Privacy policy

Practitioner Ethics respects your privacy. We handle personal information in line with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the 13 Australian Privacy Principles (APPs), which set standards for the collection, use, disclosure, quality, security, access and correction of personal information.

Many of our learners are health practitioners, and some use our courses while a concern about their practice is being considered. We know that the fact you have taken a particular course can itself be sensitive, and we treat it that way.

This policy explains what we collect, why, how we use and protect it, who we share it with, and how you can access or correct it or make a complaint. Our business details are shown at the foot of this page.

We collect only the information we reasonably need to provide our services. This may include:

• Account information: your name as you want it to appear on certificates, your email address and your password (stored in a protected form).
• Professional information you choose to give us: for example your profession, so that we can suggest relevant courses.
• Learning records: the courses you buy and start, your progress, assessment attempts and results, completion dates, certificates and the reflective accounts you write.
• Purchase information: what you bought, the amount, the date and your receipt details. Card payments are processed by our payment provider, and we do not receive or store your full card number.
• Communications: the content of emails and messages you send us and our replies.
• Technical information: such as your IP address, browser and device type, pages visited and how you use the website, collected through cookies and similar technologies.
• Organisation information: if your place is provided through a team licence, the organisation's name and contact person and the places allocated to you.

We do not ask for health information about you or your patients. Please do not include information that identifies patients or other people in reflective accounts or messages. If you choose to tell us something sensitive, for example that you are responding to a notification, we use it only to help you and handle it with extra care.

We collect personal information directly from you when you create an account, buy a course, complete course activities, contact us or subscribe to emails. If an organisation buys a team licence, it may give us your name and email address so that we can set up your place. We also collect technical information automatically when you use the website.

You can browse the website without giving us your name. Where it is lawful and practicable, you may deal with us anonymously or under a pseudonym when asking general questions, but we need your real name to provide a course and issue a certificate that accurately records your learning.

We use personal information to:

• create and manage your account and give you access to courses, programs and tools;
• record your progress, mark assessments and issue certificates;
• process payments, issue receipts and handle refunds;
• provide support and respond to your questions and complaints;
• administer team licences, including giving organisations the information described below;
• keep the website secure, prevent fraud and misuse, and fix problems;
• understand how the website and courses are used so we can improve them, using aggregated or de-identified information where practicable;
• send you service messages about your account and purchases;
• send you information about new courses and updates, if you have agreed or where the law otherwise allows; and
• meet our legal obligations.

We will not use or disclose your personal information for any other purpose unless you consent, you would reasonably expect it and the purpose is related to the one for which we collected it, or the use or disclosure is required or authorised by law.

We do not sell your personal information. We share it only as needed with:

• Service providers who help us run the business, such as website hosting, learning platform, payment processing, email delivery, analytics and IT support providers. They may use the information only to provide services to us.
• Your organisation, if your place is provided through a team licence. The organisation may see that you have been allocated a place, your progress, completion status and certificate. We do not share your reflective accounts with your organisation unless you choose to share them yourself.
• Professional advisers, such as our accountants, lawyers and insurers, where needed.
• Authorities, where required or authorised by law, for example in response to a lawful request or court order.

We do not tell Ahpra, any National Board or your employer that you have taken a course unless you ask us to, the law requires it, or you are on a team licence as described above. If someone asks us to confirm a certificate, we will do so only with your consent or where a certificate has been withdrawn in line with our terms and conditions.

Some of our service providers, such as hosting, email and payment providers, may store or process personal information outside Australia. Where this happens, we take reasonable steps, as required by APP 8, to ensure the provider handles the information in a way consistent with the APPs, for example through contractual terms. Contact us if you would like more information about where your information may be held.

We use cookies and similar technologies to keep you signed in, remember your preferences, keep the website secure and understand how it is used. Some analytics cookies may be provided by third parties. You can set your browser to refuse or delete cookies, but parts of the website, including signing in and completing courses, may not work without essential cookies.

We may send you emails about new courses, updates to standards and offers if you have agreed to receive them or where the law otherwise allows. Every marketing email includes a simple way to unsubscribe, and you can also ask us at support@practitionerethics.com. Unsubscribing does not stop service messages about your account or purchases. We do not sell or give your details to others for their marketing.

We take reasonable steps to protect personal information from misuse, interference, loss and unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. These include encrypted connections, access controls that limit who can see personal information, protected password storage and choosing service providers with appropriate security practices. No system is completely secure, so please use a strong, unique password and keep it private.

If a data breach occurs that is likely to result in serious harm, we will respond in line with the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme in the Privacy Act where it applies, including notifying affected people and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC).

We keep your learning records and certificates while your account is open so that you can access them for your CPD records. We keep purchase records for as long as required by tax and other laws. When we no longer need personal information for any purpose for which it may lawfully be used or disclosed, and are not required by law to keep it, we take reasonable steps to destroy or de-identify it. If you ask us to close your account, we will explain what we need to keep and for how long.

You can see and update much of your information, such as your name and email address, in your account. You can also ask us for access to the personal information we hold about you, or ask us to correct it, by emailing support@practitionerethics.com. We will respond within a reasonable time, usually within 30 days. We may need to confirm your identity first.

We do not charge you for making a request. If we refuse access or correction, which we may do only where the APPs allow, we will explain why in writing and tell you how to complain. If we refuse a correction, you can ask us to attach a statement to the information noting that you believe it is inaccurate, out of date, incomplete, irrelevant or misleading.

If you believe we have mishandled your personal information, please email support@practitionerethics.com with details. We will acknowledge your complaint, look into it and respond in writing within a reasonable time, usually within 30 days.

If you are not satisfied with our response, you can complain to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC). Information about how to do so is on the OAIC website, linked below.

We may update this policy to reflect changes to our services or the law. The current version is always on this page. If we make a significant change to how we handle your personal information, we will let account holders know by email or on the website. See also our terms and conditions and contact page.