Ontario Laboratories Information System (OLIS) and London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) PIA Summary

Date PIA Summary Last Reviewed and Updated: December 2, 2025 (Rebranding)

The following is a summary of the above-referenced privacy impact assessment (PIA), including a brief background, key findings, and risks and recommendations as applicable. See our Privacy Contact page to find information on how to contact the Ontario Health Privacy Office should you have any questions.

Background

The Ontario Laboratories Information System (OLIS) - London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) (OLIS LHSC) initiative is part of the OLIS go-to-market strategy and aligns with the broader eHealth Ontario strategy for the electronic health record. eHealth Ontario and LHSC are collaborating to make laboratory information from OLIS available to authorized users of LHSC’s Cerner OLIS Clinical Viewer operated by LHSC and St. Joseph’s Health Care. Authorized users of the OLIS clinical viewer include clinicians from LHSC, St. Joseph’s Health Care London, Middlesex Hospital Alliance, St. Thomas-Elgin General Hospital, Woodstock General Hospital, Alexandra Hospital, South Huron Hospital Association, Tillsonburg District Memorial Hospital and Listowel Wingham Hospital Alliance.

The OLIS clinical viewer allows OLIS data to be displayed in a format that is consistent with the look and feel users are familiar with and in a format consistent with the way these users are accustomed to viewing clinical data.

Clinicians will only be able to search for patients through the OLIS clinical viewer for the purpose of providing or assisting in the provision of health care. This project involves providing clinical access to Ontarians’ personal health information (PHI) and is therefore guided by Personal Health Information Protection Act, 2004 (PHIPA). PHIPA only allows for collection, use, and disclosure of personal health information for specific purposes.

Key Findings

The PIA concludes that eHealth Ontario has the overall PHIPA authority under section 6.2 of O.Reg. 329/04 to make OLIS data available to clinicians at the participating hospital corporations for the purpose of providing or assisting in the provision of health care. Additionally, both eHealth Ontario and LHSC, have robust infrastructures with strong privacy and security safeguards suitable for the processing and sharing of sensitive PHI. The PIA makes one recommendation for the initiative: to ensure that eHealth Ontario continues to act in compliance with its privacy obligations in respect of legislation, policy and best practice.

Risks and Recommendations

The recommendation is summarized below:

eHealth Ontario to execute agreements with LHSC and participating health information custodians who will be accessing OLIS data as per eHealth Ontario privacy policy.