Privacy Notice
This privacy notice sets out how DLourencoPsychotherapy uses and protects any information that you give when using this service.
It is committed to ensuring that your privacy is protected. Any personal data provided by you through any means (verbal, written, in electronic form, or by your use of this website) will be held and processed in accordance with the data protection principles set out in the Data Protection Act 1998 and the General Data Protection Regulation.
When you request counselling with DLourencoPsychotherapy and provide your personal details, you will be asked to consent to the processing of your data under the terms of this notice.
This notice only applies to data collected by DLourencoPsychotherapy via its own forms and website. Third party agents, and websites which are linked to ours, are not covered by this notice.
What information is collected?
- Counselling/psychotherapy Enquiries – contacting the service to enquire about counselling/psychotherapy can be done online or over the phone. The request process involves providing the service with your name, telephone numbers and email address. You may also be asked about your availability, therapeutic issues, and other details which will be relevant to processing your request.
- Initial Consultation Appointments – At this initial appointment you are asked about your current personal, social, medical and financial circumstances. You will also be asked about your background and family history, as well as the issues which are affecting you now. This information is necessary to decide the best treatment plan and to manage the service offered to you.
- Website/ Use of Cookies – A cookie in no way gives access to your computer or any information about you, other than the data you choose to share. You can choose to accept or decline cookies. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies if you prefer.
- Other Forms – The information you give on all forms (including enquiries, assessments, and emergency contacts) may include your name, postal address, email address, phone number and other personal data.
What is done with the information collected?
The information is gathered to understand your needs and provide you with the appropriate service you require. The information will be used only for internal record keeping. We will not sell, distribute or lease your personal information to third parties.
The information held about you will be used in the following ways: - To provide the professional counselling service requested by you.
- To offer suitable counselling/psychotherapy appointments and allocation of appropriate time slots.
- To notify you about changes to your appointments and other changes to the service.
- To ensure that the service is provided in the most effective manner.
- To administer the service, including the arrangement of appointments, handling of invoices, data analysis, research and statistical purposes.
Information Sharing
The information collected about you will not be shared with other organisations or people, except in the following circumstances: - Consent – with other professionals or others whom you have requested or agreed we should contact.
- Serious harm – with relevant authorities or services if there is reason to believe that this may prevent serious harm being caused to/by you or another person.
- Compliance with law – where it is required to by law or by the regulations and other rules to which the service is subjected.
Security
All information you provide is stored as securely as possible. All paper forms and correspondence are kept in a locked filing cabinet on the service’s premises. All electronic records are stored on the service’s on-site computer or on a separate hard drive used only for storing the service data, all which requires password-protected authentication.
Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the internet is never completely secure. Therefore, the service cannot guarantee the security of your data transmitted via email, including contact forms completed on the website which are transmitted by email; any transmission is at your own risk.
Your identifiable personal information is kept separately from any session notes and other descriptive material. Personal contact details, client notes and other documentation are destroyed/deleted 7 years after the end of counselling/psychotherapy.
Your Rights
You have the right to ask the service to provide a copy of the information held about you. You also have the right to require the service to correct any inaccuracies in your information.
You may withdraw your consent for the service to hold and process your data at any time. However, if you do this while actively receiving counselling/psychotherapy, it is likely that your counselling/psychotherapy would have to come to an end. You can contact the service by emailing dlourencopsychotherapy@yahoo.com
Changes to this notice
This privacy notice will be reviewed regularly to ensure it is still fit for purpose and complies with current regulations.
June 2018
