FAQ

Yes, information you provide to the practice is confidential. No one outside of the practice can access your information without your consent. Verbal consent is needed to share information with other treatment providers involved in your care (like your family doctor). Written consent is needed to share your information with anyone not involved in your treatment (like a lawyer or insurance company). You may withdraw consent at any time.

There are times when confidentiality must be broken without your consent. These include:

• If there is reason to believe that you are at serious and imminent risk of physically harming yourself or another person.
• If there is reason to believe that a child is suffering from abuse and/or neglect.
• If you tell us that you have been sexually abused by another regulated health professional (like a doctor).
• A court has subpoenaed your records (a judge asks for your records for court).

Please note, that in the case of certain types of assessment (such as for insurance purposes or medical-legal purposes), there are a number of limits and qualifiers to confidentiality in the case of an assessment. You may withdraw consent at any time. However, once the report has been sent out with your permission, we cannot retract the report. If changes need to be made to the report after it has been sent out or finalized, we can only do so by writing an Addendum report (a letter that indicates a correction to a previous report).

We only collect personal health information that relates to your treatment or assessment. You have the right to access your records and will be provided with copies for a minimal fee. You have a right to ask questions about how your health information privacy is being handled.

For more information on privacy of your personal health care please see the Personal Health Information Privacy Act brochure in our waiting room, visit (www.ipc.on.ca), or speak to our Privacy Information Officer, Ms. Anita D’Alimonte.

Please let the practice know as soon as possible if you need to cancel or reschedule your appointment. If you provide less than 24 hours’ notice (except if you are sick, your children are sick and require your care, or it is a snow storm for example), you will be charged the full fee for the session, as that space was held for you.

Email

Email is typically used only for booking or modifying appointments at the practice. It is best not to email your therapist regarding clinical issues related to therapy sessions. There are a number of risks associated with email. The privacy and security of email communication cannot be guaranteed. Email messages are permanent. Even after deleting copies of the email, back-up copies may exist on a computer, with an Internet Service Provider (ISP), on a server in another country, or elsewhere in cyberspace. Also, emails become part of the therapy records and can be subpoenaed if your file is subpoenaed. Further, emails are not always sent and received instantly; messages can arrive several hours or days after they are sent. As a result, email is not an appropriate method for exchanging time-sensitive or clinically-sensitive information. If you choose to use email to communicate with your therapist, please be advised that your email will likely be seen by the therapist only when the therapist arrives at the office.

Telephone Sessions

Therapists at the practice may have a telephone session with a client, but typically only with those whom the therapist has met first for an in-person or video session.

Social Media Sites

Therapists at the practice may or may not have professional profiles through social media, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, or Twitter. To respect your confidentiality and mutual, respective privacy, therapists at the practice do not accept friend or contact requests from current or past clients on any social networking site.  Therapists at the practice do not follow any clients on Twitter nor does they read their clients’ blogs when they exist, unless the client requests to read something in the course of a therapy session for clinical purposes. The reason for this policy is that information gleaned outside of the session can create discomfort or confusion for the client. Also viewing the client’s online activities without the client’s consent and without a specific therapeutic purpose for it could create a negative impact on the therapeutic work. Clients can share any of their ideas and activities in discussion during sessions rather than indirectly through blogs and other social media forums.

Text Messaging

Therapists at the practice do not respond to text messaging from clients in part because of the general lack of security of such messages. Also, texts are not always read in a timely fashion. The best way to contact your therapist is by telephone during their scheduled office hours, between 9:30am and 5:00pm.

Remote Video Counselling

Our practice does provide telehealth in the form of video counselling. If, at any time, it appears that a client would benefit from more traditional (in-person) service provision, the psychologist or clinician is ethically-bound to take reasonable steps to secure an appropriate referral to a professional in the client’s region.

Our Policy on Provision of Telehealth Services (Video and Telephone Sessions)

Prior to starting video-conferencing services, your clinician and you should discuss and agree to the following:

• There are potential benefits and risks of video-conferencing (e.g. limits to patient confidentiality) that differ from in-person sessions.
• Confidentiality still applies for telepsychotherapy and telepsychology services, and nobody will record the session without the permission from the others person(s).
• You and your clinician agree to use the video-conferencing platform selected for your virtual sessions, and the clinician will explain how to use it.
• You need to use a webcam or smartphone during the session.
• It is important to be in a quiet, private space that is free of distractions (including cell phone or other devices) during the session.
• It is important to use a secure internet connection rather than public/free Wi-Fi.
• It is important to be on time. If you need to cancel or change your tele-appointment, you must notify the clinician in advance by phone or email.
• You and your clinician need a back-up plan (e.g., phone number where you can be reached) to restart the session or to reschedule it, in the event of technical problems.
• You and your clinician need a safety plan that includes at least one emergency contact and the closest ER to your location, in the event of a crisis situation.
• If you are not an adult, we need the permission of your parent or legal guardian (and their contact information) for you to participate in telepsychotherapy sessions.
• You should confirm with your insurance company that the video sessions will be reimbursed; if they are not reimbursed, you are responsible for full payment.
• Your clinician may determine that due to certain circumstances, telepsychotherapy is no longer appropriate and that you should resume sessions in-person where and when possible.

