Queensland Government
Queensland Government
Home / About us / Information access and privacy / Right to information
Right to information2025-07-01T11:23:34+10:00

Right to information

On this page

    Metro North Hospital and Health Service is committed to being open and transparent and supports the whole of government Right to information (RTI) and Department of Health RTI.

    View more information about submitting a Right to Information application.

    Unless it is not in the public interest, we’re working to make it easier to access information about our services, finances, policies, registers and lists, as well as information released through RTI requests.

    Before you apply

    Before making a request through the RTI process, you should check to see if the information is already available.

    • Your My Health Record for pathology results, medical imaging reports and discharge summaries.
    • Our disclosure log lists information of a non-personal nature which has been released in response to RTI access requests.
    • Our publication scheme describes and categorises information routinely available from Metro North Hospital and Health Service.
    • The Queensland Government’s open data strategy lists a range of information collected by Queensland Health.

    Evidence of identity

    When seeking access to your personal information (including your health record), you will need to provide evidence of your identity, such as:

    • passport
    • copy of a certificate or extract from a register of births
    • motor vehicle, personal watercraft or recreational marine licence
    • proof of age card
    • a statutory declaration from an individual who has known the person for at least one year, or
    • if the person is a prisoner within the meaning of the Corrective Services Act 2006, a copy of the person’s identity card from the Department administering that Act that is certified by a corrective services officer within the meaning of that Act.

    If you are providing a copy of your evidence of identity document, you will need to provide a certified copy of the document. Please refer to the Access to Health Records Information Sheet for more information.

    Accessing your personal information

    If you want to access your health record you may be able to apply under the Administrative Access Scheme. To access your personal information that is not part of your health record you will need to make an application under the Right to Information Act.

    Some information may relate to your health journey but is not considered part of your health record. Information such as clinical incident reports, security audit documents, etc. are considered administrative documents. To apply for access to these documents, you will need to make an application under the Right to Information Act.

    You can request information by:

    An application fee will NOT be payable for an application that is solely for the applicant’s personal information (including where another person is applying on behalf of another person and has valid authority to do so). Access charges may still be applicable to your application.

    For example:

    • Where an Enduring Power of Attorney is in place and the patient lacks capacity, an application can be made under the authority of the Powers of Attorney Act, 1998 (Qld).
    • A solicitor or agent can act on behalf of another person; however, the patient’s authority is required in this situation.

    Other requirements may include evidence of identity for the patient.

    Documents of a non-personal nature released under the Right to Information Act may be progressively published through our disclosure log.

    Accessing other people’s health records

    If you want to access someone else’s records (e.g. a child or deceased relative), and you do not have or are unable to obtain their consent, you will need to make an application under the Right to Information Act.

    You can request information by:

    An application fee will be payable for any application that is not solely your personal information. This includes where you are seeking access to a deceased relative’s personal information. Processing and access charges may also be applicable to your application.

    For example:

    • Where an Enduring Power of Attorney is in place and the patient lacks capacity, an application can be made under the authority of the Powers of Attorney Act, 1998 (Qld).
    • A solicitor or agent can act on behalf of another person; however, the patient’s authority is required in this situation.

    Other requirements may include evidence of identity for the patient.

    Documents of a non-personal nature released under the Right to Information Act may be progressively published through our disclosure log.

    Accessing a child’s health record

    There are no charges for a parent or guardian applying for access to child’s record under the Right to Information Act, however the decision-maker needs to satisfy themselves that the person applying is doing so on behalf of the child and that it would not be contrary to the child’s best interests to release the information to the parent or guardian.

    To support the application, the person making the application is encouraged to provide supporting information to allow the decision maker to make an informed decision on the release of the documents.

    Amending information in your health record

    If there is information in your health record that is incorrect or which you do not agree with, you can apply for it to be amended under the Right to Information Act. You will need to provide details of why the information may be inaccurate, incomplete, out of date or misleading.

    You can request amendment of your personal information by:

    You will need to provide evidence of your identity before your application can be considered.

    Decision making timeframes

    Under the Right to Information Act, applications must be processed within 25 business days. Other timeframes contained within the legislation may extend this initial timeframe. Some of these extensions to time may be where it is required to consult with and obtain the views of a relevant third party, where you have only provided a postal address or where we request further time to finalise your application.

    Disclosure log

    Documents of a non-personal nature released under the Right to Information Act will be progressively published through our disclosure log.

    Right of review

    If you are dissatisfied with a decision we have made under the Right to Information Act, you may be able to apply to have that decision reviewed.  An application for review must be made within 20 business days of the date of the letter communicating the decision.

    There are two options for review; an internal or an external review. An internal review will be conducted by another, not less senior, officer of the agency that made the access decision.  An external review is conducted by the Office of the Information Commissioner. View your review rights – a guide for applicants.

    The appeal rights that are relevant to your application will be communicated to you in the decision letter you receive.

    Back to top