Privacy policy

I'm Jane Ippolito, trading as The Natal Nook, ABN 43 920 082 398. When you book with me you tell me things about your body, your birth and your baby. Here's what I do with that.

What I collect and why

Your contact details, and, if you fill in an intake form, your due date, birth history, relevant medical history and medications, breast and nipple history, and your feeding goals and worries. I also keep notes from our visits.

I ask because it changes the advice I give you. Things like PCOS, thyroid conditions, diabetes or previous breast surgery affect how milk supply starts, and knowing beforehand means I can plan with you rather than catch up later. This is health information, which the law protects more strictly than ordinary personal details.

You don't have to answer everything. Leave blank anything you'd rather talk through in person.

Who sees it

Me, and nobody else. Intake forms go into a secure database only my signed-in account can open. The form can only send information in, it can't display anyone's answers back. Notifications I receive say only that a form has arrived, so your answers never travel by email.

I don't sell your information or use it for marketing. I'll pass something on only where you need a doctor, I'll tell you first, or where the law requires it, which includes a genuine concern about a child's safety.

How long I keep it

Records relating to a baby: until that child turns 25. Records relating only to an adult: seven years from our last contact. Enquiries that don't become bookings: twelve months. Health records have to be kept a long time, because questions about early feeding can matter years later.

What you can ask me

To see your record, to correct something that's wrong, or to stop texting you. Email me and I'll sort it, usually within 30 days. I can't delete clinical notes inside their retention period, but I'll tell you plainly what I can and can't remove.

If information I hold is lost or accessed by someone who shouldn't have it, and there's a real risk of serious harm, I'll tell you and notify the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.

Complaints

Tell me first: hello@thenatalnook.com.au or 0434 612 483. If I don't resolve it, the OAIC is at oaic.gov.au or 1300 363 992, and AHPRA at ahpra.gov.au or 1300 419 495.

One last thing

Lactation and postpartum support isn't medical care, and I'm not your doctor. Where something needs a doctor, I'll tell you and help you get there.