INTELLECT CARE – Informed Consent Policy
Latest update: 10th December 2024
Table of Content
- Introduction
- For Customers With Dependent Access
- Collection and Use of Personal and Health Information
- Cross-Border Transfer of Personal Information Protection
- Obtaining Information About Your Case From Other Professionals Or Agencies
- Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI)
- Modality of Sessions
- Confidentiality of Information
- Exceptions to Confidentiality
- Intellect Escalation Protocol
- Supervision
- Fees & Cancellation
- Information Used for Other Purposes
- Access to Information
- Disclaimer for Users
- Zero Tolerance of Aggressive Behaviour towards Staff
- Release of Information (Adult)
- Group Therapy Sessions Regulations
- Domestic And International Cross-Border Jurisdiction Services
- Exhibit A: Applicable International Law & Regulations
1. Introduction
Welcome to Intellect Care (hereinafter referred to as “Intellect”, “Provider” or “Company”). This Informed Consent Policy shall apply to all Intellect’s clients for all the various services that Intellect provides. Intellect’s client shall also be referred to as you, the customer or the user. Intellect’s mission is to make mental health care accessible to everyone. Either you are a direct customer or your employer has partnered with Intellect to provide mental health services that are for your benefit. No matter what your mental health needs are, we are available to assist you with the variety of services that Intellect provides.
Please read this policy carefully. This Policy covers a variety of services that Intellect provides which include but are not limited to counselling, coaching and therapy sessions, whether in person, online or in a group session that contains important information about your care with Intellect. Acknowledging this document and/ or proceeding to use our services represents an agreement between us. If services provided by Intellect are acquired by your employer for the benefit of their employees, by utilizing Intellect’s services, you acknowledge and agree to the referral process through your employer’s well-being manager.
2. For Customers With Dependent Access
You hereby represent that you are the parent or legal guardian of the user who is a minor (hereinafter referred to as a “Dependent”) and is signed up and currently logged onto Intellect’s Application and you hereby voluntarily consent for the Dependent to take part in the counselling and or coaching sessions and agree to this Informed Consent Policy. As a parent or legal guardian, please read this Informed Consent Policy carefully.
3. Collection and Use of Personal and Health Information
Intellect collects and maintains information related to your health and well-being. All of our network partners, staff, clinicians, counsellors, and coaches (hereinafter collectively referred to as the “Providers”) are dedicated to the secure management and preservation of this information in compliance with applicable laws in Singapore, specifically the Singapore Personal Data Protection Act 2012 (PDPA). Furthermore, we will reference and incorporate the relevant Global Laws and Regulations concerning data protection and cross-border data transfer as necessary.
Intellect shall collect your personal and health information when you first reach out to book an appointment with Provider(s), and during the period of your care with Intellect. This information enables us to:
- Schedule necessary appointments
- Alter appointments in case of staff unavailability
- Confirm your eligibility for our services through external agencies/clinics/services
- Assess issues related to your presenting concerns, and
- Maintain or improve your psychological health and well-being.
4. Cross-Border Transfer of Personal Information Protection
Intellect Company Pte. Ltd (“Intellect”) and its subsidiaries, to the best of their abilities, shall process personal information by a foreign recipient or informant that is a client, employee, affiliate, partner or subsidiary company of Intellect and shall adhere to the global standards of personal information protection as stipulated by the relevant global laws and regulations. Personal information shall be deemed to be any individual’s identifiable information. Intellect’s customers are hereby informed that by being a client/ customer of Intellect, they explicitly consent to their general data collection and processing of their personal information that is stored at Intellect Company Pte. Ltd., Company Registration No. 201918942H, a company incorporated under the laws of Singapore, whose registered office is at 171 Tras Street, #02-179, Union Building, Singapore 079025 or at Intellect’s selected registered addresses. The type of personal information that may be collected are the Customer’s full name, email address, phone number, date of birth, gender and job title as and when applicable. The personal information collected is for Intellect’s data processing and protection purposes and shall be collected via electronic or by hard copy means. Information that does not require consent for cross-border data transfer shall be information that is collected anonymously, for the performance of a contract (i.e. cross border purchase or payment and other considerations), cross-border human resource management in accordance with individual country’s Labor Law, cross border information provided overseas in order to protect the life, health and property safety of people in an emergency and data processing for infrastructure operations. Intellect shall keep safe the information transferred overseas. The customer acknowledges that electronic communications are vulnerable to attack by viruses and other destructive electronic programs and are also vulnerable to interception. Intellect cannot guarantee that all electronically communicated messages and documents will be virus-free. All interactions with respect to the Services provided (including interactions with the Customer’s employees, webinars, advisory roles, presentations, exercises and readings) shall be communicated through the Platform, and its added plugins, and Email, video-conferencing apps, office suite, instant messaging apps, and other related plugins. The Customer hereby consents to unencrypted and encrypted electronic communication and the Customer agrees that Intellect will not be responsible for any delays or non-delivery in electronic communications or for any damages arising from the use of electronic communications.
