Privacy and Confidentiality
Acuity Counselling and Therapy Services Inc. therapists and staff are bound by ethical standards to protect your privacy. We are committed to collecting, using, and disclosing personal information in a responsible manner. This means that we keep only pertinent information about you and maintain it in strict confidence in locked files and electronically with password protected software. Acuity therapists and staff adhere to the Canadian Code of Ethics for their professional associations. We behave with the highest of ethical standards and we conduct our practice accordingly. Your therapist will go over our privacy policy with you at the beginning of your first appointment and answer any questions that you may have about how we handle your personal information.
What information is collected and for what purpose?
We require your name, address, telephone number and other demographic information to be kept on file. This information is collected for a number of reasons. It allows us to identify clients and records and contact you regarding appointment changes or cancellations. We may also use this information for administrative and accounting purposes, including collecting payments due and issuing invoices to outside agencies. Therapists often keep notes and other data about each client's personal circumstances in order to assist in developing and implementing an accurate assessment, diagnosis and treatment of their respective clients.
Consent
Informed Consent is obtained from clients or their guardian or substitute decision makers prior to the start of the first session. This is to ensure that every client has a complete understanding of their rights with respect to treatment and the limitations of confidentiality. During the initial session, your therapist will provide a thorough review of our confidentiality policy and its limitations and will respond to any questions you may have. A consent form is signed prior to beginning treatment. In order to provide psychological assessment and treatment to children we require informed consent from both parents.
At Acuity we are committed to keeping your personal information confidential. In general, this means that we do not share any personal information about you without your written consent. Contacting us via email, fax or voice mail is done at your discretion and must be initiated by you. Our Director of Operations would be pleased to respond to your request for an appointment or for more general information via email, phone or fax. All Acuity voice mail is password protected and you may leave a confidential message for our therapists.
Limits of Confidentiality and Release of Information
We are committed to protecting your privacy, however, in cases were harm is imminent we are required notify the authorities. If you intend to harm yourself or someone else, we are obligated to report you to the police. If you share information about a child, presently under the age of 16, who has been abused or neglected, or is at risk of being abused or neglected, we are required to notify the appropriate regulating body. If a court of law subpoenas your record, your therapist is required to release your file to the court.
File Storage
When you are no longer a client or when your therapist is no longer practicing we are required to keep your file for a period of ten years after your last session (99 years for veterans), after which your file can be electronically deleted and documents completely shredded. We may only transfer your file to the custody of another therapist after making arrangements with someone who will assume responsibility for your file upon your therapist's retirement, relocation, or death.
What information is collected and for what purpose?
We require your name, address, telephone number and other demographic information to be kept on file. This information is collected for a number of reasons. It allows us to identify clients and records and contact you regarding appointment changes or cancellations. We may also use this information for administrative and accounting purposes, including collecting payments due and issuing invoices to outside agencies. Therapists often keep notes and other data about each client's personal circumstances in order to assist in developing and implementing an accurate assessment, diagnosis and treatment of their respective clients.
Consent
Informed Consent is obtained from clients or their guardian or substitute decision makers prior to the start of the first session. This is to ensure that every client has a complete understanding of their rights with respect to treatment and the limitations of confidentiality. During the initial session, your therapist will provide a thorough review of our confidentiality policy and its limitations and will respond to any questions you may have. A consent form is signed prior to beginning treatment. In order to provide psychological assessment and treatment to children we require informed consent from both parents.
At Acuity we are committed to keeping your personal information confidential. In general, this means that we do not share any personal information about you without your written consent. Contacting us via email, fax or voice mail is done at your discretion and must be initiated by you. Our Director of Operations would be pleased to respond to your request for an appointment or for more general information via email, phone or fax. All Acuity voice mail is password protected and you may leave a confidential message for our therapists.
Limits of Confidentiality and Release of Information
We are committed to protecting your privacy, however, in cases were harm is imminent we are required notify the authorities. If you intend to harm yourself or someone else, we are obligated to report you to the police. If you share information about a child, presently under the age of 16, who has been abused or neglected, or is at risk of being abused or neglected, we are required to notify the appropriate regulating body. If a court of law subpoenas your record, your therapist is required to release your file to the court.
File Storage
When you are no longer a client or when your therapist is no longer practicing we are required to keep your file for a period of ten years after your last session (99 years for veterans), after which your file can be electronically deleted and documents completely shredded. We may only transfer your file to the custody of another therapist after making arrangements with someone who will assume responsibility for your file upon your therapist's retirement, relocation, or death.
