TERMS AND CONDITIONS

The following terms and conditions apply to all clients who decide to proceed and use the service. It is therefore important that you take the time to read the following terms and conditions and that you agree with their content prior to going ahead. You will be asked to confirm that you understand and accept the terms and conditions at the booking stage.

 

General

Clients must be 18 years or older, unless otherwise agreed, and consent is provided by an appropriate adult.

Clients must have access to a telephone and be able to provide a contact number on which to be called (for both telephone and video calls) and a device supporting a webcam and microphone which meets the requirements of Zoom (for video calls).

Payments for the counselling call are made in advance through a secure payment provider via my website.

Payments will appear on a financial statement under the reference “Lamenta Online”.

The cost of a counselling call is 60 Euro.

The length of a counselling call is 50 minutes, unless the client decides to end the call earlier.

 

The Counselling Call (General)

It is my responsibility to make the counselling call on the time and date as booked by the client through my website.

It is the client’s responsibility to ensure they are available to start the counselling call on the time and date booked.

All counselling calls, including calls that start later than booked, will end at the time arranged, 50 minutes after the scheduled start time. Counselling calls that do not begin on time due to the client not being available will, subsequently, be of a reduced time but still subject to the full fee.

Counselling calls affected by technical problems on my behalf will be subject to a full refund or re-scheduled session. This condition does not apply to difficulties caused by the client’s device, which is the responsibility of the client to ensure is working.

In the event of the counselling call becoming disconnected, I will attempt to re-dial the client’s number or re-open the Zoom meeting room to re-establish connection.

In the event of an emergency on my part the counselling call may have to be ended with immediate effect. In such instances I will contact the client as soon as possible to re-arrange another call or to agree to refund the cost of the call.

Counselling calls may be terminated if the client becomes verbally abusive or threatening towards the counsellor during the call.

No counselling calls are recorded and clients are not permitted to record calls or take screen shots during the call themselves.

It is not permitted for third parties to listen in to any part of the counselling call (via phone or any other technical device or in person) without prior agreement.

 

The Counselling Call (Telephone)

In order to receive the call, the client’s phone must be set to receive calls from an anonymous caller or from a call with the number withheld, and not at the setting which doesn’t accept such calls.

I will make three attempts to contact a client as arranged, the first of these being at the time booked, followed by a further two attempts, five and ten minutes after the first attempt. If no contact is made, for the purposes of confidentiality, I will not leave a message.

If a client becomes available to take the counselling call after my attempts to call, an email or message through my website needs to be sent to me, notifying me of availability to take the call, at which point I will make another attempt to call.

In the event of the counselling call becoming disconnected, I will attempt to re-dial the client’s number to re-establish connection. If it is not possible to re-establish connection I will send an email confirming my attempt to do so and to invite the client to schedule another call.

 

The Counselling Call (Video)

It is the client’s responsibility to ensure their device’s camera, microphone and speakers are turned on and working prior to the call.

I will send an email with an invitation to join a Zoom meeting on the evening before the counselling call is due to take place. It is the client’s responsibility to follow the link and instructions in order to be ready to start the meeting at the booked time.

If a client is unable to start the counselling call at the agreed time the virtual meeting room on Zoom will be kept open and available for the whole 50 minutes and can be entered at any time up until the scheduled end of the counselling call.

In the event of a loss of connection a client is required to go back to the email invitation and use the link to re-enter the meeting. In the event of this failing I will revert to the back-up option of calling on the telephone number as provided when booking.

If it is not possible to re-establish connection I will send an email confirming my attempt to do so and to invite the client to schedule another call.

 

Cancellations

Clients are required to give 24 hours notice when cancelling a counselling call. Calls that are either missed or cancelled with less than 24 hours notice will result in the full fee being incurred.

Notice for cancelling a counselling call needs to be communicated via email or through the contact section on my website.

Alternatively, a counselling call can be cancelled and / or re-scheduled directly via a link on the confirmation email as received when booking a call.

In the event of me having to cancel a call I will contact the client by email as soon as it is possible to do so. Counselling calls cancelled by me will result in either a re-scheduled session or a full refund.

 

Confidentiality

Keeping the counselling calls confidential is an ethical requirement. This implies that all the information a client discloses during a counselling call is not shared with any third party, unless consent by the client is given to do so.

There are exceptions to confidentiality, mainly to do with risk of harm to oneself and / or to others. For confidentiality to be breached in such circumstances the risk of harm would need to be severe and immediate. Otherwise, a collaborative approach is taken to manage and reduce risk.

Working as a counsellor implies I am a mandated person who has a statutory obligation to ensure the safeguarding and protection of children according to the Children First Act of 2015. If I have concerns about the safety or welfare of a child it is a legal requirement for me to inform and make a report to the Child and Family Agency. Before going ahead I would aim to discuss this with a client, unless it is deemed to not be in the interests of the child, and could potentially be putting him or her at further risk.

Confidentiality may also be breached if information is disclosed by a client which indicates either a criminal or terrorist act is likely to occur.

I am legally bound to provide information regarding a client to the gardai, the police, or a court of law, according to their legal powers to request such information.

Wherever it is appropriate to do so, a client will be informed when a breach of confidentiality is to occur.

Prior to breaching confidentiality, supervisory consultation will be sought, whenever it is possible to do so.

Ongoing clinical supervision is a requirement according to my professional body. No personally identifiable information is shared during supervision and clients are discussed anonymously.

 

Keeping Records

It is a requirement by my professional body to keep a record of the counselling call (clinical notes) and a record of all contact with a client.

These records are not shared with any third-party and are stored securely (password-protected computer and external hard drive kept in a locked place).

Records will be deleted after 6 years has lapsed since the last contact.

 

Privacy and Security

The way in which your personal information is protected and kept secure is covered in my Privacy Policy. This also includes details of your rights concerning your personal information.

 

Website Security

The website is hosted by a secure provider using an SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) Certificate. Any deliberate attempt to damage or disable the functioning of the website will be regarded as a criminal act and will be reported to the appropriate authorities.

 

Disclaimer

All website content and intellectual property is subject to copyright and may not be reproduced in any form without permission from the author.

The views, thoughts and opinions expressed in this website belong solely to the author, and not to any other individual, group or organisation.

No warranties or representations are provided of any kind, expressed or implied, regarding the accuracy, validity, reliability or completeness of information on the website.

No responsibility for the use of third-party websites is taken, or warranties offered regarding the accuracy and reliability of information offered by third-party websites linked to the website.

Lamenta Online Bereavement Counselling is a counselling support service and does not provide medical opinions, assessments or diagnosis. If this is required then it should be obtained from a doctor through a local surgery or a hospital.

Lamenta Online Bereavement Counselling is not a crisis intervention service. If somebody is at imminent risk of injury or death then emergency services should be contacted for immediate response and intervention.

Lamenta Online Bereavement Counselling excludes any liability for any direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, or any other type of loss or damage incurred in connection with the use of the service and its website. By using the service and its website, you are agreeing to this limitation of liability, and thereby release and indemnify Lamenta Online Bereavement Counselling from all claims and law suits.