PRIVACY AND CONFIDENTIALITY POLICY

I am committed to ensuring your privacy is protected. Any information collected will only be used in accordance with this privacy statement. This policy is effective from 25/5/2018.

Any contact information you provide (including the contact form on this site) is not used for any marketing purposes nor provided to any third party for use for marketing purposes. It is solely used for house keeping matters such as to make appointments, arrange payment, client registration any/or follow up information.

Please talk to me about any concerns you may have with regard to the privacy of your information.

Confidentiality

What you choose to share with me remains confidential unless I have reason to believe that someone may be at risk of serious harm, or I have a legal duty to share the information. In these cases I would if at all possible discuss the situation with you before disclosing information to a third party. However, there are occasions (for example immediate risk of physical danger to a child) where this might not be appropriate or possible. I will at all times be guided by supervision, the BACP ethical guidelines and my legal obligations. Please note if you are accessing remote sessions from overseas you are considered to be undertaking counselling in the UK as I am based here and my insurance covers me to practice under UK law.

Supervision

I am supervised regularly in compliance with the BACP guidelines but do not share identifying details including full names with my supervisor or anybody else other than in exceptional circumstances (see Confidentiality).

Domestic Violence & Abuse

Domestic violence and abuse are common in relationships between people from all backgrounds, classes, cultures and orientations. From my Relate training and experience I know that where there is ongoing physical violence, working with both partners together may not be safe but I can help clients in this situation to get individual support either from myself or other agencies.

Record keeping

The terms of my insurance require me to keep records of sessions for a period of 7 years. These are kept securely at my home address and are not accessible by anyone else (ie other therapists, receptionists, clients, people using the same venues where I work). You have the right to request copies of your notes at any time. I will not release copies of your notes to anyone else including legal professionals (eg divorce lawyers) without your prior written permission unless legally required to (eg the police investigating serious crimes)

Your Personal Details

By supplying your contact details on enquiry or request of my services and/or client registration, you are agreeing to me holding confidential data about you. Client contact data is never used for any marketing purposes and only for the purposes of our therapeutic work together. Under the Data Protection Act 1998 / GDPR 2018, you may request sight or removal of your details, including case notes. Any email, mobile, phone or video communication you may choose to use with me is subject to limits of confidentiality from providers. I will not refer to sensitive information, confidential case notes or disclose personal information in any of our email communication unless you have specifically requested this. Please consider the limits of electronic communications provider security when communicating by email or text message or when accessing remote video sessions.

What I collect

I may collect the following information for the sole reason of providing you with the best therapeutic service:

– Contact information which may include address, phone numbers, email address, Skype (or other remote provider) username.

– Personal information: name, age, DOB, job title, gender identification, family members, relationship and/or family history

– Other information that may be relevant to therapeutic work such as GP details, use of medication, previous experience of counselling or other relevant services.

Information held on you is stored for 7 years as a condition of my professional indemnity insurance. Information including email communication and paper notes are destroyed after this time.

Security

I am committed to ensuring that your information is secure. Paper records are kept in a locked box in a secure room. Electronic notes are kept when I work off-site, where paper notes might be at risk. Electronic notes are anonymised and not linked to your identifying information. Electronic appointment details are kept in Google Calendar, include first name or initials only and are not linked to your personal information or case notes.

Controlling your personal information

I do not sell, distribute or lease your personal information to third parties unless required by law to do so. I may use your personal information to send you information during the course of our work that may be useful or helpful, following discussion in sessions. Please email me if you do not wish this to happen. You may choose to restrict the collection or use of your personal information by emailing dinahpurton@gmail.com.

You may request details of personal information which I hold about you under the Data Protection Act 1998 / GDPR 2018 Please email dinahpurton@gmail.com as above.

If you believe any information I am holding on you is incorrect or incomplete, email me as soon as possible, at the above address. I will promptly correct any information found to be incorrect.

Data Protection registration – ICO reg no: ZA150606
https://ico.org.uk/