5. Obtaining Information About Your Case From Other Professionals Or Agencies
It is often helpful to obtain information from therapists or agencies who may have assessed or treated you in the past. Subject to your prior approval, Intellect may exchange information about you with these individuals or agencies. Intellect may contact your referring doctor in order to clarify the referral or seek an opinion. Intellect will attempt to gain your approval before contacting your referring doctor.
6. Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI)
By proceeding to use Intellect’s services, you acknowledge, agree and consent to Intellect’s use of various automated tools, including options like GenAI, to document your clinical sessions with your therapists. This process involves recording your interactions to create detailed case notes and develop effective feedback and service plans tailored to your needs. Your consent allows Intellect to streamline the documentation process, ensuring that the therapeutic insights gained during your sessions are accurately captured and utilized for your ongoing care. Intellect’s Providers may choose to take notes by writing, typing or recording the session for internal use purposes and it shall be deemed to be confidential communication and information shared between the User and Intellect’s Service provider.
7. Modality of Sessions
Intellect sessions are conducted either face-to-face in-person or remotely online via Intellect-approved platforms. Intellect reserves the right to change the modality of sessions from face-to-face to virtual sessions if government regulations and precautionary measures require this (e.g., during the occurrence or resurgence of a pandemic or other force majeure events).
8. Confidentiality of Information
The Provider has a legal and ethical responsibility to protect the confidentiality of all communications that occur between you and your Provider/s during and outside your sessions, as well as any information pertaining to your person and care that is obtained for the purpose of your care. All of your session details are strictly private and confidential between you and your Provider. Session utilisation will be shared with your organisation (if any). This will not disclose any information which may identify you.
All information provided to your Provider will be treated in professional confidence and will stay within the employees and professionals of the said field within the Provider’s company. Only when necessary in line with the services provided by Intellect, the Provider shall disseminate aggregated clinical insights and trends across Intellect’s employees within the APAC region for case study, feedback, and discussion. For group sessions, in addition to the clinical insights provided in the monthly report, the Provider will also furnish a post-session summary feedback report following each session if it is part of the package of services provided by Intellect to the respective Client. Your case will not be discussed outside formal supervised arrangements. This applies to both face-to-face in-person and telehealth sessions.
9. Exceptions to Confidentiality
These are scenarios where your Provider may need to break confidentiality by informing other parties about your care or sharing information about your person, or is obliged to do so by the law:
- Failure to disclose the information would place you or another person at risk of harm.
- cases in which the purpose of such disclosure is clearly in my interests, and if consent cannot be obtained in a timely way;
- assessment and interventions related to my concerns are to be conducted by other health professionals;
- If a disclosure of facts/incident requires Intellect to submit a report to the necessary regulatory or law enforcement authorities.
- When your information is subpoenaed by a court and such disclosure is otherwise required by law.
- Where you have authorised such a release in writing or by verbal permission.
Your Provider will discuss (whenever possible) the matter with you before breaking confidentiality.
10. Intellect Escalation Protocol
At Intellect, we adopt the Intellect Escalation Protocol in the process of disclosing confidential information. You agree that you have reviewed the Intellect Escalation Protocol and hereby consent to such disclosure of confidential information as per the Intellect Escalation Protocol.
11. Supervision
From time to time your Provider will discuss your case with their supervisor. This is standard practice and serves to ensure that you receive the best possible care with Intellect. Please note that your Provider’s supervisor is bound to the same strict confidentiality policy and cannot disclose any information about your person or care, except for scenarios specified above.
12. Fees & Cancellation
The following applies to both face-to-face and virtual sessions. These sessions are fully covered by your company, and the number of covered sessions has been communicated to you at the launch of Intellect’s services. Before the entitled sessions are completed, the Provider shall discuss further follow-ups, if necessary. You must attend your appointments on time to achieve maximum results. If you need to cancel or reschedule your appointment, please give your Provider at least 24-hour notice. Your Provider will regularly review your service plan with you, including your goals, progress, and motivation for the service acquired. Whenever possible, your Provider will jointly discuss the need to refer you to a service more suited to your care or discuss any upcoming discharge from the current service. Likewise, you may also withdraw from therapy at any time.
