Terms and conditions of therapy at Focus Therapy

You are agreeing to coming to see me, Kay Broderick, at Focus Therapy, based in Shenfield, Essex, for the purpose of hypnotherapy.

• I do not have a waiting room, so please try to arrive for your appointment on time. If you are a little early, please wait until your allocated time before knocking. As you can appreciate, this ensures that other clients leave the building prior to your arrival which is far more comfortable for everyone.
• Sessions are 60 minutes long, once a week or every other week unless agreed and I adhere to this time scale because otherwise other clients’ sessions can be disrupted. 
• I will require full payment of sessions on the day of the session, this can be made in cash, bank transfer, or via credit card using a SumUp card terminal in the clinic. 
• If you wish to change your appointment date or time, you are required to do so via telephone or text, within 24 hours of the original planned appointment. Failure to do so will result in your missed session being charged in full. 
• There are periods of time when I take annual leave, but you will be informed of any changes to your schedule in advance. 
• I am unavailable to take calls between appointments, but you are welcome to call and leave a message on my answer phone, drop me an email or a text if you need to change or cancel appointments and I will get back to you promptly. 
• Your sessions with me will be confidential as per the Data Protection Act guidelines, and outlined on ico.org.uk. However, as a Member of The Association for Professional Hypnosis and Psychotherapy, I am required to have regular supervision and I may need to discuss our work with my supervisor. This is rare, but if this is the case, I will not disclose your name or anything that would enable you to be identified, to the supervisor.  
• I will not confer with your doctor or any other person of a professional standing without your knowledge and written permission. When agreement is made between you and myself regarding the consensual sharing of information, it will only ever be non-specific information shared, such as name/address/birthdate or a treatment plan outline. 
• However if there is convincing evidence that you intend to harm yourself or others, I will need to break confidentiality by informing your doctor, or someone in authority, but again this would only take place with your prior knowledge. 
• I will keep brief notes after a session, which will be securely stored, on my personal computer. Nobody else will have access to those notes - GDPR regulations.  
• I have password protection and encryption on all devices that use electronic data, such as computer/phone/tablet. No one has access to those devices but me, so if we converse via any of those methods in the way of email or text, you can be assured of confidentiality.
• I only keep your details for as long as is necessary. Your client file, which contains brief notes about the work we do together, is held for a period of time (7 years) as set out by my insurer & as per GDPR regulations.
• On rare occasions, it may be that our initial work together may highlight the need for me to recommend you for referral to another hypnotherapist or counselling/psychotherapist or health care practitioner for some form of specialist therapy or medical care. In this instance your options will be explained to you fully.
• You are  welcome to request a copy of your patient file, or can request that I delete your information, but you are required to do this in writing either via email or post.
• Above all, these guidelines are there for the benefit of all of my clients. It helps to contain the sessions and ensures that you get the very best out of your sessions with me.

As a professional, qualified, and accredited practitioner of hypnosis, Kay Broderick takes her responsibility to her clients very seriously and works towards helping clients in the best way she can. However, the advice on this website is for information purposes only. It is not designed to diagnose, treat or substitute advice or treatment from a Medical professional, a GP or Consultant. Kay Broderick is a complimentary therapist, meaning that she works alongside the work of GP's and medically trained individuals, not in replacement of. 

Focus Therapy does not guarantee the effectiveness of treatment in any individual cases. As with everything in life there really can be no guarantees that any courses of action will solve your issues. Results may vary. This is because Kay is not in control of the client and it is important to understand that hypnotherapy or psychotherapy services are not a 'magic pill'.

Occasionally Kay may require clients to consult with their GP before gaining consenting to undertake hypnotherapy. Although hypnosis can help alleviate symptoms, it is highly important that you first consult with your GP as we do not want to ‘mask’ symptoms that could be signalling the need for urgent medical attention.

Any therapy requires the client be committed to change and be prepared to make the effort to make that change a reality in their own lives. If Kay recommends listening to CD's or recordings between sessions, then, in order for the treatment to be most effective, the client should follow this advice.

Hypnotherapy is not recommended for anybody experiencing certain mental disorders or psychiatric conditions. Therefore Kay Broderick upholds the right to refuse to take a client into hypnosis if she feels it will be detrimental to their overall well being. In rare situations like these, Kay will recommend the client go to their GP for help and advice instead.

Kay can provide estimations regarding the session amount needed for various conditions or issues, but these act only as guidelines. Together Kay & her client will jointly review progress from time to time.

Protecting your privacy is very important to Kay at Focus Therapy. Your confidentiality is paramount. All of the notes taken during sessions are locked away and are not accessible to anyone but Kay. 

When browsing the website, you may do so anonymously without providing any personal information. However, there are cases where Kay will ask you for personal data. 

Focus Therapy does not rent, sell or otherwise distribute your personal information disclosed. We use all reasonable efforts to safeguard the confidentiality of your information. 

Focus Therapy/Kay Broderick will have no liability for disclosure of any information obtained due to errors in transmission or the unauthorised acts of third parties.