— Laying out the Details

FAQs & Policy

Frequently Asked Questions

Book a free 20 minute Initial Discovery Session.

The initial discovery session will typically allow us to explore the following:

  • Your expectations and goals to therapy
  • My Philosophy and approach to therapy
  • Fit and style to achieve your goals

When ready to start a rhythm to therapy, I will ask you to complete a full intake form prior to the first session. The first few sessions are important to establish understanding and trust between you and I, therefore, it is recommended that we book 2-3 weekly/bi-weekly sessions in the beginning.

Know Me Well does not provide emergency services. If you have a medical emergency, please call a physician or qualified healthcare provider, visit your nearest hospital emergency department or dial 911 immediately. Always seek the advice of a physician or other qualified health care provider practicing in your jurisdiction concerning any questions you may have regarding your medical condition. If you are risk of self-harm, please call or text 988.

Here are some crisis lines that you may contact as well:

CAMH Psychiatric Emergency Department

Available 24/7; no referral needed

Address: CAMH Crisis & Critical Care Building, 1051 Queen St W

Phone: 416-536-8501

Distress Centres of Greater Toronto (General Helpline)

English – Available 24/7

Phone: 416-408-4357 (Phone)

English – Available every day, 4 PM – 12 AM

Text: 45645

Distress Centres of Greater Toronto (Multilingual Distress Lines)

English, Cantonese, Mandarin, Portuguese, Spanish, Hindi, Punjabi, Urgu – Available Mon-Fri, 10 AM – 10 PM

Brampton & Mississauga: 905-459-7777

Caledon: 1-877-298-5444

TTY: 905-278-4890

Youth Helpline (Kids Help Phone)

English, French, Arabic – Available 24/7

Phone: 1-800-668-6868

Text: 686868 (text “CONNECT”)

Facebook Messenger: KidsHelpPhone.ca/Messenger

Gerstein Crisis Centre (Adults 16+)

English, Other (translation services available) – Available 24/7

Phone: 416-929-5200

Misuse of services

Violence or abuse toward the Healthcare Practitioner will not be tolerated. Know Me Well retains sole discretion to refuse or discontinue the provision of psychotherapy services to any user at any time, including for actual or potential misuse of the services by a user.

No healthcare provider relationship is established until the completion of the first psychotherapy session at Know Me Well

The presentation of information on the Website and your use of Know Me Well’s Services does not establish a health care provider relationship between you and Know Me Well until mutual agreement into the first psychotherapy session completion.

You, the client, understand that by attending and participating in sessions, you are giving consent for psychotherapy services. You understand that you are free to ask questions about treatment at any time throughout the treatment process. You understand that you can withdraw from treatment at any time, and that if you withdraw, another appropriate alternative or referral may be provided if you wish to continue psychotherapy with another provider.

If you are a current client and you will be out the province of Ontario to another location, you will need to notify Know Me Well of this change and therapy session schedules may need to change.

If you reside outside of Ontario in a province within Canada such as British Columbia, Alberta, Newfoundland and the Territories or if you reside in a country such as Hong Kong where counselling is not officially regulated by the province or country, therapy services may be received as long as you understand and accept that any legal challenges will require you to be in person within Ontario. Please contact anthea.lai@knowmewell.ca to discuss.

Note: Provincial and country regulations are not actively monitored and the information may change over time.

For counselling to be effective, I invite you to embrace an active role in the following ways:

  • To be open and honest with me and yourself
  • To self-reflect and practice strategies discussed between therapy sessions
  • To explore and experience challenging and new areas for deeper self-awareness
  • To actively participate, be curious and commit to the therapy partnership
  • To be patient as meaningful change is often a gradual process

It is good to be aware of the benefits and potential risks that come from counselling:

Benefits: Counselling sessions often significantly reduce the amount of distress someone is feeling, improve relationships, and/or resolve other specific issues.

