Privacy Policy
At CareWay, we are committed to protecting your privacy and safeguarding your personal health information as a visitor, client, or website user. This document outlines the CareWay/Emina Hendricks privacy practices and provides information about confidentiality and laws related to the collection, use and disclosure of your personal health information while engaged in services with Emina Hendricks, RP.
What is Personal Health Information?
Personal health information is data that can be used to identify a person and details of their healthcare. This may include contact information (e.g., name, address, telephone number, e-mail address), personal characteristics (e.g., age, gender, cultural/ethnic background), and health details (e.g., presenting issues, health history, medical/mental health conditions, treatments being received.)
Collection and Use of Personal Health Information:
To provide healthcare services, CareWay/Emina Hendricks will collect some personal health information about you. We may also ask you to complete questionnaires or other self-report tests to enable a better understanding of your health-related function and treatment needs.
The primary purpose of collecting this information is so we may:
Evaluate your health-related needs;
Recommend appropriate treatment options; and
Provide therapy and related healthcare.
Third party payers, when applicable, may request specific information about your healthcare:
Extended-health benefits insurers, for example, often have your consent for us to release information about session dates, duration and the clinical provider’s information (name, title, registration number); and auto insurers, WSIB, Long-Term Disability insurers and legal representatives may request information related to your health conditions, treatment needs, treatment progress and disability in order to make determinations of your entitlement to funding.
Electronic Communication of Personal Health Information (“E-mail”):
CareWay/Emina Hendricks offers e-mail communication as a method of contact between yourself and Emina Hendricks. We use e-mail to provide appointment confirmations and reminders, and to send invoices for services rendered. We may also use e-mail to communicate with you about appointment bookings and cancellations if we cannot reach you by telephone (or if you request we use e-mail as a primary method of contact). E-mail is convenient and efficient; however, communicating by e-mail also encompasses risks that should also be considered. E-mail is not recognized as a secure form of communication. Risks of transmitting your information by e-mail include, but are not limited to, the following:
The privacy and security of e-mail communication cannot be guaranteed;
E-mail is easier to falsify than phone, fax or mail. It is also impossible to verify the true identity of the sender, or to ensure that only the recipient can read the e-mail once it has been sent;
E-mail can introduce viruses into a computer system, and potentially damage or disrupt the computer;
E-mail can be forwarded, intercepted, circulated, stored, or even changed without the knowledge or permission of the sender or recipient. E-mail senders can easily misaddress an e-mail, resulting in it being sent to unintended and unknown recipients; and;
E-mail creates a permanent record. Even after the sender and recipient have deleted their copies of the e-mail, back-up copies may exist on a computer or in cyberspace. We will use reasonable means to protect the security and confidentiality of e-mail information sent and received.
However, because of the risks outlined above, we cannot guarantee the security and confidentiality of e-mail communication.
Consent to the use of e-mail indicates your agreement with the following conditions:
E-mails from you containing clinically relevant information may be printed in full and made part of your clinical record. Because these would become part of your clinical record, other individuals authorized to access the clinical record will have access to those e-mails;
We will make reasonable efforts to read and respond to e-mails promptly. However, we cannot guarantee that any particular e-mail will be read and responded to within any particular period of time. Therefore, e-mail should not be used for emergencies or other time-sensitive matters;
E-mail communication is not an appropriate substitute for treatment. You are responsible for following up with us to schedule appointments, where warranted; and;
If your e-mail requests a response from us and you have not received a response within a reasonable time period, it is your responsibility to follow up to confirm we did indeed receive your e-mail.
E-mail should not be used to discuss sensitive personal health information, such as that related to mental health, disability or substance use. Therefore, we will not discuss such matters over e-mail.
E-mail communication is voluntary. Please advise us if you do not wish to engage in e-mail communication, and we will remove your e-mail address from our system.
Disclosure of Personal Health Information:
In accordance with the laws, professional standards, and ethical codes we follow, the information you share with CareWay/Emina Hendricks remains confidential. This means your information will not be disclosed to anyone without your consent, with the exception of the specific situations outlined below.
Your information may be released without your consent in the following situations:
Harm to Self/Others: If there is reason to believe that you are in danger of harming yourself or others in ways that may be life-threatening, Emina Hendricks is ethically obliged to take action to ensure your safety and/or the safety of others. These steps may include contacting your identified emergency contact person, a family member or close other, seeking hospitalization, contacting the police, notifying others at risk, or some combination of these actions to ensure you and/or others are protected.
