Confidentiality and Data Protection

Approved June 2017

Confidentiality of data of Clients

How we keep the personal information you provide

SUMMARY

Confidentiality and data protection are important issues. This policy aims to outline the key issues in relation to these two topics. We will be happy to address any further questions you may have.

The following gives a brief outline of how Mothertongue deals with data protection and confidentiality. This policy should be read alongside the Mothertongue Data Protection Policy

Your Record with us:

Hand written note of each visit to us.

Computer database holding statistics for management and funding purposes.

Paper records are kept for six years.

You are entitled to see your records.

Your right to confidentiality:

We will not normally disclose any information about you outside of the organisation to anyonewithout your consent.

We may disclose information in circumstances where not doing so would break the law or where you would put yourself or others in serious danger.

If we do disclose information we will aim to disclose as little as is feasible.

INTRODUCTION

The following pages aim to give you a detailed account of what information we hold on you, how we use it and to whom we disclose it. Mothertongue owns all personal data and records of its clients. All data is confidential to the organisation.

Your Confidential Record – A record on paper

Brief notes are taken on each counselling session by the counsellor. These notes are kept separately from clients’ identifying information and are stored in a locked filing cabinet.

A record on computer

We hold data on all our clients on a database which is broken down by counselling satellites. Information held on clients includes their age, ethnic origin, by whom they were referred and the types of problems they face.This is referred to as 'personal data' and 'sensitive personal data', which are explained in detail in the Mothertongue Data Protection Policy. This information is protected on a secure database with a password.

Information is kept so that we can monitor the use of the service, justify our deployment of resources and the impact we are having, in addition to justifying our continued existence to funders.Personal Data and Sensitive Personal Data will only be used for the purposes for which it is collected in accordance with the Mothertongue Data Protection Policy.

Will we see you without keeping a record?

Mothertongue will not provide counselling to clients who are not willing to allow records to be kept on them.

To what standards are records kept?

Mothertongue is registered under the Data Protection Act, and the service operates under the ethical framework set by the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy. Paper records pertaining to counselling sessions are kept for six years and then destroyed. Computer data is held until the organisation ceases to exist.

Client access to records:

Clients may see their own records. To do so they need to make a request in writing to the service manager or the approved delegated officialand not via email, to the service manager or the approved delegated official sent to the following address: Mothertongue 22-24 Cross Street, Reading RG1 1SN. Before anyone is allowed to see any record the manager must fulfil a legal duty of care to:

Ensure the person making the request for access is entitled to it.

Review the record itself to ensure anyone else’s right to confidentiality will not be compromised by such access.

Ensure access is granted in a professional manner

If you detect any factual inaccuracy in your records you may request changes.

Requests for client records will be responded to within 40 calendar days of receiving the request. There is a fee of £10 for dealing with a request:.

Duty to Third Parties – What does “to ensure anyone else’s right to confidentiality will not be compromised by such access” mean?

A duty of care applies to information about third parties. Any data about third parties within the record will be withheld to preserve the confidentiality of the third party, unless the consent of the third party has been obtained for you to see this. For example there may be information about another client in the records. This may be in the form of a letter from a referrer which is about more than one client.

Another issue here relates to information written by third parties which is about or refers to you. Usually there is no problem with you accessing this information however we must exercise the same duty of care in such a situation. Where we are unsure of the effect of revealing a third parties’ documentation on the mental and physical health of a client, or of that any other person, we will write to the person who has produced the documentation, and often current psychiatrist/GP, seeking confirmation that access would not be harmful, or indeed requesting access through the third party, not us. For example:

Mr Y had been referred to the counselling service by his GP for

anxiety and depression.After several sessions, the GP had written

the counsellor a letter to ask how the client was doing as he wished

to refer him for a HIV test but wanted to ascertain his emotional

state first. This letter had remained on the client's file.The client later

asked to see his records but had no idea about the proposed HIV

test.The counsellor asked the GP to speak to the client, if the

test was still relevant, before the records wereshown.

In cases such as these delay is inevitable.

Normally - When we say “Normally no information will be given to anyone …” What does “normally” mean?

Counsellors will not disclose personal information about a client to anyone outside the counselling service without the client’s permission, but may do so in exceptional circumstances such as:

Where the counsellor would be subject to civil or criminal legal proceedings if the information was not disclosed to a court. (i.e. a counsellor cannot be required by an employment contract to break the law for you).

Where the counsellor believes the client or a third party is in serious danger.

Where otherwise justice would not prevail.

To prevent serious crime: It is mandatory to report if a client is currently abusing a child.

Confidentiality is a qualified right not an absolute one, but to break confidentiality a counsellor must act within the law and have a legitimate objective, such as those detailed above.

No counsellor will break confidentiality without a great deal of reflection, time permitting. Before breaking confidentiality a counsellor will usually consult a colleague and perhaps take independent professional advice from a body such as the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy andthe British Psychological Society and professional indemnity insurers. In addition counsellors have professional codes to which they adhere that guide and help inform such actions

Every effort will be made to ensure that such disclosure is both reasonable and proportional.

Attendance – Will you tell anyone I attend the counselling service?

We do not normally tell anyone that you are attending the counselling service without your permission. We will however ask your permission to let referrers know whether or not you have attended counselling sessions when you have completed your sessions.

Compensation Claims – Will you provide reports for the purpose of compensation claims, etc?

No, not normally. If you consult us regarding post-traumatic stress disorder, depression or something similar following a trauma, we will do a routine clinical assessment for the purpose of treatment. This is not intended for the purpose of any compensation claim. Assessment for a compensation claim requires a different and time-consuming approach. For this type of assessment you will need to consult a psychologist/psychiatrist that specialises in providing evidence for compensation claims. As a result we will not usually provide your solicitor, representative or claims organisation with such information or enter into correspondence with them.

Data Disposal

Paper records are shredded after the mandatory six years of record holding is over, or when the organisation closes. Should a computer reach the end of its life the hard drive will be over written prior to disposal as this ensures the data is really destroyed.

Questions?

If you have any further questions, we will be pleased to clarify the issues for you.