Risks: You may experience some uncomfortable feelings as you discuss various situations and/or aspects of your life. You may also find that your relationships will be affected as you learn to build healthier boundaries and explore previously unexplored emotions, possibly causing distress and conflict in the interim. Improvements and any “cures” cannot be guaranteed for any condition due to the many variables that can affect the counselling process.

Session Payment Methods are e-transfer, credit card and debit card.

E-transfer payments are made directly to anthea.lai@knowmewell.ca for automatic deposit.

Credit card and debit card payments can be made through Jane App platform. Please review the Jane Terms of Use regarding payment by credit card. You can save your credit card information in the Jane platform so payment can be automatically handled with ease. Session fees must be paid before session services or within 24 hours after session services.

Future sessions may be booked once the cancellation fee payment is received.

Incomplete Payment

If fees remain unpaid after 3 days, you will receive an email reminder. At 10 days, we will call you to discuss possible barriers to payment and discuss financing options. At 45 days, if no financing agreement has been reached, we will consider options available at law. Failure to pay fees promptly may result in terminating the services and your user account with Know Me Well.

Most companies offer extended healthcare benefits under their insurance plan coverage for psychotherapy through a Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying). Since the COVID pandemic, many companies have significantly increased coverages related to mental health. I cannot guarantee the success of your claims as it is your responsibility to understand your insurance coverage claim details. The invoice receipt will have the necessary details to submit your claims.

Your appointment time is reserved just for you. A late cancellation or missed visit leaves a hole in the therapists’ day that could have been filled by another client.

As such, Know Me Well requires 24 hours notice for any cancellations or changes to your appointment. Clients who provide less than 24 hours notice, or miss their appointment, will be charged a cancellation fee to the card on file and invoiced 100% of the session fee booked.

Email  anthea.lai@knowmewell.ca to cancel or reschedule.

Cancellations, no-shows or rescheduling of committed sessions, in less than 24 hours from the session date & time, will result in cancellation fee payment of 100% of the session fee booked. Future sessions may be booked once the cancellation fee payment is received. Cancellation session fees must be paid within 24 hours after the cancelled session service date and abide to the above “Session Payment Method” section policy as outlined. Extraordinary circumstances for requested cancellations may be considered for cancellation fee payment to be waived as determined by the therapist as an exception.

Policy

Privacy and Limits of Confidentiality

Personal information and what is discussed with the Healthcare Practitioner will be kept in strict confidentiality in accordance with PHIPA and PHIPEDA and privacy laws in Ontario, your consent and limitations to confidentiality. You, the client, understand that all information regarding your treatment (including all verbal and/or written exchanges) will be kept confidential, except in the following circumstances.

Limits of Confidentiality

In each of these circumstances, I, your Healthcare Practitioner, will endeavor to notify me of the need to break confidentiality. The following is a list of exceptions:

    • Duty to Warn and Protect – If you disclose a plan or threat to harm yourself, the Healthcare Practitioner must attempt to notify your family and notify legal authorities, as required by the law. In addition, if you disclose a plan to threaten or harm another person, the Healthcare Practitioner is required by law to warn the possible victim and notify legal authorities.
    • Abuse of Children and Vulnerable Adults – If you disclose, or it is suspected, that there is apparent or suspected abuse or harmful neglect of children or other vulnerable populations (i.e., the elderly, disabled/incompetent), the Healthcare Practitioner must report this information to the appropriate agency and/or legal authorities, as required by law.
    • Prenatal Exposure to Controlled Substances – The Healthcare Practitioner must report any admitted prenatal exposure to controlled or other substances that could be harmful to the mother or the child.
    • Minors/Guardianship – Parents or legal guardians of non-emancipated minor patients have the right to access the patients’ records.
  • Court Subpoena and Auditing – If my records are subpoenaed by a court of law or records are audited by the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario as part of their Quality Assurance procedures.

The type of information requested may include (but are not limited to) the following: types of service, dates/times of service, diagnosis, treatment plans, descriptions of impairment, progress of therapy, case notes, summaries, referrals, and investigation results.

