Accessing our Service? What you need to know about Confidentiality and Consent
Taranaki Retreat works hand-in-hand with other support services in helping people through challenging times. This works most effectively when we can communicate with other supports that you may be involved with, so that we are working well alongside others and advocating for our Guests – understanding where our role fits in, and where the gaps are.
When we’re building up a picture of how we might best support you, we often benefit from a conversation with your GP – for example – so that the Retreat’s involvement is known and understood by your doctor, and we can better tailor our support. Additionally, it is often really helpful to liaise with others in your whānau who know you well. We won’t do this without your consent to do so. If you do consent for us to be in contact with other agencies, you can withdraw that consent at any time.
We always respect the privacy and confidentiality of those being helped by our service. There will always be more than one person involved in providing support, as our service operates from a concept of shared decision-making (including you!). This means that text messages, for example, in both directions, will normally be read by more than one person. Some of our email addresses are shared by members of our team – for example: care, team, waimanako, support.
Those involved in supporting a person (we call those in our support ‘Guests’) will share notes and reflect together on support plans and suggestions. Everyone on our team is bound by our Confidentiality Policy (please ask if you would like to see a copy of this).
We need you to know the ways in which that confidentiality is limited. Our five limitations are as follows:
- Safety: Where there is a safety issue and either a Guest or others are at risk (for example, if there are concerns for the well-being of a child). If such a risk is identified or shared, team members must liaise with another team member and/or take immediate action, and potentially notify emergency services and/or whānau / next of kin
- Supervising Our Work: Our team are trained and supervised in their work. Support provided is shared and reflected on in Supervision and Debriefs
- Sharing Helpful Information: As a team, we discuss day-to-day concerns, logistics, appointments etc., to make sure that the best care is offered
- Handover: Care of a Guest may be shared with, or handed on to, another member of the Retreat Support Team (for example, in the case of illness – or when a Guest moves from Residential to Outreach Support). At that point, the incoming Support Worker will receive the notes and a handover conversation to understand the support journey thus far
- Criminal Offences: Where a criminal offence is disclosed to us, we may be required to report this to the police
At an early stage of anyone’s engagement with our service, we will check that you understand, are comfortable with, and give consent for this – and will record the consent that you give. We welcome and encourage you to raise any questions about this – after all, this is about your confidentiality, and we recognise how important this is.
Q. What if I am not happy with this approach – or do not give my consent?
A. You are entirely within your rights to do so! However, it may not be possible for us to continue to support you – as effective support depends on the consent described above – or, some aspects of our Support (for example, Residential Stays) might not be possible.
Q. Can I change my mind later on?
A. Absolutely – you can let us know you would like to change an aspect of your consent at any time – we will record this and act accordingly.
Q. What happens if you have safety concerns, and I refuse to allow consent for you to contact crisis services?
A. In such a situation, we may need to contact those services (such as the ABC Team or police, or your whānau) in any case, as safety always comes first. This would also be the case when there are concerns for the safety of a child.
Accessing our Service? What you need to know about Confidentiality and Consent
Taranaki Retreat works hand-in-hand with other support services in helping people through challenging times. This works most effectively when we can communicate with other supports that you may be involved with, so that we are working well alongside others and advocating for our Guests – understanding where our role fits in, and where the gaps are.
When we’re building up a picture of how we might best support you, we often benefit from a conversation with your GP – for example – so that the Retreat’s involvement is known and understood by your doctor, and we can better tailor our support. Additionally, it is often really helpful to liaise with others in your whānau who know you well. We won’t do this without your consent to do so. If you do consent for us to be in contact with other agencies, you can withdraw that consent at any time.
We always respect the privacy and confidentiality of those being helped by our service. There will always be more than one person involved in providing support, as our service operates from a concept of shared decision-making (including you!). This means that text messages, for example, in both directions, will normally be read by more than one person. Some of our email addresses are shared by members of our team – for example: care, team, waimanako, support.
Those involved in supporting a person (we call those in our support ‘Guests’) will share notes and reflect together on support plans and suggestions. Everyone on our team is bound by our Confidentiality Policy (please ask if you would like to see a copy of this).
We need you to know the ways in which that confidentiality is limited. Our five limitations are as follows:
- Safety: Where there is a safety issue and either a Guest or others are at risk (for example, if there are concerns for the well-being of a child). If such a risk is identified or shared, team members must liaise with another team member and/or take immediate action, and potentially notify emergency services and/or whānau / next of kin
- Supervising Our Work: Our team are trained and supervised in their work. Support provided is shared and reflected on in Supervision and Debriefs
- Sharing Helpful Information: As a team, we discuss day-to-day concerns, logistics, appointments etc., to make sure that the best care is offered
- Handover: Care of a Guest may be shared with, or handed on to, another member of the Retreat Support Team (for example, in the case of illness – or when a Guest moves from Residential to Outreach Support). At that point, the incoming Support Worker will receive the notes and a handover conversation to understand the support journey thus far
- Criminal Offences: Where a criminal offence is disclosed to us, we may be required to report this to the police
At an early stage of anyone’s engagement with our service, we will check that you understand, are comfortable with, and give consent for this – and will record the consent that you give. We welcome and encourage you to raise any questions about this – after all, this is about your confidentiality, and we recognise how important this is.
