Shirin Biria records and uses personal information about patients, students, clinicians and potential clients. Contact details and emergency contact details are collected directly from patients. Notes are recorded following sessions and consultations. This information is used for patient treatment and administration. The lawful basis for using personal information for this purpose is ‘to fulfil a legal obligation’. Health care professionals provide care under the Health and Social Care Act and are required by law to maintain records about patient health, treatment, and care. These records help to provide the best possible treatment. Patient records are most likely to include sensitive personal information. This could be about a person’s health, sex life, religious beliefs and/or ethnicity. Patient records may also include information about a person’s criminal history. The lawful basis for recording sensitive personal information is ‘explicit consent’. Sensitive personal information is only recorded and used by Shirin Biria with the explicit consent of the individual concerned. Patients’ records are kept for 5 years after the last treatment session.

 

potential clients
Contact details are provided by potential clients and used to contact them. The lawful basis for using personal information for this purpose is ‘legitimate interest’ as it is necessary and reasonable to record and use a person’s contact details if they express an interest in treatment. Potential clients’ personal information is kept for 6 months.

 

personal information retention
Records containing personal information may be electronic, on paper or a mixture of both. A combination of working practices and technology are used to ensure that personal information is kept confidential and secure. In line with data protection requirements, it is kept only for as long it is needed, before being destroyed or deleted.

sharing of personal information
Shirin Biria does not share personal information about patients, students or clinicians with any individuals or organisations unless the person the information is about has given their prior permission for it to be shared, she is legally required to share it, or if someone’s life is at risk.

 

The standard practice in psychodynamic psychotherapy of charging for missed or cancelled sessions is adopted unless otherwise agreed. There are usually three-holiday breaks per annum at Christmas, Easter and during the summer. This policy is undertaken as therapy is a commitment by both parties and as such, the session time is exclusively allocated to the client and not normally re-allocated in the event of absence. In regards to preliminary consultation only, there is a 48 hour notice required for cancellation.

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January 2024