PAIA Manual

Prepared under section 51 of the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000, as amended.

CA Cape Doctors PTY Ltd
Registration number: 2019/233933/07
Compiled and reviewed: 10 November 2026
Version: 1.0

1. Purpose and scope

This manual explains how to request existing records held by CA Cape Doctors PTY Ltd, a private primary-care practice with facilities in Rondebosch and Claremont. It describes record categories, public information, personal-information processing and access procedures.

PAIA means the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000. POPIA means the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013. The Information Regulator oversees both Acts. An Information Officer is the person responsible for handling the practice's information-access and privacy enquiries.

The manual follows the topics in the Information Regulator's private-body manual template. Listing a category does not establish that every possible record exists or that access is automatic.

2. Information Officer and contact details

Information Officer: Cobus Steyn
Position: COO and Founder
Email for PAIA and privacy requests: cobus@capedoctors.co.za
Telephone: 063 448 8991
Physical and postal address for the Information Officer: Ground Floor, North Wing, Belmont Square, 21 Belmont Road, Rondebosch, Cape Town, 7700, South Africa
Fax: No fax service
Website: capedoctors.co.za

Address requests to Cobus Steyn, Information Officer, CA Cape Doctors PTY Ltd. An email subject such as “PAIA request – [your name]” helps identify the request. Please contact the Information Officer to arrange an appropriate channel before transmitting detailed medical records or identity documents.

The practice's additional public contact point is Shop A1, Ground Floor, Protea Place, 40 Dreyer Street, Claremont, Cape Town, 7700, telephone 078 584 4445, email cacdclaremont@gmail.com. Rondebosch reception can also be reached at reception@capedoctors.co.za. Formal requests should be directed to the Information Officer above.

3. Help understanding PAIA

The Regulator's PAIA Guide explains access requests, assistance, fees and remedies. Its guidelines page provides other available language versions. You may ask the Information Officer for help obtaining the Guide, including by using the official Form 1 for requesting a copy from an Information Officer.

4. Information available without a formal PAIA request

The public website makes available practice and facility descriptions, service information, published consultation and appointment information, branch contact details, booking links, articles, the website privacy notice and this manual. These materials can be read online without submitting Form 2. Contact the practice if you need help obtaining a public document.

This public availability does not extend to patient files, staff files, private correspondence or other confidential underlying records. Any applicable notice about voluntary disclosure under section 52 of PAIA can be requested from the Information Officer.

5. Subjects and categories of records

The following categories describe records arising from practice activities, where created or received and held by the practice. Records may be electronic or on paper.

Patient registration and administration: Patient identification and contact details, relevant representative or guardian details, appointment and booking records, consent and administrative correspondence
Clinical care: Consultation notes, relevant medical history, examinations, diagnoses, treatment and prescriptions, investigations or results received, referrals, reports and clinical correspondence
Billing and accounts: Invoices, receipts, payment and account records, relevant medical-aid details and claims correspondence
Website and communications: Contact-form submissions, emails and other enquiry correspondence, appointment communications, feedback, website technical and usage information and consent preferences
Practitioners and personnel: Engagement or employment records, qualifications or professional information supplied to the practice, payroll and related administration where applicable
Suppliers and operations: Supplier details, service agreements, purchasing and operational correspondence
Company and finance: Incorporation and company administration, governance, financial, accounting and tax-related records
Compliance and disputes: Access and privacy requests, complaints, correspondence with regulators, and relevant legal or professional-adviser records

A request for records held by an independent practitioner or another organisation may need to be addressed to that record holder. The Information Officer can help identify the appropriate contact where that is known.

6. Records relevant to other legislation

Depending on the activity and record, the following frameworks may govern recordkeeping or access. Their inclusion does not make confidential records publicly available or replace the access procedure applicable to the record.

Companies Act 71 of 2008: Company administration, governance and financial records
National Health Act 61 of 2003 and Health Professions Act 56 of 1974, with applicable professional rules: Patient and clinical records, confidentiality and professional-practice records
POPIA and PAIA: Personal-information processing, access requests and related correspondence
Basic Conditions of Employment Act 75 of 1997 and Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995, where applicable: Employment and personnel administration
Income Tax Act 58 of 1962 and Tax Administration Act 28 of 2011, where applicable: Tax, payroll, accounting and supporting financial records

This is a practical guide to relevant categories, not an exhaustive legislation register. The Information Officer can help with a specific record enquiry.

7. Processing of personal information

7.1 Purposes, people and information

Patients and prospective patients: Identification and contact information for registration, bookings and communication; relevant health information for assessment, treatment, referrals and continuity of care; financial and medical-aid information for billing and claims
Representatives, guardians and emergency contacts: Contact details and evidence of relevant authority or relationship, where needed for a patient matter or access request
Website visitors and people making enquiries: Information supplied in an enquiry, technical or usage information and consent preferences to operate the website, respond, manage appointments and understand website use
Practitioners, employees and applicants: Relevant identity, contact, professional, employment and payment information for engagement and administration
Suppliers and business contacts: Contact, contractual, service and payment information for business administration

The information processed depends on the relationship and service. Health information needs particular care. Please do not put detailed clinical information or identity documents into the general website enquiry form; ask the practice for the appropriate channel.

