Wilson and Department of Health; Wilson (Third Party)

Application number:
2003 F0541
Decision date:
Tuesday, Jan 06, 2004

Wilson and Toowoomba District Health Service (Department of Health); Wilson (Third Party)
(2003 F0541, 6 January 2004) 

Personal affairs 

The applicant sought access to the medical records of her adult daughter (the third party). The third party objected to disclosure to the applicant of the records. 

Applying the principles in Stewart and Department of Transport (1993) 1 QAR 227, Assistant Commissioner Moss found that the matter in issue was properly to be characterised as information which concerned the personal affairs of the third party, or information which concerned the shared personal affairs of the applicant and the third party.  As regards the shared personal affairs matter, AC Moss found that the information which concerned the applicant was inextricably interwoven with information which concerned the personal affairs of the third party.  Accordingly, all matter in issue was prima facie exempt from disclosure under s.44(1) of the FOI Act, subject to the application of the public interest balancing test incorporated within s.44(1).  AC Moss then evaluated the public interest considerations weighing for and against disclosure of the matter in issue, and decided that disclosure of the matter in issue would not, on balance, be in the public interest.