MTW Speech and Language Therapy LLP Privacy Information – April 2018
Who We Are
MTW Speech and Language Therapy (SLT) LLP is registered with Companies House no. OC420673. MTW SLT delivers Independent Speech and Language Therapy to children in the home and/or educational setting. It is run and managed by two senior partners; Caroline Culver and Sarah Organ, Speech and Language Therapists, who are registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC).
MTW SLT operates a website at www.mtwtherapy.co.uk and social media pages.
MTW SLT is committed to protecting the privacy of information provided by clients.
This privacy policy covers the partners of MTW and the subcontracted Speech and language therapists associated with MTW SLT.
We’re based at 5 Draper Way, Taverham, NR8 6DG.
Collection of Personal Information
Information about children may be collected via spoken or written information from parents/carers. With parental consent, information may also be collected from other professionals working with your child (such as teachers, nursery staff, childminders, NHS Speech and Language Therapist). We may also collect information about family members where this relates to your child e.g. contact details for parents and relevant medical or developmental history.
You may use the MTW website/Facebook account/ linked in/ Instagram or you tube page without providing any personal information. However, if you wish to make an enquiry via the website or Facebook, you are requested to provide relevant contact details, such as your name, e-mail address and contact telephone number to enable us to respond to your enquiry.
You may add comments or queries which might also contain personal information.
If your enquiry does not result in your child being seen by MTW SLT then this personal information will be deleted once your enquiry has been dealt with. If your child is subsequently seen by MTW SLT these details may be added to their personal record.
The website, our blog, our Facebook page and other social media pages contains links to other Internet sites which are outside our control and are not covered by this privacy policy. We are not responsible for data which you provide through any such linked websites.
Our use of Personal Information
Personal information collected by us via the MTW website, Facebook messenger, email, telephone or face to face, is stored and used by us for the purpose of delivering your child’s speech and language therapy.
Any sensitive personal details are stored in a secure and confidential system and processed in confidence by MTW SLT and shall only be used for the purposes of delivering appropriate speech and language therapy services to your child.
With your consent, information about your child’s speech and language needs will be shared with other professionals involved in your child’s care, when it is in your child’s best interests. A record of your consent is kept within your child’s case notes.
Unless we are required to do so by law, we will not disclose any personal information collected to any person other than as set out above.
We do not employ agents to process personal data, for example specialist mailing companies to send out communications.
We do not give or sell client details to any third parties.
How We Use Personal Information
We use this information:
- To prepare, plan and provide speech and language therapy services appropriate for your child’s needs
- To communicate with you via post, email, telephone, mobile messages and SMS in relation to:
- confirming and preparing for appointments
- general communication in between appointments
- sending you reports and programmes for your child (always password protected)
- copying you in to communications with other professionals involved with your child (your child’s initials rather than full name will be used in emails)
- sending you resources
- sending you invoices
- to tag you in an article of interest on Facebook following a discussion with you.
- For clinical audit to assess and improve our service. Results of audits are always presented with all client identities removed
- For management and administration, for example names and email address of clients are included in our password protected accounting database
Whenever personal identifiers are not needed for these tasks, if possible we remove them from the information we use.
How We Store Personal Information
All information about you, your child and their speech and language therapy is stored securely in our systems to ensure that we have a complete record of our service to them. We use well known electronic cloud-based systems called “drop box or google drive” which is compliant with general data protection regulations. This is only accessible via a password your speech and language therapist and the senior partners of MTW hold.
Documents which contain confidential information such as reports and programmes are also individually password protected from the outset. Any paper based confidential information such as assessments are stored securely in accordance with Data Protection Regulations.
Videos may be taken of clients with parental consent as part of therapy programme. These are temporarily stored on an encrypted and password protected tablet/phone or computer. These may then be viewed by the SLT in order to make notes in a client record. The video is then deleted at the end of the period of care.
A minimum amount of confidential information will be taken out of the Speech and Language Therapist’s base. When your child’s information is taken out of the base it will be kept with the Speech and Language Therapist or will be locked in the boot of the Speech and Language Therapist’s car (whichever is deemed to be the most secure at that time).
In accordance with law, all records will be kept securely until your child is 25 years old. After this time all records relating to your child will be destroyed. For looked after children the law requires us to keep the record for 20 years after our period of care is finished.
On occasion we may ask to use a video of your child for training or promotional purposes. You’re explicit written consent will be gained prior to this.
Our Lawful Basis For Processing Personal Information
We process and store personal information to comply with our legal obligations.
It is a legal requirement for all Speech and Language Therapists to be registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). The HCPC has clear standards of conduct, performance and ethics that all registrants must adhere to.
These standards affect the way in which we process and share information. Specifically:
Standard 2: Communicate appropriately and effectively
“You must share relevant information, where appropriate, with colleagues involved in the care, treatment or other services provided to a service user.”
Standard 10: Keep records of your work
“You must keep full, clear, and accurate records for everyone you care for, treat, or provide other services to. You must complete all records promptly and as soon as possible after providing care, treatment or other services. You must keep records secure by protecting them from loss, damage or inappropriate access.”
For further information the full document can be found at: http://www.hcpc-uk.org/assets/documents/10004EDFStandardsofconduct,performanceandethics.pdf
The Data Protection Act 1988 and General Data Protection Regulations 2018
The Data Protection Act 1988 and The General Data Protection Regulations 2018 lay down wide-ranging rules, backed up by criminal sanctions, for the processing of information about identifiable, living individuals. It also gives individuals certain rights in relation to personal data held about them by others.
MTW is registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) as a Data Controller. You can view our ICO registration by visiting: www.ico.org.uk
Our Responsibilities
We are committed to maintaining the security and confidentiality of your child’s record. We actively implement security measures to ensure their information is safe, and audit these regularly.
We will not release your personal details to any third party without first seeking your consent, unless this is allowed for or required by law.
We are constantly working to ensure compliance with current data protection regulation.
Your Rights
Data protection legislation gives you, the parent, various rights. The most important of these are as follows:
- You have the right to a copy of information we hold about your child.
- You have the right to ask for your record to be amended if you believe that it is wrong.
How To Access Your Child’s Records
You can access the information we hold about you by writing to us at the address given below. Please apply in writing rather than by email, so that we receive an original signature to compare against the records we hold.
A copy of your child’s heath record is provided free of charge.
We will provide access to your child’s records within 30 days of receipt of all necessary information.
Please make your request in writing to:
MTW Speech and Language Therapy
7 Station Road
Salhouse
NR13 6NX
If you have any further questions about how we use your information, please contact enquiries@mtwtherapy.co.uk
Further information about data protection legislation and your rights is available from the Information Commissioner’s Office or by calling 0303 123 1113, 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.
