Policy

Privacy of personal information is an important principle to psychological Sarvin Sabet Psychology Services. We are committed to collecting, using and disclosing personal and health information responsibly and only to the extent necessary for the documents describes our privacy policies.

Personal information is the information about an identifiable individual. Personal information includes information that relates to an individual’s personal characteristics (e.g. gender, age, income, home address and phone number ethnic background, family status), health (e.g. health history, health conditions, health services received by them), or activities and views (e.g. religion, politics, opinion expressed by an individual, an opinion or evaluation of an individual). Personal information is different from business information (e.g. an individual’s business address and telephone number). This is not protected by privacy legislation.

Our organization: Sarvin Sabet Psychology Services, is a private clinic specializing in psychological services. We use a number of consultants and personnel that may, in the course of their duties have a limited access to the personal information that we hold. The individuals include test examiners, report writers, admin personnel, psychological professionals, and occasionally students and research assistants. We restrict their access to any personal information we hold as much as is reasonably possible. We also have their written assurance that they follow appropriate privacy principles, while professional staffs are bound to maintain confidentiality by their regulatory bodies.

Like all psychological service providers, we collect, use and disclose personal information in order to serve our clients.

For our clients, the primary purpose for collecting personal information are as follows; providing and communication a diagnosis and our assessment of the individuals clinical status; providing and communicating treatment progress and outcome; providing recommendations for an individual’s psychological. Examples of the type of personal and health information we collect for those purposes include the following personal, family and children’s medical and psychological history, occupational and educational history, current daily living activities status, current physical and emotional impairments and limitations, social and relationship issues and difficulties and basic demographics ( age, education, sexual orientation, marital status, immigration detail, etc.).

Like most organizations, we also collect use and disclose information for purpose related to or secondary to our primary purposes. The most common examples of our related and secondary purposes involve clinical research towards improving our evaluation and treatment methods.

However our research efforts always involve the exclusion of personal identifiers such as your name, claim number and any other means of identifying you or any other patients. Once we remove the identifying information in this way, it is no longer considered to be personal health information. In addition before conducting any clinical research towards improving our treatments methods we will get formal consent from our clients to pursue the research.

We understand the importance of protecting personal information. For that reason we have taken the following steps:

• Paper information is either under supervision or secured in locked or restricted area.
• Electronic hardware is either under supervision or secured in a locked or restricted area at all times. In addition passwords are used in computers. All of our cellphones are digital as these serials are more difficult to interpret.
• Paper information is transmitted through scaled, addressed envelopes or boxes by reputable companies.
• Electronic information is transmitted either through a direct line or has identifiers removed or is password protected.
• Staffs are trained to collect, use and disclose personal information only as necessary to fulfill their duties and in accordance with our privacy policy.
• External consultants and agencies with access to personal information must either into privacy agreement with us.

We need to retain personal information for at least ten years in the context of litigation in which you may be involved and for our own accountability to health professional regulatory bodies.

We maintain inactive files and destroy paper files containing personal information through professional companies who are recognized for complying their privacy laws. We destroy electronic information by deleting it and, when the hard is discarded, we ensure that the hard drive is physically destroyed.

As specified by law, with only a few exceptions, you have the right to access to your personal information. We hold about you. Often all you have to do is ask. We can help you identify what records we might have about you. We will also try to help you understand any information you do not understand (e.g. short forms, technical language, etc.). To fully secure the information properly, we may need to confirm your identity before providing you with this access. We reserve the right to charge a nominal fee for such requests.

If there is a problem, we may ask you to put your request in writing. If we cannot give you access, we will tell you within 30 days at all if possible and tell you the reason, as best we can, as to why we cannot give you access.

If you believe there is a mistake in the information you have right to ask it to be corrected. This applies to factual information and not to any professional opinions we may have formed. We may ask you to provide documentation that our files are wrong. Where you agree that we made a mistake, we will make the correctional and, where appropriate notify anyone or whom we sent this information. If we do not agree that we have made a mistake, we will agree to include in our file a brief statement from you on the point and, as appropriate, we will forward that statement to anyone else who received the earlier information.

• When there are concerns that you be a harm to yourself or others
• When we have reason to suspect that any vulnerable elderly or minor in your household is in danger of abuse or neglect
• When we have been court ordered to communicate or provide documentation about you
• When our clinic is subject to be reviewed by quality assurance of the college of the Psychologist of Ontario to investigate the quality of our practice

You may contact your clinician directly to address any questions or concerns you might have. If you wish to make a formal complaint about our privacy practices, you may make it in writing to your clinician. S/he will acknowledge receipt of your complaint and ensure that it is investigated promptly and that you are provided with a formal written decision with reasons. If you have a concern about the professionalism or competence with us. If we cannot satisfy your concerns, you are entitled to complain to our regulatory body:

The college of psychology of Ontario

110 Eglinton avenue west, suite 500. Toronto. Ontario. M4r1a3

Phone: 416 961 8817 1800 489 8388 fax: 416 961 2635 www.cpo.on.ca

For more general inquiries, the information and privacy commissioner of Ontario oversees the administration of the privacy legislation in the private sector. The commissioner also acts as a kind of ombudsman for privacy disputes. The information and privacy commissioner can be reached at:

Information and privacy commissioner/Ontario

2 Bloor street East, suite 1400 Toronto Ontario m4w1a8

Phone: 416 326 333 18003870073 fax: 4163259195 www.ipc.on.ca