13. Information Used for Other Purposes
Service-wide, statistical, non-identifying material may be generated to allow the planning and provision of services. Intellect may use this material for management, planning, and monitoring, to improve or evaluate the services we offer. For such purposes, data will be presented as group statistics and no individual data or information will be shared. We may share such data without any individual identification with research bodies investigating well-being, health management, and health promotion initiatives.
By proceeding to utilise Intellect’s services, you are giving consent for clinical supervisors and any relevant Intellect employees within the field to access progress notes containing protected health information, to the extent necessary for their job functions. This access may be required to oversee clinical workflows, manage service quality, or supervise clinical care. It is appropriate for them to review clinical data in progress notes given their roles. Intellect will be allowed to process the end user’s data in a statistical manner for operational needs and summarise it in the Monthly Business Reports for internal and external company use. Intellect will exclusively disclose statistical non-personally identifiable information of the end user to the main party stipulated in the Master Service Agreement in the Monthly Business Reports.
Intellect’s Standard Operating Policy for Fit for Work/ Return to Work Assessment primarily involves evaluating the psychological readiness of an individual to return to work. Intellect will communicate the findings of the said assessment to the employers, to facilitate informed decision-making about the employee’s fitness to return to work. The information shared with the employer shall be non-clinical in nature and based on the observation made during the assessment, confidentiality of the assessment outcome shall be maintained and the findings shall only be shared with the relevant department of the employer’s organisation, the employee shall bear full responsibility for their decision to return to work, the participation in the assessment shall be voluntary and the scope of the assessment shall be limited to the employee’s ability to perform their work duties.
14. Access to Information
You have a right to access your personal information. If you wish to make a formal request to access your information, you need to do this in writing to support@intellect.co.
By proceeding to utilise Intellect’s services, you understand and accept that Intellect shall not provide any letter with intent to be used in any legal proceedings. No letters shall be issued by Intellect that can be adduced in court without Intellect’s explicit consent. Intellect may only issue letters for referral purposes that are limited to an opinion required by the Customer for their work accommodation purposes or for an external provider (i.e. external counsellor or psychiatrist).
15. Disclaimer for Users
By proceeding to utilise Intellect’s services, you explicitly and knowingly consent to receive mental health assessment, care or recommendation within the range of services provided by Intellect and hereby authorise the employees, coaches, and therapists to provide such care or services at your sole risk. You voluntarily acknowledge and accept that Intellect does not guarantee, directly or indirectly the outcome of any advice and opinion given during any services provided by Intellect in any form. Intellect, its employees, partners, clients, customers, subsidiaries and affiliates, will not be liable in any form and be exempt from any liability, for any negative action or self-harm done by you to yourself or to anyone else and it is not in any way a result of any opinion, recommendation, feedback and services provided by Intellect. You take full responsibility and recognise that the success or failure of the services provided is the result of your own efforts and is beyond Intellect’s control. You acknowledge, agree and indemnify Intellect, its employees, partners, clients, customers, subsidiaries and affiliates from any form of liability and losses that include but are not limited to the loss of data, economic loss, punitive or exemplary damages, any incidental, special, indirect, or consequential loss, personal injury or death (indemnified by your estate and any potential claims made on your behalf) in connection with any service rendered by Intellect as mentioned herein and above.
16. Zero Tolerance of Aggressive Behaviour towards Staff
At Intellect, we adopt a strict ‘zero tolerance’ attitude towards any form of violent, threatening or abusive behaviour made towards our staff in person, over the phone, video calls or email. Following any incident, in which any of our staff are abused, threatened or assaulted in the course of their performance of services or work by a client or their relations or associates, Intellect reserves the right to terminate the service/case immediately and at its own discretion, may make a report to the incident to the appropriate authorities/police, if warranted by the situation. Aggressive behaviours may include verbal abuse, shouting, offensive or derogatory remarks, verbal threats or physical attacks.
17. Release of Information (Adult)
I, the Customer, also agree and give consent for Intellect to contact my company, emergency contact, and/ or the relevant authorities should any of the following events occur:
- I am uncontactable for more than 48 hours without prior notice (for high-risk clients), and
- If I disclose that I or someone else may be at risk (whenever possible my Provider will endeavour to give me notice prior to communicating details of my “at risk” disclosure to the contact person(s) or to such third parties as may be deemed necessary).
- Other unforeseen circumstances that raise a reasonable suspicion of risk to myself or others.
- To obtain and/or release any information that may be of relevance or value in my care and service.
