Privacy & confidentiality

Seeking counselling is personal, and protecting your privacy is part of building trust. Here’s a plain-language summary of how your information is handled.

Last updated: November 13, 2026

Your privacy

What we collect

Only what’s reasonably needed to provide counselling, run the practice and meet legal and professional obligations, such as:

• your name, date of birth, contact and emergency contact details
• relevant health and mental health history, and what you share at intake and in sessions
• goals, assessments, treatment plans and session notes
• appointment, payment and insurance information (for billing)

How it’s used

To provide your counselling, keep accurate clinical records, schedule and communicate about appointments, process payments and insurance claims you’ve authorized, coordinate with other professionals only with your consent, and meet legal and ethical responsibilities. Your information is never sold or used for unrelated marketing.

Confidentiality

What you share in counselling is confidential. Your records and session details aren’t shared with family members, employers, schools, insurers or other professionals without your consent.

The limits

Disclosure may be necessary when:

• there is a serious or imminent risk of harm to you or someone else
• child protection reporting is required
• a court order or other legal requirement applies
• another legal exception permits or requires it

Where possible and appropriate, I’ll talk with you first and share only what’s reasonably necessary.

Youth consent & confidentiality

Young people deserve a safe, respectful space to talk openly, and parents and caregivers can be important partners in their well-being. Here’s how both are balanced.

Who can consent

In Canada, a young person’s ability to consent to counselling depends on their maturity and understanding, not only their age (the mature minor principle). This is considered individually.

• If a youth can give informed consent, their consent may be enough on its own, subject to applicable law.
• If not, a legally authorized parent or guardian gives consent, and the young person is still involved and asked for their agreement wherever possible.
• In separated, divorced or complex family situations, documents confirming legal decision-making authority may be requested.

Consent is ongoing: young people are encouraged to ask questions, raise concerns and take part in decisions about their counselling.

What parents and caregivers can expect

• Parents don’t automatically get detailed information about sessions just because they booked or paid for them.
• When a youth consents independently, their privacy is respected. When a parent consents on their behalf, access to information depends on the law, the youth’s capacity and their best interests.
• Specific session details and personal disclosures aren’t routinely shared.
• With appropriate consent, parents may hear about broad goals and progress, get strategies to support coping and communication at home, and join collaborative sessions with their young person.

The same limits to confidentiality apply to youth. If something must be disclosed, I’ll explain it to the young person first where it’s safe and appropriate to do so.

Online sessions for youth

• Join from a quiet, private place, ideally on a personal device with a secure connection.
• No recording, and no one else listening in, without prior agreement.
• Let me know if privacy is interrupted during a session.

At the start of sessions I may confirm the youth’s location, contact information and emergency supports. Parents may be asked to help with technology or emergency planning, without compromising the young person’s confidentiality more than necessary.

Online sessions, records & email

Jane

All counselling is virtual. Waypoint uses Jane, a secure practice management platform, for booking, intake forms, clinical records, billing and telehealth video sessions. Reasonable administrative, physical and technical safeguards are in place, including access controls. No online system is completely risk-free, so please join from a private location, use a secure connection and keep your login details safe. Technology providers may process information in Canada or elsewhere, where local laws apply.

Email and messages

Email is used for administrative things like scheduling, reminders and billing. Regular email and text can carry privacy risks, so please don’t send sensitive clinical information that way; share it in session or through a secure platform instead. Messages aren’t monitored around the clock.

Storage and retention

Records are stored securely and kept for as long as the law and professional standards require (records for minors may be kept longer), then securely destroyed.

Your rights & questions

• Access and correction: you can ask to see your personal information and records, and to correct anything inaccurate, subject to legal exceptions.
• Consent: you’ll be asked for informed consent at the start. You can withdraw consent for some uses of your information, though this may affect the services that can be provided.
• Concerns or complaints: contact the Privacy Officer below. You can also contact your provincial or the federal privacy commissioner if you feel your concern wasn’t properly addressed.

This statement may be updated from time to time to reflect changes in law, professional standards or technology. The current version is always available here or on request.