Turn About, Inc. is required by law to maintain the privacy of protected health information, and must inform you of our privacy practices and legal duties. This notice describes how mental health information about you may be disclosed and how you can get access to this information. Please review it carefully.

UNDERSTANDING YOUR TURN ABOUT CLIENT RECORD

Each time you visit a Turn About mental health provider (counselor), a record of your visit is made. Typically this record contains your presenting problems, bio/psychosocial history, evaluations with their scoring and interpretation completed and signed consent forms, school/ legal/ activity information pertinent to treatment, diagnosis, plan for treatment, and a record of any progress. This information, often referred to as your health record, serves as a basis for planning your treatment and services. It is a legal document describing the treatment you received and providing the means of communication among the necessary professionals who contribute to your care. Also, it provides the means by which you, or a third party payer, can verify that services billed were actually provided. Understanding what is in your record and how your health information is used helps you to ensure its accuracy, better understand who, what, when, where and why others may have access to your health information and make informed decisions when authorizing disclosure to others.

YOUR MENTAL HEALTH INFORMATION RIGHTS

Although your mental health record is the physical property of Turn About, the information, with some clearly defined restrictions, belongs to you. You have the right to:

• Obtain a paper copy of the NOTICE OF PRIVACY PRACTICES upon request.
• Inspect a copy of your mental health record with the exception of psychotherapy notes and actual testing instruments; and a copy of information compiled in reasonable anticipation of use in a civil, criminal, or administrative action or proceeding. (Copies will cost ten cents per page.)
• Request different ways to communicate with you, i.e., refrain from leaving messages on voice mail regarding appointment time.
• Request an amendment to your health record. Requests must be in writing and will be reviewed by Turn About, Inc. You must submit sufficient information to support your request.
• Request a restriction of certain uses and disclosures of your information.

TURN ABOUT, INC. RESPONSIBILITIES

Turn About, Inc. is required to maintain the privacy of your health information and provide you with a notice as to our legal duties and privacy practices with respect to information we collect and maintain about you. We must accommodate reasonable requests you may have to communicate health information by alternative means or at alternative locations.

It is Turn About's responsibility to safeguard your information and release it with your permission for treatment, payment or healthcare. Should you refuse the release of information, it is our right to refuse services.

Except as described in this notice, Turn About, Inc. may not make any use of disclosure of information from your record unless you give your written authorization. You may revoke an authorization in writing at any time, but this will not affect any use or disclosure made by Turn About, Inc. before the revocation.

WITH YOUR WRITTEN AUTHORIZATION, TURN ABOUT MAY RELEASE INFORMATION FOR THE FOLLOWING REASONS:

• FOR TREATMENT: Turn About may use information in your record to provide treatment to you. We may disclose information in your record to help you get healthcare services from another provider, a hospital, etc. For example, upon making a referral to a psychiatrist, we may disclose information to that individual.
• FOR PAYMENT: Turn About may use or disclose information from your record to obtain payment for the services you receive. For example, we may submit your diagnosis with a health insurance claim in order to demonstrate to the insurer that the services should be covered.
• FOR HEALTHCARE OPERATIONS: Turn About may use or disclose information from your record to allow healthcare operations. These operations include activities such as reviewing records to see how care can be improved, contacting you with information about treatment alternatives, and coordinating care with other providers.

Any communication between any person licensed or certified under Florida Statute 491, including those he/she supervises and his or her client shall be confidential. This privilege shall be waived under the following circumstances:

AS REQUIRED BY LAW: Turn About, Inc. will disclose mental health information as required to do so by federal, state, or local law. We must respond if served with a valid subpoena. Potential disclosure of mental health information may include, but is not limited to the following entities:

• THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES: If you or others provide information to Turn About, Inc. regarding actual or suspected child or elder abuse, we are required by law to report this information to the Florida Abuse Hotline.
• LAW ENFORCEMENT: When there is clear and immediate probability of physical harm to the client, other individuals, or to society, we must notify the potential victim, family member, law enforcement, or other appropriate authorities.

Every reasonable effort will be undertaken to resolve these issues therapeutically and to notify the client before such a compromise of the client-therapist relationship is made.

• DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES: Turn About, Inc. must disclose information requested to prove that we are complying with federal regulations that safeguard your mental health information.

Turn About, Inc. provides services without regard to race, color, sex, creed, religion, national origin or handicapping conditions.
Copyright 2018 Turn About, Inc. ©