Clinical Privacy Policy
Ember Relationship Psychology Privacy Policy for Clients
Privacy of personal information is an important to Ember Relationship Psychology. We are committed to collecting, using and disclosing personal information responsibly and only to the extent necessary for the services we provide. We strive to be open and transparent regarding how we handle personal information. This document describes our privacy policies.
Please note there is a Privacy Policy for the Website/ General Public. This Privacy Policy regards collection, use and disclosure of information as governed by the Personal Health Information Protection Act, 2004 (PHIPA).
What Is Personal Information?
Personal information is information about an identifiable individual. Personal information includes information that relates to: an individual’s personal characteristics (e.g., gender, age, income, home address or phone number, ethnic background, family status); health (e.g., health history, health conditions, health services received by them); or, activities and views (e.g., religion, politics, opinions expressed by an individual, an opinion or evaluation of an individual).
Personal information is different from business information (e.g., an individual’s business address and telephone number). This is not protected by privacy legislation.
Who We Are
Our organization, Ember Relationship Psychology, includes one psychologist. We use a number of consultants and agencies that may, in the course of their duties, have limited access to personal information we hold. These include computer consultants, web security and maintenance, book keepers and accountants, credit card companies, temporary workers to cover holidays, website managers, podcast editors, copy editors, business strategists, and lawyers. We restrict their access to any personal information we hold as much as is reasonably possible. We also have their assurance that they follow appropriate privacy principles.
We Collect Personal Information
Primary Purposes: Clients
Like all psychologists, we collect, use and disclose personal information in order to serve our clients.
For our clients, the primary purpose for collecting personal information is to provide psychological services. Examples of the type of personal information we collect for those purposes include the following: client’s relationship history, health history, family history, mental health history, current and past functioning, and social situation. This is done to assess relationship or psychological needs and advise clients about treatment options, recommendations, and provide services.
An Additional primary purpose for collecting personal health information is to collect personal information to get on objective starting point and continuing record of progress to guide treatment and monitor progress or change that occurs over the course of treatment.
Primary Purposes: General Public
For members of the general public, our primary purposes for collecting personal information are as follows: collect information to make you aware of our services, resources, special events or conferences. While we try to use work contact information where possible, we might collect home addresses, phone number and email addresses. We try to obtain consent before using any such personal information, but where this is not, for any reason, possible, we will upon request immediately remove any personal information from our distribution list, or provide on opt-out option.
On our website we only collect, with the exception of cookies, the personal information you provide and only use that information for the purpose you gave it to us (e.g., to respond to your email message, to register for a course, to subscribe to mailing list, or provide an opt-in). Cookies are only used to help you navigate our website and are not used to monitor you. For more information about the privacy policy for the website, social media, and terms of service please see the website privacy policy, social media policy and terms of services.
Primary Purpose: Staff
For contract staff (e.g., temporary workers, such administrative staff, or editors), our primary purposes for collecting personal information are as follows: to ensure I can contact you in the future for new assignments, to follow up of current assignments, or to contact in case of emergency.
Personal Information: Related and Secondary Purposes
Like most organizations, we also collect, use and disclose information for purposes related to or secondary to our primary purposes. The most common examples of our related and secondary purposes are as follows:
To obtain payment for services, and products, and equipment. This is typically done at the time the service is rendered, or a product or equipment is purchased. When needed we invoice for services not paid, or process credit cards for collection in overdue accounts.
To advise clients that their product or service should be reviewed (e.g., to ensure a product is still functioning properly and appropriate for their then current needs and to consider modifications or replacement).
To advise clients and the general public of special events or opportunities (e.g., a seminar, development of a new service, new podcast episode, arrival of a new product) that we have available.
Our clinic reviews client and other files for the purpose of ensuring that we provide high quality services, including assessing the performance of our staff. In addition, external consultants (e.g., auditors, lawyers, practice consultants, voluntary accreditation programs) may on our behalf do audits and continuing quality improvement reviews of our Clinic, including reviewing client files and interviewing our staff.
Psychologists are regulated by the College of Psychologists of Ontario who may inspect our records and interview our staff as a part of their regulatory activities in the public interest. In addition, as professionals, we will report serious misconduct, incompetence or incapacity of other practitioners, whether they belong to other organizations or our own. Also, our organization believes that it should report information suggesting serious illegal behaviour to the authorities. External regulators have their own strict privacy obligations. Sometimes these reports include personal information about our clients, or other individuals, to support the concern (e.g., improper services). Also, like all organizations, various government agencies (e.g., Canada Customs and Revenue Agency, Information and Privacy Commissioner, Human Rights Commission, etc.) have the authority to review our files and interview our staff as a part of their mandates. In these circumstances, we may consult with professionals (e.g., lawyers, accountants) who will investigate the matter and report back to us.
The cost of some goods/services provided by the organization to clients is paid for by third parties (e.g., OHIP, WSIB, private insurance, Assistive Devices Program). These third-party payers often have your consent or legislative authority to direct us to collect and disclose to them certain information in order to demonstrate client entitlement to this funding.
Clients or other individuals we deal with may have questions about our goods or services after they have been received. We also provide ongoing services for many of our clients over a period of months or years for which our previous records are helpful. We retain our client information for a minimum of ten years after the last contact to enable us to respond to those questions and provide these services (our regulatory College also requires us to retain our client records).
