Clinical Terms and Conditions

My commitment to privacy

As a psychotherapist, I am committed to protecting the privacy of all my patients. As a member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and the College of Sexual and Relationship Therapists (COSRT), I adhere to their Professional Codes of Conduct.  As part of the code of conduct, I have outlined my position on the terms of the counselling or psychotherapy I offer and have described some of these terms in this agreement.

I will ask patients to provide specific information which can identify them. I can assure all patients that this information will be used only in accordance with the terms outlined below and in line with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) (EU) 2016/679. To comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), I am registered with the Information Commissioner (registration number ZA142391).

Definitions

• The ‘Therapist’, the ‘Psychotherapist’, ‘I’, ‘me’ or ‘my’: Mr Andrew W Davidson
• The ‘patients’ or ‘you’: You, and/or your partner who are physically present in the sessions.
• ‘Therapy’ is the time spent with the Psychotherapist, who will apply a chosen therapeutic method and modality.
• ‘Modality’ is a model of study for therapeutic application. Psychodynamic Therapy is an example of a psychological modality.
• The ‘Session’ is the booked time slot and arranged time working with the ‘Psychotherapist’.
• The  ‘Presenting Issue(s) or ‘Problem’ is what the patient wants to work on with the Psychotherapist.
• Goal: The ‘goal’ is the therapeutic goal, collaboratively created with input from both the patient and the Psychotherapist, and is what the patient would like to achieve as the desired outcome of therapy.
• The ‘Desired Outcome’ is the desired result of the work that the Psychotherapist and the patient work towards achieving.

Confidentiality

The therapeutic work conducted in the sessions is confidential.  As this is a two-way process, I hope you will also respect our confidentiality regarding our conversations and any corresponding emails between sessions.

The law in the UK protects confidentiality, and I can only disclose information about you or the conversations together with your written consent.  Therefore, I will not disclose any information about you or information about the therapy. However, there are limitations to confidentiality:

Duty toward and protect

If you disclose or imply a plan to harm yourself, I will discuss the best course of action for you and may inform your family or contact your GP if I feel it is appropriate. If you disclose plans or intend to harm another person, or carry out any illegal activity, as a mental health professional, I am required to report this information to the legal authorities.

Abuse of children and vulnerable adults

If you state or suggest that you are abusing or have abused a child (or vulnerable adult), I must report this information to the appropriate social services and police.

Public Interest

Confidentiality may be broken for reasons of public interest related to public health.

Supervision

To ensure you receive the best possible service from me, I regularly see a clinical supervisor.  Any information I discuss with my supervisor is confidential.  I will not disclose any personal information that could identify you.

Online Sessions

For all online sessions, to ensure confidentiality, it is essential to identify a quiet, private space protected from being overheard or from the possibility of disturbances, such as being away from other family members, children, pets, etc. Position your webcam so that I can see you, ideally from the waist up, and ensure there is adequate light in front of you so I can see your face clearly. Try to reduce the light coming from behind you, as it will make it difficult for me to see you. Check your video and audio quality, and make sure you have the link ready before the session. Please do not drink alcohol before or during the session, as it will impede the therapy.

Your Responsibilities

When we start the sessions, you and I are both responsible for honouring this agreement and the therapeutic contract. I expect you to attend our scheduled appointments on time, be prepared to discuss any issues they may want to focus on, be respectful of their partner, and give honest, appropriate feedback. Sessions will be stopped immediately if any violence occurs during the sessions or if either you or your partner is under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

Throughout the sessions, we will be building a therapeutic relationship, which is a professional relationship and not a social one. Our contact will be limited to our sessions, telephone, or email communication about the sessions during working hours only.

I ask that mobile phones be on silent or switched off so the session’s flow is not interrupted. Absolutely under no circumstances are you allowed to record the sessions in any form or format, including video or audio.

There may be times when you and I may accidentally meet outside of the sessions, such as in a shop or the city centre. To protect your confidentiality and our professional relationship, I will not initiate contact. I may smile at you, but I will not say hello unless you respond first. I will not discuss the conversations from the session outside of the sessions if you and I meet outside of the sessions. My stance is once a patient, always a patient. Therefore, you and I will not be able to be friends or work as co-workers. I will be happy to discuss this in more detail during the sessions. I will also endeavour not to engage in any social activity with you.

Regarding social media, I do not visit my patients’ social media sites, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or LinkedIn. You can follow me on Twitter, Instagram or my business Facebook page, but I will not follow you back.