You, the client, understand that in order to offer services that have your best interest, I will seek clinical supervision and may discuss information related to your cases with other therapists for consultation and advice in a manner that will not disclose your personal information.

Communication by email or out-of-session encounters

You, the client, understand that in order to maintain my confidentiality, my Healthcare Practitioner will not initiate contact with me in any private or public setting outside of treatment. Rather, I can initiate contact outside of therapy based on my level of comfort and understand that confidentiality and privacy will be limited at the client’s consent and disclosure. I understand that it may be advisable not to initiate contact in the presence of others in order to maintain my confidentiality.

Policy

Assumptions of Risk using Third Party Online Platforms

Relating to record-keeping, email, videoconferencing, text messaging, website or social media electronic communication types on Third-Party Platforms like Jane App or Zoom, there will be uncontrollable risks that Know Me Well cannot guarantee against the security and confidentiality of the electronic communications. Please review Jane App’s terms of use and privacy policy.

Despite reasonable efforts to protect the privacy and security of electronic communication, it is not possible to completely secure the information. Electronic communications can introduce malware into a computer system and potentially damage or disrupt the computer, networks, and security settings. Electronic communications can be forwarded, intercepted, circulated, stored, or even changed without the knowledge or permission of Know Me Well or the client.

Any social media accounts related to Know Me Well are for educational and marketing purposes only and do not substitute for treatment, diagnosis, or consultation with a licensed mental health professional or medical practitioner. No therapeutic relationship is formed by following me on social media accounts or communicating with me via social media platforms. Please be aware that following, commenting, and engaging with this platform is not secure and safeguarded by any means of confidentiality. If you are a current or past client, you are breaking your confidentiality by doing so. I am unable to reply to every direct message or provide individual recommendations online. If you are in a crisis, please contact 911 or visit your nearest crisis centre.​

If you have any questions regarding the services, treatments, or therapeutic tools that I discuss or recommend on social media or if you have any mental health concerns, please discuss those issues with your regulated mental health professional or health care practitioner. I assume no liability for any diagnosis, treatment, decision made, actions taken, or purchase made in reliance upon information contained on any of my social media platforms.

​If you are a client, I will not follow your personal account back for reasons related to confidentiality. I will also not accept any follow requests to any of my personal social media accounts for the same reasons and to ensure professional boundaries where possible. If there are things online that you would like to share with me, please bring them to session. I ask that you not use messaging on social media to contact me since it is not promised to be secure. I also can’t guarantee that I can respond in a timely manner, unless communication is made via email or phone call, as social media messaging is not checked often. If you have any questions about this, please feel free to discuss these in our therapy session.

Policy

Consent for the Collection, Use and Disclosure of Personal Health Information

Implied consent (Disclosures to other health care providers for health care purposes)
Client information may also be released to a client’s other health care providers for health care purposes (within the “circle of care”) without the express written or verbal consent of the client as long as it is reasonable in the circumstances to believe that the client wants the information shared with the other health care providers. No client information will be released to other health care providers if a client has stated he/she does not want the information shared (for instance, by way of the placement of a “lockbox” on his/her health records).
A client’s request for treatment constitutes implied consent to use and disclose his/her personal health information for health care purposes, unless the client expressly instructs otherwise.

No Consent
There are certain activities for which consent is not required to use or disclose personal health information. These activities are permitted or required by law. For example, we do not need consent from clients to (this is not an exhaustive list):

  • Plan, administer and manage internal operations, programs and services
  • Engage in quality improvement, error management, and risk management activities
  • Participate in the analysis, administration and management of services and the health care system
  • Engage in research (subject to certain rules)
  • Compile statistics for internal or mandatory external reporting
  • Respond to legal proceedings
  • Comply with mandatory reporting obligations

Withholding or Withdrawal of Consent
If consent is sought, a client may choose not to give consent (“withholding consent”). If consent is given, a client may withdraw consent at any time, but the withdrawal cannot be retroactive. The withdrawal may also be subject to legal or contractual restrictions and reasonable notice.

