When are appointments available?
I offer appointments via telephone consultation and online platforms on a Monday evening. Please contact me directly to arrange an initial consultation.
What will we do in our sessions?
We will first meet for an assessment session, in which I will ask you to tell me why you have come to see me and what difficulties you would like help with. I will try to understand you as a whole person, not just someone with a problem. I will ask you about your current difficulties and find out what you would like to achieve from our time together. We will work together to decide on a suitable treatment that will help you with your specific problems. You will decide if the treatment I suggest sounds okay and we can review this at any time.
How many therapy sessions will I need?
The number of sessions you will need will depend on the reasons you have chosen to come to therapy and what your goals for therapy are. I would typically see people from 6-24 sessions, but there is no therapy ‘contract’ and you can terminate our sessions at any time.
Will therapy work for me?
I always try to ensure that the work we do together is tailored to you as no one particular therapy suits everyone. You are unique, the issues you bring are unique to you and you are the expert on you! I can bring experience, professional training and a sound theoretical knowledge, as well as empathy and warmth. I work using several therapeutic approaches and through doing this, I try to ensure that the way I work with you is right for you as an individual.
Are there limits to confidentiality?
Yes, there are. These mainly focus on when someone is at risk to themselves or to others. No information is disclosed to third parties except where the client consents in writing, where life or safety is seriously threatened, or where disclosure is required by law. Before we start our work together I will explain this in detail. I will also ask you to sign a form to say that you have understood this.
In addition, it is a requirement of most accrediting organisations that therapists have their own professional supervision, in order to work as best they can with each client. In this case, any information that could identify you would be anonymised.
Who do I contact if I am in crisis?
Most therapists (myself included) do not provide emergency cover out of hours. If you are concerned about your safety or have any other urgent concern, you can contact your GP or the out-of-hours NHS service on 111. You can also contact the Samaritans on 08457 90 90 90 or visit the Samaritans website. There are also a number of cafés called Safe Haven across Surrey, which you can access for emotional and crisis support during the evenings and weekends. For further information and where to find them please take a look at their leaflet here.
KEY POLICIES
Dr Lucy Hale Psychology Services
Privacy Policy
Dr Lucy Hale takes the collection and storage of your information very seriously and complies with both the Data Protection Act 1998, and also the European General Data Protection Regulations 2018.
Dr Lucy Hale acts as the Data Controller and is registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office.
Information collected about you and how it is used
Upon starting therapy, basic personal information will be collected for contact and identification reasons. During your 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.
Hard Copies
Hard copies of documents are stored in a locked filing cabinet. This is situated discreetly in Dr Hale’s home office and can only be accessed by Dr Hale. These files are transferred from the clinic room from which Dr Hale practices to her home office by car each week after clinic.
Electronic Data
Any electronic notes written about the work will be stored in a password protected file on Dr Hale’s computer which requires a password only Dr Hale knows to access.
Emails:
If you have emailed Dr Hale, and / or have consented to Dr Hale emailing you, your email will be stored in an account that is password protected. If you use the contact message form on Dr Hale’s website, this information will be sent to a password protected email address that is only accessible to Dr Hale. Dr Hale will delete any email correspondence for any individuals who are not on her caseload / she is not working with. Please note that whilst the email accounts used by Dr Hale comply with the latest data protection regulations, Dr Hale cannot guarantee the security and privacy of your communication.
Telephone Calls and Text Messaging:
Dr Hale will not store your number on her mobile phone, but if a call is made or a text sent, your number could appear on the call history or inbox. This will not be linked to your name or other identifiable information and the phone is protected by a pin number that only Dr Hale has access to.
Dr Hale will not share any information about you with third parties without your consent with the exception of that detailed in the section regarding confidently above. Please note that if you choose to use a standard telephone service, Dr Hale cannot guarantee the security and privacy of your communication as these are not encrypted.
Video Calls:
For follow-up sessions requested via online methods, the method of communication for therapy sessions is by pre-arranged video call sessions. Dr Hale’s preferred videoconference application is an encrypted platform called Zoom. Dr Hale uses a unique private meeting link for these sessions. You can either access the online Zoom meeting room via a link she will send in an email, or directly from the Zoom app on your desktop or mobile. This is a secure service. For more details see the Zoom privacy policy at: https://zoom.us/privacy
Your rights
You have rights relating to the information Dr Hale holds to verify the accuracy or to ask for them to be supplemented, deleted, updated or corrected. You have the right to request a copy of the information that Dr Hale holds about you. If you would like a copy of some or all of your personal information, please email or write to Dr Hale via the contact details stated in this agreement. Information will be provided to you within 30 days if this is appropriate.
You may ask Dr Hale 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.
