Fees and Policies

The following describes the policy of Neo Psychology Pty Ltd for the management of clients’ information. Services provided are bound by the legal requirements of the National Privacy Principles from the Australian Federal Privacy Amendment (Private Sector) Act 2000.

Client Information

Client files are held securely and are accessible only to authorised staff.  The information on each file includes personal information such as name, address, contact phone numbers, and other information that is relevant to the service being provided.

Purpose of holding information

Information is gathered as part of the referral, appointment making, and the assessment of, and counselling for, the client’s condition (if applicable), or to provide a program, and is seen only by psychologists or authorised staff under strict supervision.  The information is retained in order to document what happens during each session or program, and enables the psychologist or authorized staff to provide a relevant and informed service. Basic personal contact and other details are kept to allow billing for services rendered.

Client data used for research

To help better understand the needs of our clients, and to ensure that services are effective, some data that is collected may be de-identified  (have any identifying information removed so the identity of the person who supplied the data cannot be known) and used for research purposes by Dr Simon Crisp, Neo Psychology or third parties such as universities and their students. Once receipt of services has ceased by the client, Neo Psychology may use client information to contact past clients to invite them to participate in future research projects.

Requests for access to client information

At any stage, clients may request to see the information about them kept on file. The psychologist may discuss the contents with them and/or give them a copy.  All requests by clients for access to information held about them should be lodged with the Director, Dr Simon Crisp.  These requests will be responded to within 14 days and an appointment will be made if necessary for clarification purposes.

Concerns

If any information about the use and management of your information is still unclear, please contact Neo Psychology for clarification. If you have a concern about the management of your personal information, please inform the Director, Dr Simon Crisp.  Upon request you can obtain a copy of the National Privacy Principles, which describe your rights and how your information should be handled.  Ultimately, if you wish to lodge a formal complaint about the use of, or access to, your personal information, you may do so with the Office of the Federal Privacy Commissioner on 1300 363 992, or GPO Box 5218, Sydney, NSW 1042.

General

• Your psychologist will need to collect and record personal information from you that is relevant to your current situation. This information will be a necessary part of the referral, appointment making, assessment and counselling / treatment / program that you will receive.
• Some services may also be provided by registered Provisional Psychologists, youth professionals and professional students under the supervision of the Director, Dr Simon Crisp. These conditions of the services provided also apply to all consultants and staff involved in providing assessment, counselling or programs to you.

Client Privacy

Any personal information we get about you is strictly confidential. However, there can be exceptions, for instance when:

   1. You or someone else may be at serious and immediate risk of harm

   2. You have given permission to:

• • discuss your information with another person. eg. other professional, or
  • provide a written report to another professional or agency

   3. It is subpoenaed by court

Access to your information

You may access the material recorded in your file upon request, subject to the exceptions in National Privacy Principle 6.

Fees

Please see the section above for the current cost of a standard consultation (50 minutes). Fees will be discussed at your first session, and will be due and payable at your session by EFTPOS or credit card (Visa / MasterCard only). We do not provide credit and invoices will not be issued. After-hours appointments may incur an additional surcharge. Administration fees may be charged for re-issuing receipts/accounts or preparation of account summaries or similar.

Cancellation

When an appointment booking is made we commit this time for our Psychologist to be available to provide a consultation to you, usually on a regular, on-going basis. Unlike most other professional services, cancelations made within a few days before the session usually cannot be filled.  We aim to keep our fee rates as reasonable as possible, based around a minimum number of paid appointments per day. Therefore, any missed sessions would potentially result in a loss of expected income. This adds pressure to increase fees to compensate, which we would prefer not to do. For the above reasons, appointments cancelled with less than 48 hours notice or before 12.00 noon Fridays for Monday appointments will incur a cancellation fee of 35% of your usual fee. If cancellation is made on the day of the scheduled appointment, or no notice is given, then the full fee will be payable. This fee will be due in 7 days or at the next appointment (whichever is the sooner).

Medicare rebates

While we endeavor to ensure that we complete the procedures that are necessary for clients to claim a rebate from Medicare, we are not responsible for clients eligibility for any claim for a Medicare rebate. A client’s eligibility rests with the referring medical practitioner. If the referring medical practitioner has not completed any referral or review procedures correctly to enable the client’s rebate to be accepted, the client remains liable for the full payment of any fees, and holds the responsibility for resolving any errors with the referring medical practitioner or Medicare Australia. Additionally, Neo Psychology is not responsible for Medicare processing errors which may result in the delay of your rebate.

Rights & Responsibilities

As a way of ensuring you gain the most from your involvement in this service the following Rights & Responsibilities will support both you and our staff to best understand each others needs and work together effectively. Please also refer to the Australian Psychological Society Charter for Clients which outlines your rights as a client of psychological services.

Your Rights

• You have the right to expect professional and respectful care from appropriately trained staff…
• To be free from harassment, bullying, intimidation or any behaviour of staff or clients that is threatening or causes you to feel, or be unsafe
• To expect that the information concerning you is treated with confidentiality by all staff
• To be given adequate information about programs and services in terms that are understandable to you
• To make informed decisions about your own involvement in programs or services, including consent to participate in educational or research projects
• To have an advocate present (friend, family or interpreter) at meetings or interviews (where practicable)
• To be aware that it may be beneficial for appropriate staff to discuss some or all of your situation with other professionals outside of this organisation, and that this will only be done with your written consent unless immediate safety concerns dictate
• To be aware that your progress may be documented to ensure important information is available to staff to guide the services you receive
• To have access to your records upon application – please discuss this with staff
• To make complaint about the program or service you receive and expect that this complaint will be investigated fairly. Any complaints should be made to the staff concerned or the Director, Dr. Simon Crisp (Tel: 0427 002 209)
• To expect services you receive to be unaffected by a complaint being made.