Lockbox
PHIPA gives clients the opportunity to restrict access to any personal health information or their entire health record by their health care providers or by external health care providers. Although the term “lockbox” is not found in PHIPA, lockbox is commonly used to refer to a client’s ability to withdraw or withhold consent for the use or disclosure of their personal health information, but only for health care purposes. A lockbox does not affect the other uses and disclosures under PHIPA that are permitted or required, without consent, including the authority for a Health Information Custodian at Know Me Well to disclose personal health information to reduce or eliminate a significant risk of serious bodily harm.

Express consent
Should a client wish his/her lawyer, insurance company, family, employer, landlord or other third party individuals or agencies (non-health care providers) to have access to his/her health record, the client must provide verbal or written consent to this effect. Access and correction requests are discussed further below.

Know Me Well will respond to a client’s request for access within reasonable timelines and costs to the client, as governed by law. Know Me Well will take reasonable steps to ensure that the requested information is made available in a format that is understandable.
Clients who successfully demonstrate the inaccuracy or incompleteness of their personal health information may request that Know Me Well amend their information. In some cases, instead of making a correction, clients may ask to append a statement of disagreement to their file.

Please Note: In certain situations, Know Me Well may not be able to provide access to all of the personal health information Know Me Well hold about a client, such as where the access could reasonably be expected to result in a risk of serious harm or the information is subject to legal privilege.

Client Access to Information

With limited exceptions, Know Me Well are required by law to give clients who make requests in writing access to their records of personal health information within 30 days (subject to a time extension of up to an additional 30 days if necessary and with notice to the person making the request).

  • The original of the written request for access will be placed with the client’s records and must contain the following:
    • A description of what information is requested
    • Information sufficient to show that the person making the request for access is the client or other authorized person
    • The signature of the client or other authorized person and a witness to the signature
    • The date the written request was signed
  • A notation shall be made in the record (e.g. a handwritten note) stating:
    • What information or records were disclosed
    • When the information or records were disclosed
    • By whom the information or records were disclosed

Denying Client Access to Health Records

In certain situations, Know Me Well may refuse a client’s request for access to all or part of a health record. Exceptions to the right of access requirement must be in accordance with law and professional standards. Reasons to deny access to a health record (or part of a health record) may include:

  • The information is subject to a legal privilege that restricts disclosure to the individual
  • The information was collected or created primarily in anticipation of or for use in a proceeding (and that proceeding and any appeals have not been concluded)
  • The information was collected or created in the course of an inspection, investigation or similar procedure authorized by law or undertaken for the purpose of the detection, monitoring or prevention of a person’s receiving or attempting to receive a benefit to which the person is not entitled under law (and the inspection or investigation have not been concluded)
  • If granting access could reasonably be expected to:
    • Result in a risk of serious harm to the treatment or recovery of the individual or a risk of serious bodily harm to the individual or another person
    • Lead to the identification of a person who was required by law to provide information in the record
    • Lead to the identification of a person who provided information explicitly or implicitly in confidence (if it is appropriate to keep that source confidential)

Clients must be told if they are being denied access to their own health records. In such cases, clients have a right to complain to the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario, and must be told of this right and how to reach the Commissioner’s office.

Any person may ask questions or challenge compliance with above policy or with PHIPA by contacting the Health Information Custodian that provided care to you.

If you have complaints or inquiries about the policies and practices relating to the handling of personal health information, Know Me Well will investigate all complaints. If a complaint is found to be justified, appropriate measures will be taken.

The Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario oversees compliance with privacy rules and PHIPA. Any individual can make an inquiry or complaint directly to the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario by writing to or calling:

          2 Bloor Street East, Suite 1400
          Toronto, Ontario M4W 1A8 Canada
          Phone: 1 (800) 387-0073 (or (416) 326-3333 in Toronto)
          Fax: 416-325-9195
          www.ipc.on.ca

Policy

Accuracy of Personal Health Information

Reasonable steps are taken to ensure that information we hold is as accurate, complete, and up to date as is necessary to minimize the possibility that inappropriate information may be used to make a decision about a client.

There is an obligation to correct personal health information if it is inaccurate or incomplete for the purposes it is to be used or disclosed.

Clients may request that their health information be corrected if it is inaccurate or incomplete. Such requests must be made in writing and must explain what information is to be corrected and why.

Know Me Well will respond to requests for correction within 30 days (or seek an extension of up to an additional 30 days but only if we have let the client know, in writing). The record will not be corrected if the record consists of a professional opinion which was made in good faith. If Know Me Well chooses not to correct a record, the client must be informed in writing. The client will have the choice to submit a statement of disagreement, which will be scanned onto the health record and released any time the information that was asked to be corrected is released. In these cases, clients have a right to complain to the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario.

Safeguards for the personal health information include physical safeguards and technological safeguards (such as the use of passwords, encryption, and audits). Know Me Well take steps to ensure that the personal health information we hold is protected against theft, loss and unauthorized use or disclosure.

Know Me Well require anyone who collects, uses or discloses personal health information on our behalf to be aware of the importance of maintaining the confidentiality of personal health information. This is done through the signing of confidentiality agreements, privacy training, and contractual means.

Policy

Safeguards of Personal Health Information

For the safeguarding of personal health information during the provision of virtual care, or communication via with users via e-mail, we take additional steps as follows:

  • use only visual conferencing software and e-mail provided by you, the client;
  • use firewalls and protections against software threats;
  • regularly update our Website with the latest security and anti-virus software
  • keep portable devices containing personal health information in a secure location, such as a locked drawer or cabinet, when they are unattended
  • use passwords, lock screens and physical barriers to keep personal health information secure
  • ensure there are no unauthorized persons attending or within hearing or viewing distance during the provision of Client Services by videoconference


Care is used in the secure disposal or destruction of personal health information, to prevent unauthorized parties from gaining access to the information.

Privacy breach protocols are in place in case of theft, loss or unauthorized access to client personal health information.  If Know Me Well becomes aware of a breach, they will work collaboratively to minimize the effects of the breach and prevent further breaches using the following process:

  1. Notification of unauthorized access by Know Me Well to the other;
  2. Containment and minimization of the breach;
  3. Assessment of the risk of access to the personal health information
  4. Notification to the client if the risk of access to the client personal health information is necessary;
  5. Investigation of the circumstances that lead to the breach;
  6. Implementation of improved processes to prevent future breaches of similar type;
  7. Updated privacy training, as needed;
  8. Reporting to the regulator, as required by law.
Policy

Record Retention

During the Intake Discovery Session, the therapeutic relationship is not yet established. All notes and records will be discarded within 90 days after the Intake Discovery Session if you decide not to proceed ahead with therapy.

However, once you decide you would like to start therapy and have attended the first psychotherapy session, the records starting from the Intake Discovery Session will become part of the official health records and will follow the Client Record Retention policy.

Information shared by individuals during the Intake Discovery Session is subject to the Privacy and Confidentiality policies.

Client Record Retention

Health records are retained as required by law and professional regulations and to fulfill the purposes for which personal health information is collected of clients.

For example, the standards of health regulatory Colleges and associations apply; e.g. the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario (CRPO) advises their members to retain appointment records for at least 5 years, and financial records for at least 5 years from the last interaction with the client or until the client’s 18th birthday, whichever is later.  Record retention periods may differ across Canada; our Therapists retain their records in accordance with applicable law. There may be reasons to keep records for longer than this minimum period.

Personal health information that is no longer required to be retained by law, or to fulfill the identified purposes is securely destroyed, erased, or made anonymous.