Privacy policy
In short: what you share in therapy stays private. Your information is used to provide your care, bill for sessions and meet professional and legal obligations. It is stored in Canada and is not sold or used for advertising. You can see and correct your record, and you can ask questions or raise concerns at any time.
1. Who we are
Gilia Counselling & Therapy is the private practice of Eliana Gil, MSW, RSW, a Registered Social Worker with the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers (OCSWSSW).
Under Ontario's Personal Health Information Protection Act, 2004 (PHIPA), Eliana Gil is the health information custodian for the practice and is responsible for the personal health information it holds. She also acts as the practice's privacy contact.
2. What information we collect
- Contact details: name, phone number, email and address.
- Background and health information: what brings you to therapy, relevant history, and information you choose to share in intake forms and sessions.
- Session records: appointment dates, clinical notes and treatment plans, as required by professional standards.
- Billing information: fees, payments and receipts. Card details are handled by the payment processor and are not stored by the practice.
- For children and teens: information from parents or guardians, where they are involved in care.
We collect only what is needed to provide care. Most information comes directly from you.
3. How we use your information
- To provide, plan and review your therapy.
- To schedule appointments and send reminders.
- To issue invoices and receipts for insurance reimbursement.
- To meet legal and professional obligations, including record-keeping standards.
- For clinical consultation with another qualified professional, without identifying you, where it helps your care.
Your information is never sold, rented or used for marketing.
4. When we share information
We share your personal health information only with your consent, or where the law requires or permits it. For example, with your written consent we may communicate with your doctor, another provider, or your insurer. You can withdraw consent at any time, though this does not undo sharing that has already happened.
For couples and family sessions, we will discuss at the start how information shared individually is handled.
5. Limits of confidentiality
There are situations where the law requires or permits disclosure without consent, including:
- A significant risk of serious harm to you or someone else.
- A reasonable suspicion that a child is, or may be, in need of protection, which must be reported to a children's aid society.
- A court order or subpoena.
- Reports required by the OCSWSSW or other legal obligations, such as suspected abuse of a patient by a regulated health professional.
Where possible and appropriate, we will discuss this with you first. These limits are reviewed with you in your first session.
6. How we protect your information
- Any paper records are stored in a locked cabinet.
- Online sessions use a secure video platform. Please join from a private space.
- Access to your record is limited to Eliana Gil and, when required, to service providers bound by confidentiality.
If a privacy breach occurs, we will notify you and, where required, the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario.
7. Service providers
The practice uses a small number of trusted providers to run its services. Each one is limited to what is needed to provide that service.
- Zoom (for Healthcare Providers): video sessions only. Zoom stores session data in Canada under an agreement that meets PHIPA requirements.
- Payment processing: card payments are handled by a secure third-party payment processor. Card details are not stored by the practice.
- Psychology Today: if you contact the practice through its directory, that message is subject to Psychology Today's own privacy policy.
8. This website
This website does not use advertising trackers, social media pixels or analytics cookies, and it does not collect health information. Like most websites, the hosting service may keep basic technical logs (such as IP address and browser type) for security purposes.
Booking links on this website take you to Psychology Today, which has its own privacy policy.
9. Email, text and phone
Regular email and text messages are not fully secure. We use them only for scheduling and brief administrative messages, unless you agree otherwise. Please don't send detailed personal or clinical information by email or text. For anything sensitive, call or raise it in session.
This practice cannot respond to emergencies. If you are in crisis, call 911 or call or text 9-8-8.
10. How long we keep records
Records are kept for at least seven years after the last entry in the record, or, for clients who were under 18, at least seven years after their 18th birthday, in line with OCSWSSW standards. After that, they are securely destroyed.
11. Your rights
- Access: you can ask to see or receive a copy of your record. We will respond within 30 days, as PHIPA requires. A reasonable fee may apply for copies.
- Correction: you can ask us to correct information you believe is inaccurate or incomplete.
- Consent: you can withdraw consent to sharing at any time.
- Concerns: you can ask questions or make a complaint about how your information is handled.
12. Contact and complaints
Eliana Gil, MSW, RSW, Privacy Contact
Gilia Counselling & Therapy
7191 Yonge St, Suite 503, Thornhill, ON L3T 0C4
Phone: (289) 217-9795
Email: eliana.therapist@gmail.com
If your concern is not resolved, you can contact the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario (ipc.on.ca, 1-800-387-0073), or the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers (ocswssw.org).