providing services and is dependent upon the payment method that you select. Personal Information collected is disclosed only as required for BCPhA business and our contracts include privacy policies for your protection.
Privacy Information Officer
If you have any questions about the collection of your personal information, please call Cyril Lopez at 604-269-2869 or toll free at 1-800-663-2840 or email: cyril.lopez@bcpharmacy.ca between 8:30am and 4:30pm Monday through Friday.
Our Ten Privacy Principles
Principle 1 - Accountability
BCPhA is responsible for personal information under its custody and
control and will reasonably ensure that it complies with the ten
principles for the protection of privacy.
Principle 2 - Identifying Purposes
BCPhA will identify the purposes for which personal information is
collected at or before the time the information is collected and will
ensure that the purposes are limited to what a reasonable person would
consider appropriate in the circumstances.
Principle 3 – Obtaining Consent
The knowledge and consent of the individual are required for the collection, use, or disclosure of personal information, except where inappropriate.
Note: In certain circumstances personal information can be collected, used, or disclosed without the knowledge and consent of the individual. For example, legal, medical, or security reasons may make it impossible or impractical to seek consent. When information is being collected for the detection and prevention of fraud or for law enforcement, seeking the consent of the individual might defeat the purpose of collecting the information.
Principle 4 - Limiting Collection
BCPhA will limit the collection of personal information to that which is considered necessary for the purposes it has identified.
Principle 5 - Limiting Use, Disclosure, and Retention
BCPhA will not use or disclose personal information for purposes other than those for which it was collected, except with the consent of the individual or as required by law. Personal information will be retained only as long as necessary for the fulfillment of those purposes or as required by legislation.
Principle 6 - Accuracy
Personal information will be as accurate, complete, and up-to-date as is necessary for the purposes for which it is to be used.
Principle 7 - Safeguards
BCPhA will use security safeguards appropriate to the sensitivity of the information to protect personal information.
Principle 8 - Openness
BCPhA will make readily available to individuals specific information about its policies and practices relating to the management of personal information.
Principle 9 – Giving Individuals Access
Upon request, applicants will be informed of the existence, use, and disclosure of his or her personal information and will be given access to that information. An individual will be able to challenge the accuracy and completeness of the information and have it amended as appropriate.
Note: In certain situations, BCPhA may not be able to provide access to all the personal information it holds about an individual. Exceptions to the access requirement are limited and specific. The reasons for denying access will be provided to the individual upon request. Exceptions may include information that is prohibitively costly to provide, information that contains references to other individuals, information that cannot be disclosed for legal, security, or commercial proprietary reasons, and information that is subject to solicitor-client or litigation privilege.
Principle 10 – Providing Recourse
BCPhA will have a process in place so that an individual can challenge BCPhA’s compliance with the Personal Information Protection Act.