Privacy Policy
Rachel Cathan Psychotherapy and Counselling customer privacy notice
This privacy notice tells you what to expect me to do with your personal information.
Contact details
Email: mail@rachelcathancounselling.com
What information I collect, use, and why
I collect or use the following information to provide patient care and services:
Name, address and contact details
Date of birth
Next of Kin details including any support networks
Emergency contact details
Health information (including medical conditions, allergies, medical requirements and medical history)
Records of meetings and decisions
Lawful bases and data protection rights
Under UK data protection law, I must have a “lawful basis” for collecting and using your personal information. There is a list of possible lawful bases in the UK GDPR. You can find out more about lawful bases on the ICO’s website.
Which lawful basis I rely on may affect your data protection rights which are set out in brief below. You can find out more about your data protection rights and the exemptions which may apply on the ICO’s website:
Your right of access - You have the right to ask me for copies of your personal information. You can request other information such as details about where we get personal information from and who we share personal information with. There are some exemptions which means you may not receive all the information you ask for. Read more about the right of access.
Your right to rectification - You have the right to ask us to correct or delete personal information you think is inaccurate or incomplete. Read more about the right to rectification.
Your right to erasure - You have the right to ask me to delete your personal information. Read more about the right to erasure.
Your right to restriction of processing - You have the right to ask me to limit how I can use your personal information. Read more about the right to restriction of processing.
Your right to object to processing - You have the right to object to the processing of your personal data. Read more about the right to object to processing.
Your right to data portability - You have the right to ask that I transfer the personal information you gave me to another organisation, or to you. Read more about the right to data portability.
Your right to withdraw consent – When I use consent as our lawful basis you have the right to withdraw your consent at any time. Read more about the right to withdraw consent.
If you make a request, I must respond to you without undue delay and in any event within one month.
To make a data protection rights request, please contact me using the contact details at the top of this privacy notice.
Lawful bases for the collection and use of your data
My lawful bases for collecting or using personal information to provide patient care, services, pharmaceutical products and other goods are:
Contract – I have to collect or use the information so I can enter into or carry out a contract with you. All of your data protection rights may apply except the right to object.
Vital interests – collecting or using the information is needed when someone’s physical or mental health or wellbeing is at urgent or serious risk. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to object and the right to portability.
My lawful bases for collecting or using personal information to comply with legal requirements are:
Contract – I have to collect or use the information so we can enter into or carry out a contract with you. All of your data protection rights may apply except the right to object.
Vital interests – collecting or using the information is needed when someone’s physical or mental health or wellbeing is at urgent or serious risk. This includes an urgent need for life sustaining food, water, clothing or shelter. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to object and the right to portability.
Where I get personal information from
Directly from you
How long I keep information
I will keep the details provided in your contract stored in a locked filing cabinet for 7 years. After this time, it will be securely destroyed.
Duty of confidentiality
I am subject to a common law duty of confidentiality. However, there are circumstances where I will share relevant health and care information. These are where:
you’ve provided me with your consent (I have taken it as implied to provide you with care, or you have given it explicitly for other uses);
I have a legal requirement (including court orders) to collect, share or use the data;
on a case-by-case basis, the public interest to collect, share and use the data overrides the public interest served by protecting the duty of confidentiality (for example sharing information with the police to support the detection or prevention of serious crime);
If in England or Wales – the requirements of The Health Service (Control of Patient Information) Regulations 2002 are satisfied; or
If in Scotland – we have the authority to share provided by the Chief Medical Officer for Scotland, the Chief Executive of NHS Scotland, the Public Benefit and Privacy Panel for Health and Social Care or other similar governance and scrutiny process.
How to complain
If you have any concerns about my use of your personal information, you can make a data protection complaint to me:
Email: mail@rachelcathancounselling.com
If you remain unhappy with how I’ve used your data after raising a complaint with me, you can also complain to the ICO.
The ICO’s address:
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Helpline number: 0303 123 1113
Website: https://www.ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint