Privacy Policy
The Psychiatric Care Clinic is a private medical services company dedicated to improving mental health awareness, optimizing clinical care and accessibility to evidence based treatments. Our work includes providing our private patients with the highest standards of care during different stages of their treatment.
We are committed to protecting your privacy at all times when dealing with your personal information. In this privacy policy, you will find details about the information we collect about you, how we use and what we do to protect such information. This privacy policy also provides information about your rights in relation to your personal data. For any queries or questions about the way we handle your personal information, please contact us at enquiries@psychcareclinic.com.
The Psychiatric Care Clinic Limited is registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office, registration number ZB548861.
In this policy ‘we’ , ‘us’ or ‘our’ means The Psychiatric Care Clinic Limited. Our privacy policy will be updated from time to time when necessary. To view the most up-to-date version of this policy, please visit our website
Scope of our Privacy Policy
This privacy policy applies to anyone who interacts with us about our service in any way such as by email, or by phone and the policy describes how we handle your personal information, regardless of the way you contact us (by email, through our website or by phone). If you have any questions about this, please contact us using the postal or email address provided at the end of this privacy policy.
Personal Data
It is a condition of any treatment that you give your explicit consent to allow our staff to process your personal medical data which we must do in order to be able to provide our services to you.
Contact details provided by to us by you or on your behalf, such as telephone numbers, email and/or postal addresses may be used by us from time to time to remind you of future appointments, provide you with reports or other information concerning the service we provide to you. Your personal information is processed by us for the purposes of providing you with our services and our clinical staff will require detailed medical information from you.
We will only collect the personal information needed to provide our services. This information will be relevant and necessary so that we can provide you with the services you require. When you visit us, we may make notes about your medical matters and your requirements from us. These notes may include, amongst other things, details concerning your medication, treatment plan and other issues affecting your health. This data is always held by us securely in accordance with this privacy policy. Such data will not be shared with anyone who is not involved in the management of your case without your prior consent, although for data storage purposes this data may be handled by our personnel who are not directly involved in your clinical care. We do not sell or broker your personal data.
Legal basis for processing personal data
In accordance with General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) we must have a lawful reason for processing your personal information. We process personal information about you to meet our contractual obligations to you in relation to the provision of our services. Personal data will be obtained by us from explicit Patient Consent and legitimate interest to respond to enquiries concerning the services provided.
Legitimate interests
Our legitimate interest is to promote treatments and services for patients with mental health problem/illness, to manage our relationship with you and to keep our records about you up to date.
Performance of a contract
This basis of processing is necessary in order for us to enter into or perform a contract with users of our services.
Consent
By consenting to this privacy notice you are giving us permission to process your personal data specifically for the purpose outlined. Consent is required for The Psychiatric Care Clinic to process both types of data, but it may be explicitly given. You can withdraw consent at any time by using the postal or email address provided at the end of this Privacy Notice.
Disclosure of personal data
We will not pass your personal data to third parties for marketing purposes. We will pass your personal data to your health insurer (if applicable) if they are covering your appointments/ assessment expenses under a policy of insurance. If your health insurer is covering the cost of your appointments/assessments, we may need to share with them some of your personal data. This may include your name, date of birth, insurance policy number, our diagnosis and details of your treatment plan.
The personal data which must be shared differs from one insurer to another. We will keep your personal information safe and secure, and only our staff who are involved in managing your case will have access to your patient records.
How long will we keep your information?
We will process your personal data during the period of any service you receive from us and will continue to store only the personal data needed as set out in our data retention policy which is in accordance with the guidance provided by the British Medical Association. At the end of the relevant data retention period, all personal data relating to you will be deleted, unless otherwise required to be retained by us to meet our future obligations to you, such as erasure details. If you would like more information about how long we will keep your personal data, please contact us using the contact details at the end of this privacy policy.
Data storage
The data we retain is stored and processed in the UK. By providing us with your personal information, you consent to the disclosure to these overseas third parties.
Your rights in respect of your personal data
You have the right to request a copy of the personal data that we hold about you.
If you would like a copy of some or all of your personal data, please email or write to us using the contact details at the end of this privacy policy. We want to make sure that your personal information is accurate and up to date at all times. You may ask us to correct or remove information which we hold and which you think is incorrect, incomplete or inaccurate.
You also have the right to ask us to transfer personal data which you have provided to us, and to withdraw the consent you have given to us to use your information.
You have the following rights in accordance with the GDPR (certain exceptions apply):
• Right of access: you have the right to request a copy of the personal data that we hold about you;
• Right to rectification: you have the right to have inaccurate information about you corrected or removed;
• Right to erasure: in certain circumstances you have the right to ask to have certain personal data about you erased from our records;
• Right to restriction of processing: the right to request that your personal information is only used by us for restricted purposes;
• Right to object: you have the right to object to certain types of processing of your personal data by us (such as direct marketing);
• Right to data portability: the right to ask for your personal information to be transferred to another organisation;
• Right to withdraw consent: the right to withdraw any consent you have previously given us regarding the processing of your personal data; and
• Right in relation to automated decisions: you also have the right not to be subject to the legal effects of automated processing or profiling (and, for the avoidance of doubt, we do not undertake any such activity).
Please note that your rights are not absolute. They do not always apply in all cases and we will let you know in our correspondence with you how we will be able to comply with your request.
Access to your personal data
If you make a request, we will ask you to confirm your identity if we need to, and to provide information that helps us to understand your request better. If we are unable to meet your request, we will explain why. Please see below how to contact us if you wish to make a request to access personal data we hold about you.
Changes to this privacy policy
We keep this privacy policy under regular review and we will make any updates necessary on this web page. This privacy policy was last updated on 22nd May 2023.
Security and confidentiality
Unfortunately, email systems and use of the internet may be unsecure and you understand and acknowledge that you are accepting the inherent privacy risks associated with the use of email and the internet in relation to our services and the transfer of personal data. We put the security of our patients and clients and their personal data and information as a high priority.
How to contact us
Please contact us if you have any questions about this privacy policy, about the information we hold about you, or if you wish to make a complaint:
Email – enquiries@psychcareclinic.com
Post – The Psychiatric Care Clinic, Victoria House, 50 Alexandra St, Southend on Sea, Essex, SS1 1BN
You also have a right to make a complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) by Post: Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, SK9 5AF, Telephone: +44 (0) 303 123 1113, Website: https://ico.org.uk
Complaints Policy
The Psychiatric Care Clinic Ltd’s Complaints Policy and Procedure
If you are unhappy with the facilities or services you have received from The Psychiatric Care Clinic we would like to know about it as soon as possible so we can investigate your concerns and explain, apologise and take positive action where necessary. In most circumstances, if you tell us about your concern quickly, we can resolve matters straightaway. To let us know about something with which you are unhappy, please speak with the administrator, Christiane Finck, in the first instance.
If you are not fully satisfied you can put your concerns in writing and use our formal Complaint Resolution Procedure which meets with the requirements set out by the Independent Doctors Federation (IDF) for its members and also the Independent Sector Complaints Adjudication Service (ISCAS).
The Complaint Resolution Procedure has three stages and reflects the principles of the ISCAS Code of Practice:
Stage 1 Local resolution within the individual practice
Stage 2 IDF Complaint Resolution Procedure to review the complaint
Stage 3 Independent Adjudication from ISCAS
Please note that Stages 1, 2 and 3 fall within the ISCAS Code of Practice for Complaints Management. A copy of this can be obtained from the IDF or from ISCAS.
Scope
Attention is drawn to the sections of the ISCAS Code which clearly explain what the Code does and does not cover. You should understand that if the complaint is not covered by the ISCAS code then stages 2 and 3 will not be available.
Stage 1
If you wish to start the formal Complaint Resolution Procedure you should write to either Dr Rachel Berg or Dr Elizabeth Jackson, depending on who the complaint is about:
Dr Jackson/Dr Berg
The Psychiatric Care Clinic
Victoria House
50 Alexnadra Street
Southend-on-Sea
Essex
SS1 1BN
You should state what has caused you to have concerns and make your points clear. Please document when the relevant events took place and what results you expect from your complaint.
