Privacy: Booking a vaccine
To book a vaccination, we need to collect some information from you using our booking system. Find out what we record, where it is kept, and who can access it.
What information is collected when you book a vaccine
You will need to provide some personal information and contact details to book a vaccination or other consultation.
These will either be your details, or those of the person you are completing the booking or registration for (you will need to confirm you have their consent).
Information was previously collected by the Ministry of Health. As of 1 July 2022, information is collected and held by Health New Zealand.
| Type of information | Mandatory/optional | Why we collect this information |
|---|---|---|
| First name and last name (middle name optional) | Mandatory | Used to: • make your booking • identify you at your appointments • match you to your NHI number. |
| Preferred first and last name | Optional | Used to: • identify you at your appointments • match you to your NHI number (you may have used your preferred name when the NHI was originally assigned). |
| Date of birth | Mandatory | Used to: • make a booking • identify you at your appointments • match you to your NHI number • assist with demographic reporting. |
| Contact email and/or contact number | Mandatory (at least one needs to be provided) | Used to: • send your appointment confirmation and reminders • contact you regarding your appointments – for example if an appointment needs to be verified or rescheduled, or has been missed. |
| Gender | Optional – you can choose ‘prefer not to say’ | Used to: • match you to your NHI number • assist with demographic reporting. |
| Ethnicity | Mandatory | Used to: • match you to your NHI number • assist with demographic reporting. |
| Address | Optional | Used to: • identify you at your vaccination appointment • match you to your NHI number. |
| Assistance required | Optional | Used so we can accommodate your needs when you attend your appointments. |
| Booking location, dates, and times | Mandatory | Used to confirm your appointments. |
| Acknowledgment that you accept our privacy statement | Mandatory | Used to confirm you are aware of how Health New Zealand manages your privacy. |
| Confirmation that you have consent if you’re completing the form for someone else | Mandatory | Used to confirm to Health New Zealand that you have authority to book on someone else’s behalf. |
| NHI number supplied by you | Optional | Used to assist with matching your NHI number. |
We will also record and store:
| Type of information | Mandatory/optional | Why we collect this information |
|---|---|---|
| Your NHI as matched by Health New Zealand | Mandatory if match can be made | Used to link your booking records to your NHI number so it can be used during your appointments. Linking you to your NHI number also helps us identify and manage bookings that may not be genuine. |
| Confirmation booking attended | Mandatory if match can be made | Used to confirm within the Booking System when a booking has been attended and to follow up missed appointments. |
Reporting
We use your information for statistical reporting so we can track how our bookings are progressing nationally – you are not identified in any of these reports.
NHI number matching
We will link your details to your National Health Index (NHI) number where we have sufficient details for a match. This is your unique identifier in the health system.
Our team may contact you if we can’t match you to your NHI number and will allocate a new one to you if necessary.
Booking cancellations
If we cancel a booking for any reason, we will advise you using the contact details provided and include advice on how to re-book.
Bookings may be cancelled if we can’t match you to an NHI number and we can’t contact you with the contact details provided.
Fraudulent bookings
Information may be shared with other agencies where we have reason to believe that a fraudulent booking has been made, or where one person attempts to use the identity of another person.
If someone is booking on your behalf
You may authorise another person to complete a booking on your behalf, but they must confirm that they have your consent to do this.
Vaccination bookings for children
It is recommended that a parent or caregiver books on behalf of a child.
A parent, caregiver, legal power of attorney, or whanaungatanga will need to accompany a child under 12 years old to their appointment(s) as the responsible adult.
At the appointment a health professional will discuss the vaccination. There is time for questions and the responsible adult will need to confirm consent for the child to be vaccinated.
While young people aged 12 and over have the right to give their own consent, we recommend they discuss vaccination with their parents, whānau, or a trusted support person.
A health professional will also discuss the vaccine with them before they get vaccinated and answer any questions they have. If they have a good understanding, they can say yes or no to getting the vaccine. If they would prefer, a parent or caregiver can provide consent instead.
Keeping your information safe
Your personal information will be held and managed in accordance with the Privacy Act and Health Information Privacy Code. Secure measures are in place to protect your information from unauthorised access.
Access to your information is limited to authorised users. This access is recorded and can be audited.
In order to host the Booking System we use Amazon Web Services located in Sydney, Australia.
Who can see and access your information
We will share your information with the people and organisations who are involved in managing your appointments and providing the vaccination or consultation service to you. We need to be able to:
- identify you when you book and when you arrive at your appointment
- communicate with you when we have relevant information for you or to help you attend your appointment
- link your details to your NHI number to the Aotearoa Immunisation Register when you present for your vaccination or consultation
- manage resources to have enough vaccinations at the right location at the right time
- identify and make improvements to the programme by reporting on the number of people booking and attending appointments
- understand facility capacity
- monitor how effective the programme is.
In addition, your information will be stored on the secure Health New Zealand reporting database and if you booked a COVID-19 vaccine it will be used for supporting the COVID-19 response. This may include matching with other Health New Zealand datasets. You will not be identified in any reports generated as part of these reporting activities.
If you are under 16 years old, your parent or guardian may request access to your information.
Information will also be collected from you when you present for your vaccinations or other consultations. This is managed separately by vaccination or consultation staff.
How long your information is kept
Your information will be held in the Booking System, and in the secure Health New Zealand reporting database until the COVID-19 Public Health Response 2020 is repealed, or as required by the Public Records Act 2005.
Accessing or changing your information
To view any personal information held by us about you, or if you have any concerns or questions about the personal information that we hold and wish to request a correction:
Email: hnzPrivacy@health.govt.nz
Write to:
The Privacy Officer
Health New Zealand
PO Box 793
Wellington
6140
We may require proof of your identity before being able to provide you with any personal information.
Google Analytics
We use Google Analytics to collect and analyse details about the use of our website. No effort is made to identify individual users. You may opt out from having Google Analytics collect your information by disabling cookies in your browser or by installing the Google Analytics Opt-out browser add-on.
The information collected includes your IP address, the pages you accessed on the website, the links you clicked on, the date and time you visited the website, the referring site (if any), the operating system on your device, the web-browser you used and other incidental information such as screen resolution and language setting. Google reCAPTCHA is also used.
Contact us
If you have concerns about your privacy email hnzPrivacy@health.govt.nz.
If you are not satisfied with our response to any privacy concerns, you can contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner.