Privacy Policy

Last updated: August 27, 2026

Homer Watson Dental is committed to protecting the privacy and confidentiality of the personal information and personal health information we collect while providing dental care. This policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, retain, and safeguard information in connection with our dental practice in Kitchener, Ontario.

This policy is intended to reflect our obligations under Ontario's Personal Health Information Protection Act, 2004 (PHIPA), Canada's Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), and applicable professional obligations for Ontario dental practices. It is general information only and does not replace legal advice.

Information we collect

We may collect information directly from patients, parents or guardians, substitute decision-makers, referring providers, insurers, and other health-care providers involved in a patient's care. This may include:

• Contact details such as name, address, phone number, email address, date of birth, and emergency contact information.
• Dental and medical history, medications, allergies, treatment notes, diagnostic records, x-rays, photographs, referrals, prescriptions, and consent forms.
• Appointment, billing, insurance, CDCP, payment, and account information.
• Website or form information submitted through our online contact or booking forms, including preferred appointment details and message contents.

How we use information

We use personal information and personal health information only for purposes reasonably connected to operating a dental practice and providing care, including to:

• Assess, diagnose, plan, provide, and follow up on dental care.
• Schedule appointments, respond to inquiries, send appointment communications, and manage patient records.
• Coordinate care with laboratories, specialists, other health-care providers, insurers, benefit administrators, and CDCP administrators where appropriate.
• Process billing, insurance claims, estimates, pre-determinations, payments, and account administration.
• Meet legal, regulatory, quality assurance, infection prevention, risk management, and professional record-keeping obligations.

Consent and your choices

We collect, use, and disclose information with consent where required by law. Consent may be express or implied depending on the circumstances, such as when information is shared among health-care providers for the purpose of providing care. Patients may withdraw consent for certain uses or disclosures, subject to legal, regulatory, contractual, or care-related limits. Please contact us if you have questions about consent or wish to discuss a privacy preference.

When information may be disclosed

We do not sell patient information. We may disclose personal information or personal health information only where permitted or required, including:

• To dental laboratories, specialists, other health-care providers, insurers, benefit administrators, or payment processors involved in care or account administration.
• To service providers who help operate our website, forms, appointment systems, practice software, secure communications, or IT systems, subject to appropriate confidentiality expectations.
• To regulatory colleges, public health authorities, courts, law enforcement, or other bodies where authorized or required by law.
• To a parent, guardian, substitute decision-maker, or authorized representative where permitted by law and appropriate in the circumstances.

Cross-border processing and storage

Some service providers that support our website, forms, email, SMS, appointment communications, practice administration, analytics, hosting, security, or records systems may process or store personal information or personal health information outside Canada, including in the United States. When information is processed or stored outside Canada, it may be subject to the laws of that jurisdiction. We take reasonable steps to use service providers that are expected to protect information through appropriate safeguards, confidentiality obligations, and limited-use terms.

Website forms and electronic communications

Information sent through website forms or email may be used to respond to inquiries and appointment requests. Please avoid sending highly sensitive medical details through unsecured email or web forms unless necessary. If urgent dental care is needed, call the clinic directly at 226-270-6311.

Cookies, analytics, and website data

Our website may use cookies, analytics, tags, or similar tools to understand website performance, measure traffic, improve user experience, and support advertising or communications. These tools may collect technical information such as IP address, browser type, device information, pages visited, referring pages, and interactions with the site. You can adjust browser settings to block or delete cookies, although some site features may not work as intended.

Safeguards

We use administrative, physical, and technical safeguards intended to protect information against unauthorized access, use, disclosure, loss, or theft. Access to patient information is limited to team members and service providers who need it for authorized purposes.

Data Retention

We retain personal information and personal health information only as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this policy, or as required by law and professional obligations. Retention periods vary depending on the type of information:

• Clinical and personal health records: Dental records are retained in accordance with Ontario dental record-keeping requirements, including Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario guidance that records be kept for at least 10 years from the date of the last entry, and for minors for at least 10 years after the patient reaches the age of majority.
• Website form submissions and inquiries: Information submitted through contact, booking, or inquiry forms is retained as long as needed to respond to the request, support appointment administration, document related communications, or meet legal and business requirements. If an inquiry becomes part of a patient record, it may be transferred to and retained with the clinical record.
• Log, analytics, and website data: Technical and analytics data is retained for periods set by our website, hosting, security, analytics, and advertising service providers, or until it is no longer needed for site performance, security, measurement, troubleshooting, or reporting purposes.

Data Deletion and Disposal

When information is no longer needed and no legal, regulatory, professional, care-related, or business requirement requires continued retention, we take reasonable steps to securely delete, destroy, anonymize, or de-identify it. Paper records and electronic records are disposed of using methods intended to prevent unauthorized access, recovery, or use.

Accessing or correcting your information

Patients may request access to their records, ask that inaccurate or incomplete information be corrected, or request deletion of certain information where deletion is legally and professionally permitted. Some information, including clinical records, may need to be retained even if a deletion request is made. We may need to verify identity before processing a request. Some requests may require reasonable time to process and may be subject to permitted fees.

Privacy questions or concerns

If you have questions about this policy, want to request access or correction, or have a privacy concern, please contact Homer Watson Dental:

Homer Watson Dental
15 Pearson Street
Kitchener, Ontario N2C 0C5
Phone: 226-270-6311
Email: admin@homerwatsondental.com

If a privacy concern cannot be resolved directly with us, you may contact the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario for PHIPA-related concerns or the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada for applicable federal privacy matters.