Sessions

Each session lasts 50 minutes every week and starts on the same day and time, where possible. The initial few sessions will be used to assess your suitability for therapy and to define the therapeutic goals. The therapy I offer is open-ended, rather than limited to a specific number of sessions. Therefore, it is essential that the ending of treatment is not sudden. You and I will review their progress at distinct stages to help determine the goals and duration of the work together.

Fees

I appreciate the decision to come and see me. Payment is required for all appointments. Paying on time helps us avoid focusing time and energy on finances and allows us to focus on the reasons you are seeking to talk to me. Fees are reviewed in January each year. I accept payment via bank transfer or credit/debit card via invoice payment following each session. You should make payment within 2 days after the session.

Educational Material

During the sessions, and depending on the therapy offered, I may also share with you some psycho-educational information that might be sexually explicit. Before I share this information with you, I will obtain your consent.

Termination of the Sessions

I reserve the right to terminate our sessions at my discretion for reasons including, but not limited to, late fee payment, noncompliance with therapeutic recommendations, conflict of interest, failure to participate in therapy, or your needs being outside my scope of practice or competence. If I do terminate the sessions for whatever reason, I will also attempt to ensure a smooth transition to another therapist by offering specific referrals to you.

Emergency Contact Outside of Therapy

The relationship I have with you is professional, and the contact will be limited to therapeutic sessions, emails, and phone calls as needed. If calls or emails become too frequent, I will let you know and propose an alternative solution. In the event of an emergency, such as wanting to hurt yourself, you should call 999 or call the Samaritans on 116 123 (the UK only). I regularly check my messages and email (except on the weekends), and I will return your call as soon as possible, but don’t rely on reaching me, especially if you have thoughts about suicide or homicide. If I am away for an extended period, I will leave you a telephone number of a trusted colleague.

The information I collect and retain

I abide by a code of confidentiality between you and me. When you register for psychotherapy, I will ask you for information that will identify you.  This personal information, which might result in the identification of you, will be kept private. Such personal information may include:

• Full name
• email address
• postal address
• biographical details
• medical history
• contact details of GP
• other descriptions of your life and the circumstances.

As I keep records of all sessions, all information you give me is held securely, including any anonymised written clinical notes and information about you. I will not share any information about the sessions with third parties unless there is a need to breach confidentiality due to a criminal act or limitations of confidentiality as outlined above.  At the end of the therapeutic relationship, I will retain information about you, including anonymised clinical notes, for six years. At the end of six years, all information I hold on you, including the clinical notes, will be deleted. If you request that your personal details be deleted before this date, you need to write to me to request the deletion. However, I will retain my anonymised clinical notes for the full six years.

After the 25th May 2018, any patient I do not currently see in session, and who I have seen in the past, I will delete all identifiable personal data from my systems. I will also keep details of when I deleted the personal data. I will, however,  keep the anonymised clinical notes for six years from the date I last saw you in session. After six years, I will destroy all information, as outlined above.

Request for information

You can request access to your personal information by writing to me, including your full name, current address, and the information you are seeking, and confirming that you are the person identified in the request.  If you attended therapy with your partner, I will need their consent as well before I release any information. If your partner does not agree to release any information, I am unable to share any information with you.

I will also not share any information with a third party unless there is a need to breach confidentiality due to a criminal act or limitations of confidentiality as outlined above.

I will also not give any information if requested from a solicitor, lawyer, barrister or other legal parties, including any court proceedings, other than that you attended sessions, even if you consent to this request. Clinical case notes will remain confidential.

Consent for Case Study Articles

In accordance with BACP & COSRT Professional Research Ethics, I occasionally use anonymised combined vignettes of my clinical cases for articles to help other couples with their sexual and relationship issues.  The information, if used, does not disclose any individual personally identifiable data and is limited only to the problems causing difficulty in the relationship. Some sensitive data is used, but I usually use a combination of couples’ issues to generalise about a topic to disguise a personal story.  I will not use your story (or any personal sensitive data) or my clinical case descriptions in these vignettes unless you consent to me describing the difficulties and some background.  If you consent, you also have the opportunity to withdraw your consent anytime before publication.

Holidays

When possible, I will give at least 4 weeks’ notice of any planned holiday dates or of my unavailability. If you notify me of your holiday, I will not charge for the time they are away.

Complaints

If you are concerned about the way I practice and wish to make a complaint, I would ask you to speak to me first.  If you feel this is not possible, then you can contact BACP at www.bacp.co.uk or COSRT at www.cosrt.org.uk.