Abuse/Neglect: If there are reasonable grounds to suspect that a child under 18 years of age is, or may be, in need of protection, Emina Hendricks must, by law, report this information to a children’s aid society. Examples of reportable situations include physical harm/abuse, sexual abuse, emotional harm (e.g., verbal abuse, humiliation, witnessing violence), or a pattern of neglect or failure to protect a child from harm.
Additionally, if there are reasonable grounds to suspect that a resident of a nursing, retirement or other long-term care home has suffered harm, or is at risk of harm due to improper or incompetent treatment or care, unlawful conduct, abuse or neglect, or possible misuse or misappropriation of the resident’s money or funding, Emina Hendricks is required to report this information to the Registrar of the Retirement Homes Regulatory Authority, or long-term care home director.
Sexual Abuse by a Regulated Health Professional: If there are reasonable grounds to believe that another regulated health professional has sexually harassed or abused a client, Emina Hendricks must, by law, report this health professional’s name and information related to the sexual abuse to the appropriate regulatory body.
Court Order: Our records can be subpoenaed by a court order and Emina Hendricks may be required to testify and give information obtained during the course of treatment sessions. This information would never be provided voluntarily without your direct request or permission without the court order.
It is important to note that as registered healthcare professional, Emina Hendricks may also be required to make files available for audit by her regulatory body or third-party payer agencies. These audits are confidential, and a record of the audit will be inserted into your client file.
Access to Your Personal Health Information & Requests for Correction:
With a few exceptions, you have the right to access or amend your personal health information. This means that you may request to read clinical notes in your file, ask for corrections to be made to factual information, and for a copy of your health information.
In these cases, your clinician will review the clinical notes with you and can help you understand any information that is not clear (e.g., short-forms, technical terms, etc.). Copies of your file may take time to provide – an estimate of the timeframe and cost will be provided when your request is made. If we cannot give you access, we will advise you in writing within 30 days if possible, and will outline the reason, as best we can, as to why we cannot give you access.
Storage and Destruction of Personal Health Information:
A record containing your personal health information and information about your therapy sessions and other materially relevant interactions are maintained in a secured place while you are engaged in services with CareWay/Emina Hendricks. In accordance with the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario (CRPO), Emina Hendricks is required to keep all client records safely and securely stored for a period of ten years after our last contact with you (for adults) or 10 years after you turn 18 years of age (for children), whichever is later. Any personal health information that is stored electronically is protected by appropriate security measures (e.g., PHIPA-compliant software). After 10 years, your personal information is destroyed in a secure manner that protects your privacy.
Safeguards:
We have instituted appropriate safeguards such as password and firewall protection, and encryption technologies in our efforts to ensure that client’s personal health information is protected. If your personal health information is stolen, lost, or accessed by unauthorized persons, we will notify you as soon as possible.
Cookies:
When you visit our website, please note that cookies may be used on some pages of our site. “Cookies” are small text files placed on your hard drive that assist us in providing a more customized website experience. It is our intent to use cookies to make navigation of our website easier and to facilitate efficient registration procedures.
Questions and Complaints:
If you have any questions about the CareWay/Emina Hendricks privacy practices and procedures, please contact:
Emina Hendricks, MEd, RP
CareWay Counselling
PO Box 83525
87 Avenue Road
Toronto, Ontario, M5R 3T6
Tel: (416) 994-4621
Email: emina@careway.ca
If Emina cannot satisfy or resolve your concerns, you have the right to file a complaint with her regulatory body:
The College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario
375 University Avenue,
Toronto, Ontario, M5G 2J5
Tel: (416) 479-4330
Fax: (416) 639-2168
Web: www.crpo.ca
This privacy policy adheres to the Personal Health Information Protection Act (PHIPA, 2004). PHIPA designates the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario (IPC) to provide oversight to ensure healthcare organizations are compliant with privacy legislation. You also have the right to contact the IPC for assistance in resolving privacy matters related to CareWay/Emina Hendricks:
Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario
2 Bloor Street East, Suite 1400,
Toronto, Ontario, M4W 1A8
Tel: (416) 326-3333 or (800) 387-0073
Fax: (416) 325-9195
Web: www.ipc.on.ca
Modification to the Privacy Policy
We reserve the right to change our Privacy Policy at any time without notice. The Privacy Policy posted at careway.ca shall be deemed to be the Privacy Policy in effect.