Who we are
This policy outlines how Sara Torpey Counselling and https://www.saratorpeycounselling.com handle the personal information of our clients. As a professional practice, we take privacy seriously and are committed to complying with the Australian Privacy Principles in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).
Personal Information
Personal information is any information about an individual that can be used to identify them directly or indirectly, such as name, address, phone number, email address, and date of birth.
Sensitive information is a type of personal information which includes details, for example, about a person’s racial or ethnic origins, political or religious beliefs, sexual orientation, health or genetic information, family court orders, or criminal record. The breach of sensitive information is likely to leave people open to discrimination or embarrassment.
Why we collect personal information
The sharing of personal information by a client to Sara Torpey Counselling assists us in assessing and supporting the client in processing their identified concerns. Personal information is retained to enable us to provide relevant and informed services. Within our practice and due to our duty of care, a client cannot be anonymous. A client may request to use a pseudonym, but a name as listed on ID is required.
How we collect personal information
We collect personal information through a variety of means, including:
- The information you verbally share with us
- Written communication received from you via contact form, email, SMS, or letter
- Our online booking and practice management system, Carepatron
- Our intake form
- Social media
- The guardian of those under 18 years of age
- A referral from your GP or another treating practitioner or service
Use of AI Clinical Notes with Carepatron
To support accurate and timely clinical documentation, Sara Torpey Counselling may use Carepatron’s AI Clinical Notes feature. This tool assists in generating draft clinical notes based on prompts or summaries provided by the clinician after your session.
- Data Processing: Draft notes are generated with the assistance of AI based on clinician-entered data. These notes are always reviewed and edited by your clinician before being saved to your client record. Sessions are not recorded or transcribed without your explicit consent.
- Security & Confidentiality: The AI Clinical Notes feature does not store or retain your information. All data is processed securely and in real-time within Carepatron’s encrypted system. Your information is not used to train any AI model or shared with third parties.
- Opt-out: You may choose not to have your session information processed through the AI Clinical Notes tool. If this is your preference, please let your clinician know at any time.
Carepatron is hosted on secure servers with end-to-end encryption and adheres to Australian privacy laws. For more on their security practices, visit: https://www.carepatron.com/security.
Our storage of personal information
To protect the personal information we hold from misuse or loss, we store it securely, accessible only by approved individuals. The method of storage varies between types of information, including both hard copies and digital versions (either on a secure server or offline).
We do not retain any credit card or banking details once the payment process is finalised. We also strive to minimise unnecessary information retention and dispose of it securely based on its type and legal requirements.
If we become aware of a security breach, we will promptly investigate, take remedial action where appropriate, and notify the individual affected in accordance with the Privacy Act.
Disclosure of your personal information
We will not disclose personal information about you to third parties without your consent, except when disclosure is required by law. It is unlikely that we will disclose any information to a recipient outside of Australia.
Accessing your personal information
You may request access to the personal information we hold about you. We may ask you to specify what information you require and may charge a fee if we provide access.
We deal with all requests for access to personal information as required by the Privacy Act. We may refuse to provide access if the Privacy Act allows us to do so.
Integrity of your personal information
We try to ensure that the personal information we collect is accurate and up-to-date. You may request an update or correction to personal information we hold about you, and we will deal with all such requests as required by the Privacy Act.
Complaints
If you think your personal information has not been handled in line with the Privacy Act, please contact us in the first instance. We will investigate your complaint and try to resolve it promptly.
If you are not satisfied with the outcome, you may make a complaint to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC). For information about how to make a complaint, please refer to the OAIC website: http://www.oaic.gov.au/
Changes to this privacy policy
We may make changes to this privacy policy from time to time. When we do, we will notify clients by email or on our website.
Contact us
If you have any questions relating to privacy matters, please contact us by email at contact@saratorpeycounselling.com.