Unless otherwise indicated under the “remarks” columns, information that may be released to the said persons on a need-to-know basis may include the release of some sensitive or confidential information about myself, where deemed necessary to ensure my safety and wellbeing.
18. Group Therapy Sessions Regulations
Confidentiality among group members is a collective responsibility and is a necessary commitment for continued participation in the group. You agree to keep confidential what other group members say during group sessions. An important aspect of the effectiveness of group therapy is the group’s identity as a “group.” To help develop and maintain the group identity, it is encouraged that participants do not discuss information about group members or group issues outside of the group context with fellow members. Such “sub-groupings” interfere with the group process and compromise the benefits of group therapy. You agree that if you have any concerns about the group not meeting your needs or expectations you will talk about your concerns in the group. Often others may be experiencing similar doubts or hesitations and a willingness to discuss these concerns will facilitate the group process.
19. Domestic And International Cross-Border Jurisdiction Services
Intellect offers both domestic and international cross-border jurisdiction services to a wide range of Customers. As Intellect’s market jurisdiction expands internationally, the list of service providers who are employees, agents or contractually act on behalf of the Company shall expand as well. Based on the types of services procured by the Customer from Intellect, the Customers shall have a variety of professional advisors, coaches and therapists to choose from for their in-person and/or online sessions as and when applicable (hereinafter referred to as “Intellect Providers”). The list of Intellect Providers based on the individual services provided shall be given via the app or website, with their name, credential and location to enable the Customer to choose the best Intellect Provider that suits their needs. Intellect may impose restrictions on the type of Intellect Provider a Customer may choose based on their geographic location, time zone difference or based on any other operational considerations.
By continuing, I understand the nature and limits of confidentiality, and what is expected of me as a client of Intellect. I agree to indemnify the Company and/or the Provider from any and all actual or alleged claims, demands, causes of action, liability, and/or injury (to property or persons, including without limitation wrongful death), whether brought by me, any individual, or other entity. By ticking the box to agree and consent to the terms and conditions via the Intellect app or website, and/ or by proceeding to utilise Intellect’s services, I hereby knowingly and explicitly consent that I have read, understood, and completely irrevocably agree with all the terms and conditions in the Intellect Care- Informed Consent Policy.
Disclaimer: Intellect specializes in offering professional consultation services. It is important to note that these services do not include any form of diagnosis or treatment. Intellect provides guidance and support rather than medical evaluations or interventions.
The exhibit is available on the following page
EXHIBIT A
Applicable International Law & Regulations
Jurisdiction | Applicable Law |
Australia | The Privacy Act 1988 and other applicable law for maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
Bangladesh | 2022 Draft Data Protection Act and other applicable law for maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
Brazil | Lei Geral de Proteção de Dados (LGPD) (General Data Protection Law), encerrada em 2018. |
China | The Data Security Law (DSL) and Personal Information Protection Law (PIPL) were promulgated and implemented in 2021 and other applicable laws for maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
European Union | General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a law that was approved by the European Union in April 2016 and went into effect on May 25, 2018. |
Hong Kong | The Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance (the “PDPO”) (as passed in 1995 and took effect from December 1996) and other applicable law for maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
Indonesia | The Personal Data Protection Bill 2022 and other applicable law for the maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
India | The Information Technology Act, 2000 and other applicable law for the maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
Japan | the Act on the Protection of Personal Information and other applicable law for the maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
Mexico | The Federal Law on the Protection of Personal Data, 2010 and other applicable laws for maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
New Zealand | The Privacy Act 2020 and other applicable law for maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
Pakistan | The Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, 2016 and other applicable law for maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
Philippines | The Data Privacy Act of 2012 and other applicable laws for maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
Singapore | Singapore Personal Data Protection Act 2012 and other applicable law for maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
South Korea | Personal Information Protection Act 2020 and other applicable laws for maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
Sri Lanka | Personal Data Protection Act No.9 of 2022 and other applicable laws for maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
Taiwan | Personal Data Protection Act, 2015 and other applicable laws for maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
Thailand | Personal Data Protection Act B.E. 2562 (2019) and other applicable laws for maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
UAE | UAE Personal Data Protection Law (PDPL) and Health Data Law and other applicable laws for maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |
USA | Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act 1996 (HIPAA) is a federal privacy protection law that safeguards individuals’ medical information. HIPAA applies to all entities that handle protected health information (PHI), including healthcare providers, hospitals, and insurance companies. |
Vietnam | Decree on Protection of Personal Data, 2023 and other applicable law for maintenance, security and processing of personal and health data. |