If Ember Relationship Psychology or its assets were to be sold, the purchaser would want to conduct a “due diligence” review of the Clinic’s records to ensure that it is a viable business that has been honestly portrayed to the purchaser. This due diligence may involve some review of our accounting and service files. The purchaser would not be able to remove or record personal information. Before being provided access to the files, the purchaser must provide a written promise to keep all personal information confidential. Only reputable purchasers who have already agreed to buy the organization’s business or its assets would be provided access to personal information, and only for the purpose of completing their due diligence search prior to closing the purchase.
You can choose not to be part of some of these related or secondary purposes (e.g., by declining to receive notice of special events or opportunities, by paying for your services in advance). We do not, however, have much choice about some of these related or secondary purposes (e.g., external regulation).
Limits of Confidentiality
Conditions under which your personal information or personal health information will be disclosed are as follows:
2. If you indicate you are in imminent danger to yourself or someone else, we will be required to contact the authorities in your area, in order to prevent harm to you or any intended victim. Please note, this is NOT an emergency service, and messages, email, comments, or any mode of communication will NOT be responded to in a timely manner, if at all.
3. If we learn of sexual or physical abuse by another registered health care provider.
4. If we suspect or are informed that a child is being harmed or is at risk of being harmed, in any way.
5. If the contents of a file are subpoenaed to court and we are required to release data, or are ordered to testify in court.
6. If the College of Psychologists of Ontario wishes to access records to ensure quality of care.
7. If we become aware of unlawful conduct resulting in harm or risk of harm to a resident of a retirement home or long term treatment facility.
Protecting Personal Information
We understand the importance of protecting personal information. For that reason, we have taken the following steps
We have put in place reputable electronic record management software prevent against unauthorized access, and data security. We do not store paper files.
Information is only shared with employees on a need-to-know basis, giving employees the minimum information required to conduct a required task.
Paper information is transmitted through sealed, addressed envelopes or boxes by reputable companies.
Electronic information is transmitted either through a direct line or has identifiers removed or is encrypted.
Staff are trained to collect, use and disclose personal information only as necessary to fulfil their duties and in accordance with our privacy policy.
External consultants and agencies with access to personal information must enter into privacy agreements with us.
Retention and Destruction of Personal Information
We need to retain personal information for some time to ensure that we can answer any questions you might have about the services provided and for our own accountability to external regulatory bodies. However, we do not want to keep personal information too long to protect your privacy.
We keep our client information for a minimum of ten years after the last contact to enable us to respond to those questions and provide our services. The College of Psychologists of Ontario requires psychologists to retain records. For clients who are seen before the age of 18, records are retained for ten years following their 18th birthday.
If Ember Relationship Psychology were sold, only active client records who agree to transfer records would be transferred to or access could be retained by the new owners.
We destroy electronic information by deleting it, and it is stored on a drive it will be destroyed in such a way that retrieving the information is not possible.
Personal information that is not part of the permanent clinical file is destroyed or de-identified.
If the Health Information Custodian were to die your information would be the responsibility of the alternative designate clinician.
You Can Look At Your Information
With only a few exceptions, you have the right to see what personal information we hold about you. Make a request to see your information. We can help you identify what records we might have about you. We will also try to help you understand any information you do not understand (e.g., short forms, technical language, etc.). We will need to confirm your identity, if we do not know you, before providing you with this access. We reserve the right to charge a nominal fee for such requests.
If there is a problem, we may ask you to put your request in writing. If we cannot give you access, we will tell you within 30 days if at all possible and tell you the reason, as best we can, as to why we cannot give you access.
If you believe there is a mistake in the information, you have the right to ask for it to be corrected. This applies to factual information and not to any professional opinions we may have formed. We may ask you to provide documentation that our files are wrong. Where we agree that we made a mistake, we will make the correction and, where appropriate, notify anyone to whom we sent this information. If we do not agree that we have made a mistake, we will agree to include in our file a brief statement from you on the point and, as appropriate, we will forward that statement to anyone else who received the earlier information.
Do You Have a Concern?
Our Information Officer, Amber Dalsin, can be reached at amberdalsin@gmail.com to address any questions or concerns you might have. Please title your email “privacy concern.”
If you wish to make a formal complaint about our privacy practices, you may make it in writing to our Information Officer. She will acknowledge receipt of your complaint, ensure that it is investigated promptly and that you are provided with a formal written decision with reasons.
If you have a concern about the professionalism or competence of our services or the mental or physical capacity of any of our professional staff we would ask you to discuss those concerns with us. If we cannot satisfy your concerns, you are entitled to complain to our regulatory body:
The College of Psychologists of Ontario
110 Eglinton Avenue West, Suite 500
Toronto, Ontario M4R 1A3
Phone: (416) 961-8817 | (800) 489-8388
Fax (416) 961-2635
For more general inquiries, the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario oversees the administration of the privacy legislation. The Commissioner also acts as a kind of ombudsman for privacy disputes. The Information and Privacy Commissioner can be reached at:
Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario
2 Bloor Street East, Suite 1400
Toronto, Ontario M4W 1A8
Phone (416) 326-3333 | 800-387-0073
Fax (416) 325-9195 | TTY (416) 325-7539
www.ipc.on.ca