Confidentiality Policy
Middlebury College health services, comprised of Parton Health Center, Zug Sports Medicine Center and the Center for Counseling and Human Relations are committed to maintaining the confidentiality of students' physical and mental health information. Such information includes records, appointments, and conversations pertaining to physical and mental health. To provide treatment, coordinate care and assure quality, Parton Health Center, Zug Sports Medicine Center and the Center for Counseling and Human Relations may share your health information with its own staff and those providing services on its behalf. If you are an intercollegiate athlete or on the crew or rugby team, the Sports Medicine department may exchange information with Parton Health Center. The Center for Counseling and Human Relations will not share health information with the College's other health services without consent.
Ordinarily, no information of a personal nature is shared with others without the student's consent. For this reason we urge students to share information with family members themselves. Exceptions are made when there is serious and imminent danger to the safety or health of the student or to the safety or health of others. In such cases, deans and parents may be notified.
An attempt is made to notify parents immediately if a student is unconscious, critically ill, seriously injured or about to undergo emergency surgery. In such situations health center personnel reserve the right to notify the deans. Some situations that arise where notification may be desirable are:
1) Inpatient admission to Parton Health Center or hospital: All are urged by the staff to contact their parents/guardians. Staff will request permission to notify the Dean of Student Affairs.
2) Any students raped or otherwise assaulted: Parton Health Center staff will urge students in the interest of community safety to report the occurrence to the Middlebury College Department of Public Safety, the Dean of Students Affairs, and the Dean of the College. Health center staff will respect a student's requests to report such occurrences without using the student's name and other identifying information.
3) When disclosure is otherwise required by federal, state, or local law.
Please note: Middlebury College and Parton Health Center is not a health care provider subject to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, and therefore, is not required to comply with the various federal regulations relating to the use and disclosure of health information. Middlebury College is, however, committed to protecting student privacy. This policy should not be interpreted as creating any contractual rights and Middlebury College reserves the right to make changes to this policy at any time without prior notice.