If you are concerned about how Dr Hale is handling your data, please contact her directly if possible. You have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s office (ICO): https://ico.org.uk/
Data Retention (how long your information is kept for)
Your information is kept for the time necessary to provide the therapy service requested. At the end of therapy, any hard copy documents will be scanned and saved on a password protected computer only Dr Hale has access to. The hard copies will then be securely destroyed (shredded). Dr Hale will hold your details and session notes electronically for a period of 7 years following the end of treatment to comply with legal obligations set by Dr Hale’s insurers. In the case of a children and young people, records will be kept for 7 years after they reach the age of majority (18). After this date, all data will be securely deleted.
Sharing of data
There may be times where your information needs to be shared with third parties. Dr Hale will explicitly ask your consent before doing so, and the data will be sent to third parties securely. In the event of sudden illness, or even death, Dr Hale has a secure process in place which enables you to be informed of the circumstances and, if you wish, be supported to access further psychological input. In this situation, Dr Joanne Taylor (Dr Lucy Hale’s Supervisor) would gain access to you name and email address held on a secure shared folder. Your details would only be accessed by Dr Taylor in this instance and for no other reason. Your name and email address will automatically be added to the list held on a secure network for this purpose. If you do not wish for your details to be held for this purpose, please inform Dr Hale at the start of your work.
If Dr Hale feels that you / your child is putting themselves or others at risk, then she may have to break confidentiality and inform the relevant parties. This maybe statutory bodies e.g. Social Services or maybe parents if the child is under 18 years of age. If possible, Dr Hale will discuss this with you / your child before sharing the information.
Security of your data
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 Dr Hale 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 Health and Care Professions Council, Dr Hale operates under a strict code of confidentiality and is legally obliged to lawfully process your data in line with this Privacy Policy.
Dr Lucy Hale Psychology Services
Privacy Policy Addendum: Audio and Visual Recording Policy
This document should be read in conjunction with the Dr Lucy Hale Psychology Service Privacy Policy and the Audio/Visual Material Recording Consent Form. This addendum contains information pertaining specifically to material recorded by audio and / or visual devices.
Policy Rationale:
The audio and/or visual recording of clinical work and supervision is a very useful and widespread practice across many different services, both for the provision of client care and training and development purposes. It is an essential aspect of training for Applied Psychology and Psychological Therapies in particular, and something that must be conducted in a regulated and secure manner.
Recordings may be made for any of the following purposes:
1.To enhance the assessment and treatment of the client e.g. for the client to listen to as part of their own use
- To enhance the staff member’s own professional development and training
e.g. For the staff member to share in supervision in order to enhance their own skills and the care of their client
- To contribute towards the training of other staff
e.g. To be used as an exemplar of practice in the supervision of trainee therapists
e.g. To be used in the delivery of workshops for trainee therapists
Principles
The recordings addressed in this guidance are highly sensitive in nature and a robust set of safeguards must be followed to ensure their safety and security. It is of vital importance that recordings should be treated with the same degree of security and sensitivity as with data processed by Dr Hale.
Consent
Before any recordings can take place, it is essential that you give your informed consent to be recorded.
Once given, consent is not permanent, and can be withdrawn at any time: Dr Hale will ask you to re-affirm your consent verbally before each recorded session, and you retain the right to pause or end recording at any time during the session. It is important that your consent to be recorded is an informed decision on their part. At the beginning of your work, Dr Hale will carefully explain the process, including what will happen to the recordings, who will listen to/see them, and of course the purpose for taking the recording. The potential benefits of recording sessions can also be mentioned at this time. The signed copy of the consent form will be held in your file.
How will my data be recorded?
There are many different devices that can be used for recording audio or visual footage. This may include utilising a separate digital recorder (audio only), or a screen capture facility directly from the computer. A screen capture facility can record both audio and visual information.
How will the recording be transferred and stored?
For data recorded on a digital recorder, the recording will be transferred on an encrypted memory stick and stored on a password protected secure device. For a screen capture facility (e.g. via Zoom), the recording is saved directly to a password-protected, encrypted cloud-based service. All recordings are only to be kept on an encrypted, password protected device or cloud storage service.
How will my data be used?
For audio / visual materials used for supervision purposes, Dr Hale will play extracts live to her Supervisor in a secure and private setting. If it is not possible to play it live, Dr Hale’s Supervisor will listen to the recording on an encrypted memory stick. The Supervisor will not retain or copy the recording once listened to.
For audio / visual materials used for training purposes, Dr Hale will select extracts to play which omit any personal identifiable information (e.g. your full name, where you live or any other features which could reveal your identity). These extracts may be played to other Supervisors who are on a training course, Trainee Clinical Psychologists or other applied practitioners in training (e.g. CBT Therapists) as part of a training session.
When will my data be destroyed?
For recordings used for training purposes, these are stored in line with the Privacy Policy. For all other recordings, they are destroyed once the work comes to an end.
—-END—-