Privacy Practices

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 Gentle Path Therapy Services (the "Practice") is committed to protecting your privacy. The Practice is required by federal law to maintain the privacy of Protected Health Information (PHI), which is information that identifies or could be used to identify you. The Practice is required to provide you with this Notice of Privacy Practices (this Notice), which explains the Practice's legal duties and privacy practices and your rights regarding PHI that we collect and maintain.

Your rights regarding PHI are explained below. To exercise these rights, please submit a written request to the Practice at the address below.

To inspect and copy PHI:

• You can ask for an electronic or paper copy of PHI. The Practice may charge you a reasonable fee.

• The Practice may deny your request if it believes the disclosure will endanger your life or another person's life. You may have a right to have this decision reviewed.

To Amend PHI:

• You can ask to correct PHI you believe is incorrect or incomplete. The Practice may require you to make your request in writing and provide a reason for the request.

• The Practice may deny your request. The Practice will send a written explanation for the denial and allow you to submit a written statement of disagreement.

To request confidential communications:

• You can ask the Practice to contact you in a specific way. The Practice will say "yes" to all reasonable requests.

To limit what is used or shared:

• You can ask the Practice not to use or share PHI for treatment, payment, or business operations. The Practice is not required to agree if it would affect your care.

• If you pay for a service or health care item out-of-pocket in full, you can ask the Practice not to share PHI with your health insurer.

• You can ask for the Practice not to share your PHI with family members or friends by stating the specific restriction requested and to whom you want the restriction to apply.

To obtain a list of those with whom your PHI has been shared:

• You can ask for a list, called an accounting, of the times your health information has been shared. You can receive one accounting every 12 months at no charge, but you may be charged a reasonable fee if you ask for one more frequently.

To receive a copy of the Notice:

• You can ask for a paper copy of the Notice, even if you agreed to receive the Notice electronically. To choose someone to act for you:

• If you have given someone medical power of attorney or if someone is your legal guardian, that person can exercise your rights.

To File a complaint if you feel your rights are violated:

• You can file a complaint by contacting the Practice using the following information:

• Gentle Path Therapy Services 338 W, 300 N, Suite #4 Hyde Park, UT 84318 (435) 523-3718

• You can 􀀁le a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Of􀀁ce for Civil Rights by sending a letter to 200 Independence Ave. S.W. Washington D.C. 20201

• The Practice will not retaliate against you for filing a complaint.

You may also contact the Utah Office of Licensing (801) 538-4242.

 1. Routine Uses and Disclosures of PHI - The Practice is permitted under federal law to use and disclose PHI without your written authorization, for certain routine uses and disclosures, such as those made for treatment, payment, and the operation of our business. The Practice typically uses or shares your health information in the following ways:

o To Treat you

o The Practice can use and share PHI with other professionals who are treating you.

Example: Your primary care doctor asks about your mental health treatment

o To run the health care operation

o The practice can use and share PHI to run the business, improve your care, and contact you. Example: the practices uses PHI to send you appointment reminders if you choose

o To Bill for your services

o The Practice can use and share PHI to bill and get payment from health plans or other entities. Example the Practice gives PHI to your health insurance plan so it will pay for your services.

2. Uses and Disclosures of PHI that may be made without your authorization or opportunity to object- The Practice may use or disclose PHI without your authorization or an opportunity for you to object, including:

o To help with public health and safety issues

o Public Health - To prevent the spread of disease, assist in product recalls, and report adverse reactions to medication.

o Required by the Secretary of Health and Human Services: We may be required to disclose your PHI to the Secretary of Health and Human Services to investigate or determine our compliance with the requirements of the final rule on Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information.

o Health oversight: For audits, investigations, and inspections by government agencies that oversee the health care system, government bene􀀁t programs, other government regulatory programs, and civil rights laws.

o Serious threat to health or safety: To prevent a serious and imminent threat.

o Abuse or Neglect: To report abuse, neglect, or domestic violence.

o To comply with Law, Law Enforcement, or other Government requests

o Required by law: If required by federal, state or local law.

o Judicial and administrative proceedings: To respond to a court order, subpoena, or discovery request.

o Law Enforcement: To locate and identify you or disclose information about a victim of crime.

o Specialized Government Functions: For military or national security concerns, including intelligence, protective service for heads of state, or your security clearance.

o National security and intelligence activities: For intelligence, counterintelligence, protection of the President, other authorized persons or foreign heads of state, for purpose of determining your own security clearance and other national security activities, authorized by law.

o Worker's Compensation: To comply with workers' compensation laws or support claims.

o To Comply with Other requests

o Coroners and Funeral Directors: To perform their legally authorized duties.

o Organ Donation: For organ donation or transplantation.

o Research: For research that has been approved by an institutional review board.

o Inmates: The Practice created or received your PHI while providing care.

o Business Associates: To organizations that perform functions, activities, or services on our behalf.

3. Uses and Disclosures of PHI that may be made with your authorization or opportunity to object unless you object the Practice may disclose PHI:

o To your family, friends, or others if PHI directly relates to that person's involvement in your care. If it is in your best interest because you are unable to state your preference.