 Your Responsibilities

• You have the responsibility to give accurate information about yourself that may be relevant to the service you are receiving, which may include medical or other information, in order to receive adequate advice and care, and to update staff if this information changes
• To respect the privacy of others using the service or participating in a program, and to keep any information shared by other participants confidential
• To respect the safety (both emotional and physical) of other clients and staff, including keeping yourself safe and contributing positively to a safe environment for all
• To ask for assistance or advice when needed, including what type of help you need, and to inform staff of difficulties you may be experiencing that may affect your safety or participation
• To notify staff of dissatisfaction so that appropriate action can be taken. Failing that, to notify the Director, Dr. Simon Crisp, if your concerns have not been adequately handled
• To cooperate fully with program or service requirements, and ask for clarification if you do not understand what is expected of you. It is your responsibility to accept the consequences of your decisions not to follow advice given, or follow guidelines or safety directions
• To keep appointments and attend all aspects of the services offered and complete all program requirements, or give early notification of cancellation or withdrawal from a program

For further information, contact the Office of the Health Services Commissioner:

Level 30, 570 Bourke Street Melbourne 3000

www.health.vic.gov.au/hsc

Email: hsc@dhs.vic.gov.au

Tel: 1800 136 066

1. Clients will only be accepted for consultation, or placed on to the waiting list if the services we provide would appear to be suitable for their needs,
2. Clients are allocated to the next most available and suitable psychologist. Based on information provided at referral, the client will be allocated to a psychologist who has appropriate qualifications, experience or specialisation for the needs of the client,
3. Where a client’s needs are determined to be urgent, priority may be given for allocation to, and an appointment for a psychologist over other clients on the waiting list,
4. A client in emergency crisis or at risk to themselves should attend the Emergency Department of their local general hospital or consult their general medical practitioner. While we attempt to respond quickly to the urgent needs of our clients, Neo Psychology does not offer emergency support or crisis counselling,
5. If it is likely that a referral or appointment request is likely to take more than a clinically appropriate amount of time, or is expected to be greater than 4 weeks (whichever is the lesser), the client will be contacted to determine the urgency of the referral, and alternative services or psychologists will be recommended if appropriate. The client will continue to be retained on the waiting list in case an appointment becomes available before any alternative,
6. The initial assessment consultation(s) with a client are usually used to determine the precise needs at the time. Following an initial assessment, it may be necessary to refer the client on to another more suitable service, or for adjunct assessment, counselling, treatment or case-management from another professional or service,
7. While referrals are accepted and appointments offered on the basis that weekly sessions can be offered in the future, it may not be possible for weekly sessions to always be available where other client’s may unexpectedly need more frequent sessions,
8. If a client has been listed for more than 4 weeks on the waiting list and has not responded to our attempts to contact them or has not followed through with appointment times offered, they may be removed from the waiting list and will need to re-register on-line to be returned to the waiting list.

General

1. Neo Psychology Pty Ltd accepts no liability for the use or mis-use of material purchased, downloaded or viewed from this website or any on-line function, and will not be liable for any damages, material or any other that may occur from it use,
2. No responsibility is accepted for the customer’s technical ability to download or view purchased material, including any disruptions to networks, internet connections and so on,
3. All products and services purchased are for private use only unless otherwise agreed by licence. Downloading copyrighted material does not imply ownership of that material.

Refund & Returns

1. A full refund (less postage) will be provided for any hardcopy products purchased which are defective, don’t match the description, or are not for the purpose as advertised, and which are returned with stated reasons for return within 30 days.
2. Downloaded products allow for the viewing of documents, audio materials or video material, which at all times remain the property of Neo Psychology Pty Ltd. Payment for these products entitles the purchaser to read, listen to view this material, in some instances on a once-off basis only. Some material may not be able to be electronically stored by the purchaser, including copying onto any storage device. Downloading copyrighted material does not imply ownership of that material.
3. Where the purchaser can reasonably demonstrate that their attempt to read, listen to, or view any material purchased has failed in part or whole due to connection or technical reasons, Neo Psychology Pty Ltd will happily provide any downloadable material a second time to the purchaser at no additional cost. eBooks or other downloadable documents will only be replaced if PDF files are faulty or corrupted.
4. Any services purchased online, such as workshop or course attendance, will have a specified cancellation policy which applies regardless of the type of payment made. Please refer to the relevant downloadable flyer.

Delivery

We send purchases via Australia Post, unless otherwise requested. Charges vary according to the weight of the parcel and the shipping address. Dispatch will be between 7 to 10 working days and delivery will depend on the destination and normal postal processes.

If you are not happy with your purchase, contact us with your purchase details at:

PO Box 7 Kew East, 3102 VIC Australia, admin@neopsychology.com.au or +61(0)3 9810 3067.

Credit Card Privacy

All credit card details are encrypted securely and processed through secure internet-based practice management software systems or EFTPoS systems run by the National Australia Bank. No information, including the nature of purchases is shared with any other party.