FAQ: How does Life To The Full ensure Client Confidentiality in Trauma Counselling?

At Life to the Full, ensuring your confidentiality in trauma counselling is paramount to us. We understand that engaging with sensitive trauma experiences requires immense trust, and we are wholeheartedly committed to honouring that trust within our legal and ethical frameworks. Our trauma counselling is primarily delivered through our clinical psychology framework, leveraging the specialised training of our clinical psychologists, such as our Clinical Director, David Scoffield.

Here's how we meticulously uphold your privacy:

• Secure Information Systems:

We utilise an internal information system that has been specifically designed for medical and psychological practices. Should you opt for our telehealth services, which we offer nationwide across Australia, this system includes embedded Zoom subscriptions, ensuring that your video calls are conducted via secure, private, non-public links. This robust infrastructure means that the security of your information is safeguarded by the considerable liability of our software provider, who is highly motivated to ensure your data remains secure. We rely on the firewalls of those we pay to offer our services, and these Zoom links are private, accessible only between the client and practitioner.

• Professional Ethical Codes:

All our psychologists, counsellors, coaches, and theologians are suitably qualified and members of their respective accrediting bodies. This means they strictly adhere to ethical frameworks and professional codes of conduct. This is particularly pertinent in contexts like our Employee Assistance Programs (EAP), where a school or organisation might be covering the cost of sessions. Despite who pays the bill, we are not permitted to report back to management about what is discussed in your sessions. We take the utmost care to ensure your confidentiality is absolutely assured, even if your concerns are directly related to your workplace. It is vital for us to establish with staff that confidentiality is assured.

• Legal Exceptions (Mandatory Reporting):

It is crucial for you to understand, however, that there are specific legal exceptions to confidentiality based on Australian laws. These are known as mandatory reporting obligations. This applies if there is a disclosure of something criminal, such as child abuse or a client confessing to a murder in one of our rooms, or if a client expresses an immediate danger to themselves or others. In such rare and serious circumstances, confidentiality rules do change, and we are legally required to report to the appropriate authorities, such as the police. Outside of these exceptions, we maintain strict confidentiality.

• Internal Referrals with Consent:

Should it be deemed beneficial for your therapeutic journey to be triaged to another professional within our multidisciplinary team, such as referring a client from a spiritual counsellor to a psychologist for primarily psychological issues, we only proceed with your explicit permission and a signed confidentiality waiver. This is because ethical guidelines, even within the same organisation, do not permit sharing what is discussed in our rooms unless the client gives us permission to do so.

We strive to be a non-judgmental space, committed to showing love and dignity in the midst of whatever challenges you may be facing.

Ready to take this important step?

Contact Life to the Full today to learn more and schedule your sessions.