Please learn more about our COVID-19 preparedness plan here.

Environmental Sensitivities Policies:

We are a scent-reduced environment at both office locations. Scented products such as hair spray, perfume, and deodorant can trigger reactions such as respiratory distress and headaches. Staff and visitors are asked to use these products at a minimum when attending the office.

We are not a peanut-free environment.

Anti-Harassment Policy:

Brookside Therapy & Assessments is committed to providing a work environment in which all staff members and clients are treated with respect and dignity. Workplace harassment will not be tolerated from any person in the workplace [including clients, other employers, other professionals, supervisors, staff members, and members of the public].

Diversity Policy:

The purpose of this policy is to foster a work culture at our practice that is characterized by:

• Humanistic values that emphasize health, wellness and the whole person.
• Respect for the diversity of race, culture, ethnicity, gender, age, abilities, religion and sexual orientation, which is demonstrated by inclusive practices and policies in relation to service and staffing.
• Open, responsive and respectful communication with all staff, clients, families, other treatment providers, and community members in an environment of trust.
• The provision of client-centred care.
• A caring, respectful environment that offers physical and emotional safety.

Our office is a place where human rights and diversity are respected. We understand that each client, employee, and clinical consultant is unique and presents with complex identifies in terms of ancestry, age, family status, physical or mental ability, socioeconomic status, religion/faith, language ability, immigration/refugee status, country of origin, sex, gender identity and expression, and sexual orientation.

We recognize Aboriginal communities as having distinct and special histories, experiences, and needs. We have a commitment and desire to work with Aboriginal communities in a manner that demonstrates the principles of respect, inclusion, accountability and equity.

The Practice is committed to delivering psychological and psychotherapy services in ways that are effective, fair, inclusive, respectful and culturally competent.

This work environment will be free from stigma, prejudice, discrimination, harassment and marginalization for all stakeholders, including clients, consumer/survivors, family members, staff, supervisee or clinicians, volunteers and community partners.

LGBTTIQ+ Positive Space Policy:

As an LGBTTIQ+ Positive Space, Brookside Therapy & Assessments is committed to creating an environment that is open and welcoming, as well as equitable and accessible, to persons of all sexual and gender diversities, as clients/patients, clinicians, and staff members. We are committed to providing ongoing education to staff and clinicians regarding the issues around sexual and gender diversity, human rights, and resources.

At our office you can expect provision of mental health services with staff trained to address trauma and stress due to the intersections of homophobia, heterosexism and transphobia. Staff at Brookside Psychologists have completed at least introductory training in LGBTQ health matters through Rainbow Health Ontario. About half of our clinicians have graduate-level or advanced training and experiencing in working with LGBTQ populations. You will receive supportive and LGBTQ-positive services from all clinicians and staff at the practice. You can expect adherence to professional codes of conduct with all staff. The practice has policies in place that explicitly support LGBTQ individuals and commit to creating safer spaces with zero tolerance for harassment.

Providing Goods & Services to Ontarians with Disabilities Policy:

Brookside Therapy & Assessments always strives  to respect the dignity and independence of Ontarians with disabilities. We are also committed to giving clients with disabilities the same opportunity to access and benefit from our services, in the same place and in a similar manner as others do. This policy aims to ensure that staff, volunteers, and all others who deal with members on our behalf, are properly trained in the provision of accessible customer service.

People with disabilities may use their personal assistive devices when accessing our services and facilities.

We will communicate with people with disabilities in ways that consider their disability.

We welcome people with disabilities and their service animals and support persons. Service animals and support persons are allowed on the parts of our premises that are open to the public. For service animals, the owner of the service animal is responsible for maintaining control over the service animal at all times. Further, the owner is responsible for any damages caused by the service animal. Service animals for disabilities other than vision disabilities are not required to be officially certified in order to qualify as service animals for the purposes of human rights or accessibility legislation.

Brookside Therapy & Assessments welcomes feedback on how we provide accessible customer service. Client and staff feedback will help us identify barriers and respond to concerns.