Many seeking psychotherapy or life coaching services share highly private and personal information with their psychotherapists or personal coach.  In order to respect the privacy of our clients, to encourage our clients to be open and honest, and to facilitate a trustful and secure environment, we gladly uphold confidentiality and ethical regulations set forth by our state psychology board (the Examining Board of Psychology for Washington State) and the American Psychological Association.  In addition, all of our procedures are in compliance with HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996) guidelines.  

 

Our privacy practices will be reviewed with you in depth and you will be given a copy of our policies, should you choose to pursue treatment with us.  The following points are vital in understanding confidentiality in psychotherapy or life coaching:

 

The law protects the relationship between a client and a psychotherapist, and information cannot be disclosed without written permission.

Exceptions that legally and ethically require disclosure without written permission include: (Note: when possible, we would make every effort to inform regarding release of information when required.)

• Suspected child abuse, dependent abuse, or elder abuse, for which psychologists are required by law to report this to appropriate authorities to protect the health and safety of those compromised in protecting themselves.
• Threats to one’s own health or safety (suicide or self harm), for which we will make every effort to work with clients to mutually ensure clients’ safety and health.  If clients are unable to secure safety, psychologists are required to engage necessary professionals, officials, or treatment facilities in securing safety and care for clients.
• Threats to another individual or the public, for which psychologists are required to increase the likelihood of all remaining safe by notifying intended victims and authorities of possible harm.

 

*A note regarding electronic communication: Please be advised that although we strive to keep all electronic correspondence (e.g., email) protected, the confidentiality of email is somewhat limited due to the possibility of message interception.  Therefore, we prefer to discuss your confidential information via phone, including secure, password protected, voicemail messages, or in person.