Osborne Psychology Terms and conditions

Fees

Sessions last 60 minutes with the exception of certain insurance providers which are 50 minutes (Axa, BUPA, Vitality, AVIVA)
The fee for online sessions are £135.
The fee for face-face appointments in Berkhamsted are £150.
The fee for walk and talk sessions in Northchurch are £150.
Longer sessions are payable pro rata.  I will discuss with you in advance whether longer sessions may be helpful.  
Once a session is booked, then the fee is payable for that session within 48 hours, to confirm the booking. 
I review my fees annually and I will give you at least 1 months’ notice of a change in fee.  

Cancellations

You are liable for the cost of a booked session whether or not you attend, unless you give at least 48 hours notice of cancellation.
If you have health insurance please check your agreement as many insurers will not cover the cost of cancelled appointments and this will therefore need to be self funded. 
If I am planning to be away, I will give you as much notice as possible. You do not pay if I cancel a session.

Contact

Contact is by booked appointment only. This is so I can fulfil my commitments to all clients that book to see me, without clinics becoming delayed. If you need more frequent contact than the planned sessions this may suggest I am not the right service for you. I am not a mental health service and cannot provide crisis support in this regard.

Occasionally, during the first 1-4 sessions I may identify issues that I feel are not best treated by me. If this is the case I will discuss with you a plan. This may involve referring you to local mental health services or other private clinical psychologists with more expertise or specialism in particular areas. This will be discussed together and agreed before we end our sessions.

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Face-to-face appointments and COVID

Please do not attend any face-to-face appointments if you are unwell or have any of the primary symptoms of COVID-19. In order to reduce transfer and infections of COVID-19: 
1.    In line with NHS and healthcare policies I will give you the option if you would prefer for me to wear a mask during our sessions. It is optional as to whether you wish to wear a mask.
2.    I will leave 15 minutes between appointments

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Outside of sessions

As I provide a local service it may be that there are rare occasions where we see each other in the local area. At your first appointment we will discuss how you wish to manage these situations if they arise. Confidentiality is my priority and unless otherwise specified I will not acknowledge that I know you. This is to maintain your privacy and confidentiality and is not intended to be impolite or insincere.  

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Confidentiality

What you talk about in the session is treated as private and confidential.  There are three exceptions:

• If there is a risk of harm to yourself or another, it may be necessary to contact another professional person (like your GP) about your situation. In most circumstances I will consult you before doing this.

• If I am concerned about risk to you or others I will likely make a crisis plan with you, this will involve outlining whom I will contact in the event of a mental health crisis.

• As part of good professional practice, I will take some of the material from your session to supervision. Your confidentiality is respected.

As a result of the above, you will need to be registered with a local GP practice. I will not be able to provide a service to individuals whom are not registered with a local GP practice. 

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Information I collect about you and how I use it

All information I gather and store about you is processed in a manner compliant with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR, 2016).  Upon starting therapy, basic personal information will be collected for contact and identification reasons. During our therapy meetings, an assessment of your psychological health will be completed, and notes will be taken during sessions. These will include personal and sensitive details about your life. The assessment and notes are used solely for the delivery of a therapy service to you, and you are free to view them at any time.

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How I share your data

There may be times where your information needs to be shared with 3rd parties, such as GPs. I will explicitly ask your consent before doing so, and the data will be sent to 3rd parties securely. In the event as outlined in the confidentiality statement that I am concerned that  you or someone close to you is at risk this information may be shared without your consent. 

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Keeping your data safe

Information will be kept securely and confidentially in line with the data retention policy as stated above.

Lawful basis for processing your information
The lawful basis for my holding and using your information is in relation to the delivery of a contract to you as a health care professional.  As an accredited member of the HCPC I operate under a strict code of confidentiality. 

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How long I keep your information for - data retention

Your information is kept for the time necessary to provide the therapy service requested, however outside of this I will hold your details and session notes for a period of 7 years following the end of treatment to comply with legal obligations that are placed upon me by my insurers. In the case of a child under 13 then records will be kept 7 years after they reach the age of majority (18).  After this date, all data will be securely deleted.

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Your rights

You have rights relating to the information I hold, to verify its accuracy or to ask for it to be supplemented, deleted, updated or corrected.  You have the right to request a copy of the information that I hold about you. If you would like a copy of some or all of your personal information, please email or write to me via the contact details stated in this agreement. Information will be provided to you within 30 days.

I want to make sure that your information is accurate and up to date. You may ask me to correct or remove information you think is inaccurate. You have a right to request the transfer of your data to another individual or company.

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GDPR Privacy Statement

I place the highest regard in your privacy and confidentiality. The manner in which we collect, process, store and safeguard information including client records is in line with the new EU regulations of May 2018.

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Professional status and conduct

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I am registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (Practitioner Psychologist) (www.hcpc-uk.org)   

I abide by the Codes of Ethics of this organisation and have professional insurance for my work.

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If you have any questions or concerns, whilst in therapy with me, Dr Hannah Osborne please raise these with me directly initially. 

Please ensure you read and review my privacy policy in conjunction with these terms and conditions.