4. Uses and Disclosures of PHI based upon your written authorization - The Practice must obtain your written authorization to use and/or disclose PHI for the following purposes:

o Marketing, sale of PHI and psychotherapy notes.

o You may revoke your authorization at any time by contacting the Practice in writing, using the information above. The Practice will not use or share PHI other than as described in Notice, unless you give your permission in writing.

• The Practice is required by law to maintain the privacy and security of PHI.

• The Practice is required to abide by the terms of the Notice currently in effect. Where more stringent state or federal law governs PHI, the Practice will abide by the more stringent law.

• The Practice reserves the right to amend Notice. All changes are applicable to PHI collected and maintained by the Practice. Should the Practice make changes, you may obtain a revised Notice by requesting a copy from the Practice, using the information above.

• The Practice will inform you if PHI is compromised in a breach.

Prior to beginning treatment, it is important for parents/guardians to understand our agency’s approach to child therapy and agree to some rules about your child's confidentiality during their treatment. Under HIPAA and the NASW Code of Ethics, your therapist is legally and ethically responsible to provide you with informed consent. 

One factor of child therapy involves disagreement among parents and/or disagreement between parents and therapist regarding the best interests of the child. If such disagreements occur, your therapist will strive to listen carefully so that they can understand your perspectives and fully explain their perspective. Together, you can resolve such disagreements or can agree to disagree, so long as this enables your child's therapeutic progress. Ultimately, you will decide whether therapy will continue. If either of you decides that therapy should end, your therapist will honor that decision, however our office asks that you allow the therapist the option of having a closing session to appropriately end the treatment relationship.

Therapy is most effective when a trusting relationship exists between the therapist and the patient. Privacy is especially important in securing and maintaining that trust. One goal of treatment is to promote a stronger and better relationship between children and their parents. However, it is often necessary for children to develop a "zone of privacy" whereby they feel free to discuss personal matters with greater freedom. This is particularly true for adolescents who are naturally developing a greater sense of independence and autonomy. By signing this agreement, you will be waiving your right of access to your child's treatment records.

It is our agency policy to provide you with general information about treatment status. Your therapist will raise issues that may impact your child either inside or outside the home. If it is necessary to refer your child to another mental health professional with more specialized skills, their therapist will share that information with you. The therapist will not share with you what your child has disclosed to them without your child's consent. The therapist will tell you if your child does not attend sessions. At the end of your child's treatment, the therapist will provide you with a treatment summary that will describe what issues were discussed, what progress was made, and what areas are likely to require intervention in the future. 

If your child is an adolescent, it is possible that he/she will reveal sensitive information regarding sexual contact, alcohol and drug use, or other potentially problematic behaviors. Sometimes these behaviors are within the range of normal adolescent experimentation, but at other times they may require parental intervention. You and the therapist must carefully and directly discuss your feelings and opinions regarding acceptable behavior. If the therapist ever believes that your child is at serious risk of hurting him/herself or another, they will inform you.

Although the therapist’s responsibility to your child may require their involvement in conflicts between the two of you, the therapist will need your agreement that their involvement will be strictly limited to that which will bene􀀁t your child. This means, among other things, that you will treat anything that is said in session with the therapist as confidential. Neither of you will attempt to gain advantage in any legal proceeding between the two of you from the therapist’s involvement with your children. In particular, the therapist needs your agreement that in any such proceedings, neither of you will ask the therapist to testify in court, whether in person, or by affidavit. You also agree to instruct your attorneys not to subpoena the therapist or to refer in any court 􀀁ling to anything the therapist has said or done.

Note that such agreement may not prevent a judge from requiring the therapist’s testimony, even though they will work to prevent such an event. If the therapist is required to testify, they are ethically bound not to give their opinion about either parent's custody or visitation suitability. If the court appoints a custody evaluator, guardian ad litem (GAL), or parenting coordinator, the therapist will provide information as needed (if appropriate releases are signed or a court order is provided), but they will not make any recommendation about the final decision. Furthermore, if the therapist is required to appear as a witness, the party responsible for the therapist’s participation agrees to reimburse our agency at the rate of $475 per hour for time spent traveling, preparing reports, testifying, being in attendance, and any other case-related costs.

Phone: Therapists are not immediately available by telephone throughout the day as they are in sessions with other clients. At these times, you may leave a message on your therapist’s confidential voicemail and your call will be returned as soon as possible, but it may take a day or two for non-urgent matters. If you feel you cannot wait for a return call, or it is an emergency, go to your local hospital or call 911.

Texting/Email: Texting and email are not secure methods of communication and should not be used to communicate personal information. You may choose to receive appointment reminders via text message or email. You should carefully consider who may have access to your text messages or emails before choosing to communicate via either method. Therapists may request client’s email address. Client has the right to refuse to divulge email address. Therapist may use email addresses to check in with clients who have ended therapy suddenly. 

If you decide that you would like text communication you will be asked to consent and sign to such in office prior to any text communications with this office.

Should you choose to utilize text messaging with this organization, no such information will be shared with third parties or affiliates for any marketing purposes.

Secure Communication: Secure communications are the best way to communicate personal information, though no method is entirely without risk. Your therapist will discuss options available to you.