Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

Apex Care Services Ltd. ("Apex Care," "we," "us," or "our") is committed to protecting the privacy and confidentiality of personal information entrusted to us by our clients, their families, prospective clients, employees, and website visitors.

This Privacy Policy governs how we collect, use, disclose, and protect personal information in accordance with Alberta's Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA) and Canada's Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA), along with applicable health information legislation.

By using our website, contacting us, or engaging our services, you consent to the practices described in this policy.

2. What Information We Collect

We may collect the following types of personal information:

• Contact Information: Name, address, phone number, email address
• Health Information: Medical history, diagnoses, medications, care needs, and functional assessments (for care planning purposes)
• Financial Information: Billing details, payment records, insurance information
• Employment Information: For job applicants — resume, references, qualifications, criminal record check results
• Website Usage Data: IP address, browser type, pages visited, time on site (via cookies and analytics tools)
• Communications: Records of emails, phone calls, and form submissions

We collect only the information that is necessary for the specific purpose for which it is collected.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use personal information for the following purposes:

• To assess care needs and develop individualized care plans
• To coordinate and deliver care services
• To communicate with clients, families, and authorized representatives
• To process billing and payment for services
• To coordinate with healthcare providers, physicians, and government programs (with consent)
• To recruit, hire, and manage employees and contractors
• To respond to inquiries submitted through our website or by phone/email
• To improve our services and website experience
• To comply with legal obligations under Alberta and Canadian law

We do not use your personal information for marketing purposes without your explicit consent, and we never sell personal information to third parties.

4. Consent

We obtain consent before or at the time of collecting personal information, except where the law permits or requires collection without consent. You may withdraw your consent at any time, subject to legal and contractual restrictions. To withdraw consent, please contact our Privacy Officer using the information below.

For health information, we obtain express written consent before sharing information with third parties (including physicians, pharmacists, or government bodies), except in emergencies where sharing is necessary to prevent harm.

5. Disclosure of Personal Information

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information. We may disclose your information only in the following circumstances:

• With your consent — to other healthcare providers involved in your care
• To government programs — such as AHS, PDD, or FSCD, as required for care coordination and funding
• To service providers — third parties who assist us in delivering services (e.g., secure billing processors, IT providers), bound by confidentiality agreements
• As required by law — when disclosure is legally mandated (e.g., court order, regulatory requirement, mandatory reporting obligations)
• In emergencies — to prevent serious harm to you or others

6. Protection of Personal Information

We implement appropriate physical, administrative, and technical safeguards to protect your personal information from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These measures include:

• Encrypted digital record systems with access controls
• Staff training on privacy obligations and confidentiality
• Secure storage of physical records with restricted access
• Regular privacy audits and security assessments
• Non-disclosure agreements with all staff and contractors

While we take all reasonable precautions, no method of transmission or electronic storage is 100% secure. We encourage you to contact us directly for sensitive information rather than sending it by unsecured email.

7. Retention of Personal Information

We retain personal information only as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected, or as required by law. Health records are retained for a minimum of 10 years following the last service date, or longer as required by applicable legislation. Employment records are retained in accordance with Alberta employment law.

When personal information is no longer needed, we securely destroy or anonymize it.

8. Your Rights

Under PIPA (Alberta) and PIPEDA, you have the right to:

• Know what personal information we hold about you
• Request access to your personal information
• Request correction of inaccurate information
• Withdraw consent for certain uses of your information
• File a complaint if you believe your privacy rights have been violated

To exercise any of these rights, please contact our Privacy Officer at the address below. We will respond to requests within 30 days.

9. Cookies & Website Analytics

Our website uses cookies — small text files stored on your browser — to improve your experience and analyze website traffic. We use Google Analytics (or similar tools) to collect anonymized data about how visitors use our site. This data does not identify you personally.

You may disable cookies through your browser settings. Note that disabling cookies may affect certain website functionality. You may also opt out of Google Analytics by installing the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on.

10. Third-Party Links

Our website may contain links to third-party websites. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those sites and encourage you to review their privacy policies before providing any personal information.

11. Children's Privacy

We provide services to children with disabilities under programs such as FSCD. Personal information about children is collected with the consent of a parent or legal guardian and is subject to heightened protection. We do not knowingly collect information from children under 13 through our website without verified parental consent.

12. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or applicable legislation. The updated policy will be posted on this page with the revised effective date. We encourage you to review this page periodically. Material changes will be communicated to active clients directly.

13. Contact Our Privacy Officer

If you have questions, concerns, or requests related to this Privacy Policy or your personal information, please contact:

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may contact the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Alberta (OIPC) at www.oipc.ab.ca or 1-888-241-6603.