7.2 Recipients and service providers

Depending on the matter and the applicable authority for disclosure, recipients may include the treating practitioner and relevant practice personnel; another treating provider or diagnostic service involved in care; medical schemes or payment-related parties involved in an account; providers supporting bookings, website hosting, email or communications; professional advisers; and a regulator or authority where disclosure is required or authorised by law.

Website booking buttons lead to RecoMed. The website also uses Google services, translation and review features, and links to app stores and social platforms. Their role depends on the feature used. An external service's independent collection of information is also governed by its own privacy information. The website privacy notice describes those features; the Information Officer can address questions about a particular disclosure.

7.3 Information processed outside South Africa

Online services, including Google-hosted email, measurement, maps and video, and other external website features, may involve processing outside South Africa. Locations depend on the provider, service and configuration. The same cannot be assumed for every category of practice or clinical record.

Contact the Information Officer for available details about a particular service, recipient or proposed transfer. Cross-border disclosures must be assessed against the applicable requirements of POPIA, including section 72.

7.4 General description of information-security measures

The public website uses HTTPS for browser connections, and WordPress administration requires authentication. General website enquiry forms include required fields, a consent step and a maths verification check. Website consent controls allow visitors to reject optional Google measurement scripts. Embedded Google Maps content is also restricted until the relevant consent choice is made; preferences can be changed later.

These describe website measures. They do not describe every safeguard for paper or electronic clinical, personnel or financial records. The Information Officer can provide a general explanation of the safeguards relevant to a particular record or process, subject to avoiding disclosure that would itself compromise security. Do not assume that ordinary website email or a general enquiry form is an appropriate channel for every medical document.

7.5 Retention and personal-information requests

Retention depends on the type of record, its purpose and applicable legal or professional requirements. This manual does not set a single retention period for all records. Ask the Information Officer about the category concerned.

Subject to identity verification and applicable law, a person can ask whether the practice holds their personal information, seek access, request correction or deletion where permitted, or object to relevant processing. A lawful retention obligation can limit deletion. The Regulator provides current POPIA forms; POPIA Form 2 concerns correction or deletion and is different from PAIA Form 2 for access.

8. How to request access

Use the official PAIA Form 2 – Request for Access to Record. Send the completed form to the Information Officer using the contact details in section 2. The Regulator also maintains a current PAIA forms page.

Please provide:

Enough detail to identify the record, such as the subject, patient or account reference if relevant, facility and approximate dates.
Your identity and contact details, proof of identity required by the form, and your preferred way of receiving the decision and record.
If acting for someone else, evidence of your authority or capacity. An application involving a child, deceased person or person unable to act for themselves requires the relevant authority to be assessed; a family relationship alone does not settle every access question.
The right you seek to exercise or protect and why the requested record is needed for that right, as required for a private-body PAIA request. If seeking your own personal information, say so clearly.

The practice will assess requests under the applicable access provisions, including the private-body test in section 50 of PAIA. Please ask the Information Officer if you need help identifying records or completing the process. A request for existing records is different from asking the practice to create a new report or answer general questions.

9. Decisions, confidentiality and fees

PAIA ordinarily requires a decision within 30 days. A lawful extension may be made in the circumstances provided by the Act, with notice and reasons. Access can be granted fully or in part; information that must be protected may need to be removed. Third-party notification and applicable refusal grounds must be considered, together with the Act's public-interest provisions. Health records may require the additional process in section 61. A record is not refused merely because it is described as confidential.

Where applicable, the practice will communicate the outcome and fees using a notice substantially corresponding to PAIA Form 3. Request, access, reproduction, search or delivery charges, and a deposit where permitted, depend on the current prescribed framework. Consult the Regulator's private-body fee schedule and the applicable notice for your request. Public-body fee exemptions should not be assumed to apply to a private-body request.

10. Complaints and other remedies

If access is refused, no decision is given in the applicable period, or you dispute a relevant fee, extension or access decision, the available remedies include a complaint to the Information Regulator and, where applicable, court proceedings. The public-body internal-appeal route does not apply automatically to this private practice.

For PAIA complaints, use Form 5 and the Regulator's current submission instructions. Its PAIA guidance describes a 180-day complaint period and the procedure for seeking condonation if late. Follow the time limits applicable to your circumstances. See the Regulator's PAIA guidance and FAQs and official complaints page for current channels, including the eServices portal. Privacy complaints under POPIA follow the applicable POPIA procedure.

The Regulator can be contacted through inforegulator.org.za, enquiries@inforegulator.org.za, or 010 023 5200. You do not have to give up an external remedy by raising a concern with the practice first.

11. Availability and updates

This manual is available on the practice website and for free inspection at the Information Officer's Rondebosch contact address during practice business hours. Contact the Information Officer for a copy, assistance with access or information about another format. A prescribed reproduction charge may apply to a physical copy.

The Information Officer will review the manual when relevant contact details, processing activities or access procedures change. The version and review date identify the current copy.

Official reference

The Department of Justice's consolidated PAIA Act, particularly sections 50-61, 63-73 and the complaints provisions, governs the statutory access process. The linked Regulator sources above provide the current public guide, template, forms and fee information. This manual does not override the Acts or applicable professional duties.