Complaints should normally be made as soon as possible at Stage 1, and within 6 months of the date of the event complained about, or within 6 months of the matter coming to the attention of the complainant. The time limit may be extended by the Independent Health Practitioner where the complainant has good reason for not making a complaint in the time limit (for example, where a complainant has been grieving), and there is a realistic opportunity of conducting a fair and effective investigation into the issues raised.
The named person at the practice will send you an acknowledgement of your letter within three working days of receipt of the complaint. You will be offered a meeting to discuss your complaint and to agree the heads of the complaint.
The investigation of your complaint will involve reviewing records of meeting(s) with you and reviewing all the correspondence and clinical records as well as statements provided by clinicians and others involved.
Reasonable assistance will be provided for complainants where required e.g. for those with a disability or those whose first language is not English.
A full response to your complaint will be made within 20 days of receipt of the complaint. If the investigation is still in progress after 20 days a letter will be sent to you explaining the delay and a full response made within five days of reaching a conclusion. In any event a holding letter will be sent every 20 days where an investigation is continuing.
If you remain dissatisfied following the final Stage 1 response, then you can request a review of your complaint, known as Stage 2 by writing to:
Complaint Manager
The Independent Doctors Federation
Lettsom House
11 Chandos Street
Marylebone
London
W1G 9EB
Escalation to Stage 2 must be made in writing within six months of the final Stage 1 response.
Stage 2
The IDF Complaint Resolution Procedure will consider your complaint. The IDF Complaint Manager will send you an acknowledgement of your letter within three working days of receipt of your complaint and will request a summary of the matters that remain outstanding that you wish to be investigated. You will be invited to attend a meeting at the start of Stage 2 in order to clarify the matters that remain outstanding and obtain a greater understanding of what you hope to achieve by escalating the complaint. The IDF Complaint Manager will not have been involved in the matters that led to the complaint or the handling of the complaint at Stage 1. You will be asked to consent to release of records from the doctor. The IDF Complaint Manager will undertake a review of the documentation, any correspondence and the handling of and response to the complaint at Stage 1. If the review is still in progress after 20 days a letter will be sent to you explaining the delay and a full response made within five days of reaching a conclusion. In any event a holding letter will be sent every 20 days where a review is continuing. The IDF Complaint Manager will write to you when the review is completed to either confirm the outcome at Stage 1 or to offer an alternative resolution
At this time the IDF will advise you of your right to take the matter further to Stage 3 Independent External Adjudication by the Independent Sector Complaints Adjudication Service (ISACS).
Throughout the process all information, documents and records relevant to your complaint will be treated in the strictest confidence and no information will be divulged to any parties who are not involved in the IDF Complaint Resolution Procedure, unless required to do so by law.
Stage 3
This stage is only available to you if you remain dissatisfied once Stage 1 and Stage 2 are exhausted and aims to bring about a final resolution of the complaint to both parties.
In such a situation you should request the adjudication by writing to the Secretariat:
Independent Sector Complaints Adjudication Service (ISCAS)
CEDR (Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution), 3rd Floor
100 St. Paul’s Churchyard
London
EC4M 8BU
Tel: 020 7536 6091
Email: info@iscas.org.uk
This written request for adjudication must be made within six months of the final determination by the IDF at Stage 2. You should provide reasons to explain the dissatisfaction with the outcome of Stage 2. ISCAS will acknowledge receipt of the request within three working days
ISCAS will seek confirmation from the IDF that Stage 2 has been completed.
ISCAS will notify the IDF of a request for Stage 3 independent external adjudication. The IDF will respond to requests from ISCAS within ten working days and confirm whether Stages 1 and 2 have been completed. ISCAS will then be your main contact once adjudication is started. You will be asked to consent to the release of records from the doctor and the IDF relevant to the complaint. ISCAS will issue the decision within 20 working days or provide a progress update every 20 working days if the decision is delayed. A report will be made to you, the doctor concerned and the IDF.
Additional information for patients about ISCAS can be found at: https://iscas.cedr.com/
Additional information for patients about the IDF can be found at:
IDF – www.idf.co.uk
Unacceptable behaviour by complainants
At each stage of the complaint’s procedure, it might be deemed that a patient’s behaviour is unacceptable. We have a policy in place to handle unacceptable behaviour of complainants.