We
Value Your Privacy
Swinburne
University of Technology (
Swinburne) through the National eTherapy
Centre (
NeTC)
acknowledges and respects the privacy of
individuals. We advise that much of the information that you may have provided,
or may be asked to provide, to the NeTC is 'personal information'. As a general
rule, personal information is not released by the NeTC to other organisations,
except in response to legal requirements such as a subpoena. Information
regarding an individual will not otherwise be disclosed to a third party
without the individual's consent, except where the third party is directly
acting as our agent.
Why
Do We Collect Your Information
This
information is collected for the purposes of assisting the NeTC to provide the
services available on the NeTC and Mental Health Online website. However, the
information collected may also be used for the following purposes:
Professional Purposes
Where information is used for
professional purposes, it may only be communicated to persons legitimately
concerned with your case within the NeTC. Confidential information will only be
disclosed in these circumstances where:
- your identity is concealed;
- your consent to the disclosure is
obtained before Payment for the Therapist Assisted Program;
- the recipient of the information
has been given prior notice of their privacy obligations in relation to the
information; and,
- the recipient of the information
has given an undertaking not to disclose the information to others.
Research
Where information is used for the
purposes of research and publication strict adherence will be had to the
Policy on the Conduct of
Research. If used for research and publication purposes, your
information will not contain material capable of
identifying you. If you choose to discontinue your participation, the data you have provided thus far may be retained for research purposes.
How
Do We Collect Your Information
Registration
The
NeTC will collect information from you when you register for its services
online. The provision of this personal information is voluntary but if
information is not provided, the NeTC may be limited in the assistance
otherwise able to be provided where a fuller disclosure of personal information
is provided.
Online
Psychological Assessment (e-PASS) System
When
you undertake e-PASS, your response to the questions provided will be recorded
for assessment and results, service evaluation, as well as for reference by eTherapists if you
choose to engage in the Therapist Assisted Program.
Research
If you choose to
use the e-PASS system, the information you provide may be used to evaluate the
services provided on the Mental Health Online website. Any information collected and analysed therefore could be used when reporting back on the progress of Mental Health Online to our funding body and also for research purposes (e.g., publications). All your data will be analysed in a de-identifiable form and any reporting of the results will not be capable of identifying you.
You may be further invited to
participate in other related research, including the testing of the
reliability, validity and user experience of e-PASS. For further details
relating to validation of the e-PASS system please refer to the
Policy on the Conduct of Research.
For more information
about how we collect, store and use your information, please refer to our
Privacy Policy Statement.
Ongoing
Evaluation
Beyond the research mentioned above,
information is collected for the ongoing evaluation and improvement of the
services on the Anxiety
Online website.
Self Help Program
If
you choose to undertake the Self Help Program, you will be required to complete
a post-treatment assessment and invited to complete subsequent follow-up
assessments. Records of this correspondence will be kept by the NeTC
electronically. Again the disclosure of personal information will be at your
discretion.
Therapist
Assisted Program
If
you choose to undertake the Therapist Assisted Program you will be required to
correspond via email through the Mental Health Online website with an eTherapist and
complete a post-treatment assessment. You will also be invited to complete
subsequent follow-up e-PASS assessments. Records of this correspondence will be
kept by the NeTC both electronically and in hard copy. Again the disclosure of
personal information will be at your discretion, but the greater disclosure you
can provide, the more assistance the eTherapists can provide to you.
Exit
Survey
If you withdraw during
the Self Help or Therapist Assisted Programs, an automated questionnaire will
be sent to your nominated email account asking you about why you withdrew.
Completing this questionnaire is entirely voluntary.
Cookies
The
Mental Health Online website has extensive security features and may temporarily
install "cookies" on your computer. These cookies communicate to
secure the NeTC servers to authenticate access to the website. The cookies do
not collect any information about you, or how you are using your computer and
only serve to ensure that you have identified yourself with the correct
username and password.
Security
Any
personal information that the NeTC collects is held with the strictest
confidence. The NeTC uses and implements professional and industry standards
for the security and protection of information collected, and this information
is securely stored and access is restricted to authorised personnel of the NeTC
only, ensuring that your personal information is protected and safeguarded. Information the NeTC collects is used only for the
purpose stipulated at the time that the information is collected. The NeTC is
required by law not to reveal, disclose, sell, distribute, rent, license, share
or pass on to any third parties, any personal information that you may have
provided to us unless we have your express consent to do so.
Exceptions
to this include:
- Where the NeTC is required to
provide information in response to Subpoenas or Warrants or other legal process.
Access
to Your Information
You
have a right of access to, and alteration of personal information concerning
yourself held by the NeTC, in accordance with Government Legislation.
Privacy
Policy
Swinburne
has a
Privacy Policy on the Swinburne Policies and Procedures
Database, which outlines the ways in which Swinburne intends to meet its
privacy commitments and details the procedures for making complaints under the
Act.