Therapeutic Solutions
Privacy Policy
Putting clients first
My obligations in relation to your personal information
As a therapist registered with the Australian Counselling Association, I am bound by the Counselling Code of Conduct, the Commonwealth Privacy Act and the Australian Privacy Principles, all of which mean that I must keep anything you tell me during therapy confidential (your personal information).
What is personal information?
Personal information includes your personal details such as name, age, sex, occupation and any information you tell me about any medical conditions you have, what has brought you to therapy and your personal circumstances such as whether you are married/divorced/single, your sexual orientation and your relationship issues.
The personal information I collect
I may collect the following personal information from you during or prior to therapy.
Name
Age
Address
Contact numbers
Health history
Family history
Other information that will help me to work effectively with you.
Why do I collect personal formation?
I collect personal information only for the following reasons.
To work effectively with you in therapy.
To contact you for a legitimate purpose such as to change an appointment time or advise you if I will be going on leave.
To ask you how you think I could improve my therapeutic approach (client satisfaction surveys).
How I collect personal information
I collect personal information from you directly during our sessions together.
How I store your personal information
I store your information in a locked electronic database to which only I have access.
When do privacy obligations not apply?
It is important to note that I will not be able to keep personal information confidential if:
you tell me that you are going to harm yourself or someone else. In this case I may contact a relative of yours or a service provider or other authority solely for the purpose of ensuring your safety.
I receive a subpoena to produce documents, which is a legal document with which I must comply under the law. This can happen when there are family law proceedings on foot.
During supervision. All therapists in New South Wales must attend regular supervision with a supervising therapist to discuss working with clients to ensure they remain competent and effective. During supervision client work is discussed in a deidentified manner. For example, instead of saying Julie Jones just the name ‘’Julie’’ so that it is not possible for the supervising therapist to work out who the client is.
If required, and with your consent, I will update other service providers such as general practitioners, psychologists or psychiatrists as to your progress in therapy.
Correcting your personal information
Please let me know if your personal information is no longer up-to-date or accurate in any way so that I can ensure that it is corrected.
Accessing your personal information
You are entitled to access the personal information that I hold about you and/or ask for a copy of it. Please contact me if you would like to access your information or to obtain a copy of it.