Social Media Policies
Contact and Communication:
You can contact Ana by phone at (778) 778-6897 or via email at anayalvarado@astrayacounselling.com
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Most communications will be responded to within 24-48 hours.
Astraya Counselling Social Media Policy
In this page I outline my policies related to the use of social media. Please read it to understand how I conduct myself on the Internet as a mental health professional and how you can expect me to respond to various interactions that may occur between us on the Internet.
If you have any questions about anything, I encourage you to bring them up when we meet. As new technology develops and the Internet changes, there may be times when I need to update this policy. If I do so, I will notify you in writing of any policy changes and make sure you have a copy of the updated policy. I will also change information on my website accordingly.
Friendling
I do not accept friend or contact requests from current or former clients on any social networking site (Facebook, LinkedIn, etc);only on Astraya Counselling links, no personal networks. I believe that adding clients as friends or contacts on these sites can compromise your confidentiality and our respective privacy. It may also blur the boundaries of our therapeutic relationship. I also do not interact with clients on social networking sites such as Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn. If you need to contact me between sessions, the best way to do so is by phone, or by email. If you have questions about this, please bring them up when we meet and we can talk more about it.
Following
I occasionally post articles related to wellness and psychology on Astraya Counselling Facebook page and on Instagram. I have no expectation that you as a client will want to follow my online stream. Comments have been not been disabled on my website, because it is an open space for members of the public to post. Please be aware of your own confidentiality and whether you may be recognized as a client if you have an easily recognizable username. If I happen to notice that you’ve followed me on Facebook, or Instagram have “liked” the Astraya Counselling Facebook page and I am concerned about your confidentiality, we may briefly discuss it and its potential impact on our working relationship. My primary concern is your privacy. You are welcome to use your own discretion in choosing whether to follow me.
I only follow other health professionals on Twitter and I do not follow current or former clients on blogs or Twitter or Instagram. If there are things from your online life that you wish to share with me, please bring them into our sessions where we can view and explore them together, during the therapy hour.
Use of Search Engines
It is not a regular part of my practice to search for clients on Google or Facebook or other search engines. Extremely rare exceptions may be made during times of urgent crisis. If I have a reason to suspect that you are in danger and you have not been in touch with me via our usual means (coming to appointments, or phone contact) there might be an instance in which using a search engine (to find you, find someone close to you, or to check on your recent status updates) becomes necessary as part of ensuring your welfare. These are unusual situations and if I ever resort to such means, I will fully document it and discuss it with you when we next meet.
Business Review Sites
You may find my psychology practice on sites such as Yelp, Google, or other places which list businesses. If you should find my listing on any of these sites, please know that my listing is NOT a request for a testimonial, rating, or endorsement from you as my client.
You can expect that I will never solicit testimonials, expressly or by implication, from clients or other persons who, because of their particular circumstances, may be vulnerable to undue influence” .
You have a right to express yourself on any site you wish. But due to confidentiality, I cannot respond to any review on any of these sites whether it is positive or negative. I urge you to take your own privacy as seriously as I take my commitment of confidentiality to you. You should also be aware that if you are using these sites to communicate indirectly with me about your feelings about our work, there is a good possibility that I may never see it.
If we are working together, I hope that you will bring your feelings and reactions to our work directly into the therapy process. This can be an important part of therapy, even if you decide we are not a good fit. None of this is meant to keep you from sharing that you are in therapy with me wherever and with whomever you like.
Confidentiality means that I cannot tell people that you are my client and my Ethics Code prohibits me from requesting testimonials. But you are more than welcome to tell anyone you wish that I’m your therapist or how you feel about the treatment I provided to you, in any forum of your choosing.
Thank you for taking the time to review my Social Media Policy.