Q. What if I am not happy with this approach – or do not give my consent?
A. You are entirely within your rights to do so! However, it may not be possible for us to continue to support you – as effective support depends on the consent described above – or, some aspects of our Support (for example, Residential Stays) might not be possible.
Q. Can I change my mind later on?
A. Absolutely – you can let us know you would like to change an aspect of your consent at any time – we will record this and act accordingly.
Q. What happens if you have safety concerns, and I refuse to allow consent for you to contact crisis services?
A. In such a situation, we may need to contact those services (such as the ABC Team or police, or your whānau) in any case, as safety always comes first. This would also be the case when there are concerns for the safety of a child.
Our Website Privacy Policy
Our website address is: https://taranakiretreat.org.nz – we are Taranaki Retreat Trust: a Community Support Service
What personal data we collect via our website, and why we collect it
- If you leave a comment on our site you may opt-in to saving your name, email address and website in cookies. These are for your convenience so that you do not have to fill in your details again when you leave another comment. These cookies will last for one year.
- If you visit our login page, we will set a temporary cookie to determine if your browser accepts cookies. This cookie contains no personal data and is discarded when you close your browser.
- When you log in, we will also set up several cookies to save your login information and your screen display choices. Login cookies last for two days, and screen options cookies last for a year. If you select “Remember Me”, your login will persist for two weeks. If you log out of your account, the login cookies will be removed.
- If you edit or make a journal, an additional cookie will be saved in your browser. This cookie includes no personal data and simply indicates the ID of the journal entry you just edited. It expires after 1 day.
Embedded content from other websites
Content on this site may include embedded content (e.g. videos, images, articles, etc.). Embedded content from other websites behaves in the exact same way as if the visitor has visited the other website.
These websites may collect data about you, use cookies, embed additional third-party tracking, and monitor your interaction with that embedded content, including tracking your interaction with the embedded content if you have an account and are logged in to that website.
How long we retain data
If you write a journal entry, it is stored for you for at least three years. For users that register on our portal, we store the personal information they provide in their user profile. You can ask us to remove that information any time. Website administrators can also see and edit that information.
What rights you have over your data
If you have a Portal Login, or have left comments, you can request to receive an exported file of the data you have provided to us. You can also request that we erase any data we hold about you. This does not include any data we are obliged to keep for administrative, legal, or security purposes.
You may voluntarily choose to provide personal information, for example when you fill in a feedback form, register your interest to receive support, or subscribe to a newsletter. Unless otherwise stated, Taranaki Retreat Trust will keep that information secure, use it only to communicate with you, and will not provide it to any third parties without your prior consent.
Please contact the Taranaki Retreat Trust Privacy Officer if you have any concern about use of your personal information:
Privacy Officer, Taranaki Retreat Trust, 33 Devon Street West, New Plymouth, 4310
Email: [email protected]
Our Website Privacy Policy
Our website address is: https://taranakiretreat.org.nz – we are Taranaki Retreat Trust: a Community Support Service
What personal data we collect via our website, and why we collect it
- If you leave a comment on our site you may opt-in to saving your name, email address and website in cookies. These are for your convenience so that you do not have to fill in your details again when you leave another comment. These cookies will last for one year.
- If you visit our login page, we will set a temporary cookie to determine if your browser accepts cookies. This cookie contains no personal data and is discarded when you close your browser.
- When you log in, we will also set up several cookies to save your login information and your screen display choices. Login cookies last for two days, and screen options cookies last for a year. If you select “Remember Me”, your login will persist for two weeks. If you log out of your account, the login cookies will be removed.
- If you edit or make a journal, an additional cookie will be saved in your browser. This cookie includes no personal data and simply indicates the ID of the journal entry you just edited. It expires after 1 day.
Embedded content from other websites
Content on this site may include embedded content (e.g. videos, images, articles, etc.). Embedded content from other websites behaves in the exact same way as if the visitor has visited the other website.
These websites may collect data about you, use cookies, embed additional third-party tracking, and monitor your interaction with that embedded content, including tracking your interaction with the embedded content if you have an account and are logged in to that website.
How long we retain data
If you write a journal entry, it is stored for you for at least three years. For users that register on our portal, we store the personal information they provide in their user profile. You can ask us to remove that information any time. Website administrators can also see and edit that information.
What rights you have over your data
If you have a Portal Login, or have left comments, you can request to receive an exported file of the data you have provided to us. You can also request that we erase any data we hold about you. This does not include any data we are obliged to keep for administrative, legal, or security purposes.
You may voluntarily choose to provide personal information, for example when you fill in a feedback form, register your interest to receive support, or subscribe to a newsletter. Unless otherwise stated, Taranaki Retreat Trust will keep that information secure, use it only to communicate with you, and will not provide it to any third parties without your prior consent.
Please contact the Taranaki Retreat Trust Privacy Officer if you have any concern about use of your personal information:
Privacy Officer, Taranaki Retreat Trust, 33 Devon Street West, New Plymouth, 4310
Email: [email protected]