Privacy Policy

Psych Assessment & Therapy Centre (PATC)
Last updated: October 2026

Psych Assessment & Therapy Centre (PATC) is committed to protecting the privacy and confidentiality of our clients and their families.

We handle personal and health information in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs), the Health Records Act 2001 (Vic) and other applicable legal and professional requirements. 

This Privacy Policy explains how PATC collects, uses, stores, protects and discloses personal and health information.

PATC may collect personal and health information about clients, parents, caregivers and other people involved in a client's care.

This may include:

• name, date of birth and contact details
• parent, caregiver and family information
• emergency contact information
• Medicare, NDIS and other funding information
• medical, developmental and mental health history
• diagnoses, medications and previous treatment
• educational and developmental information
• information about behaviour, communication, learning, functioning and wellbeing
• assessment results, questionnaires and clinical observations
• therapy and appointment records
• reports, referrals and correspondence
• information provided by schools, medical practitioners and other professionals
• billing and payment information
• other information reasonably necessary to provide our services.

We aim to collect only information that is reasonably necessary for providing our services and meeting our professional, administrative and legal responsibilities.

PATC may collect information:

• directly from clients, parents and caregivers
• through our website and enquiry forms
• through intake and referral forms
• during appointments, assessments and therapy sessions
• through questionnaires and assessment measures
• from referring professionals
• from schools, kindergartens, childcare and other educational settings
• from medical and allied-health professionals
• from NDIS providers and support coordinators
• through telephone, email and other correspondence.

Where appropriate, we seek consent or other appropriate authority before obtaining information from another person or organisation.

PATC collects, uses and holds information to:

• respond to enquiries
• determine which services may be appropriate
• provide psychological and neurodevelopmental assessments
• provide psychology, speech pathology, occupational therapy, social work, play therapy and other allied-health services
• plan, coordinate and review care
• conduct assessments, score assessment measures and prepare reports
• communicate with clients, parents and caregivers
• communicate with authorised professionals and services involved in a client's care
• manage referrals, appointments and waiting lists
• maintain clinical records
• process accounts, payments and funding
• manage our clinical and business operations
• meet professional, regulatory and legal obligations.

Children and young people

Many PATC clients are children and young people.

We take particular care when collecting, using and sharing information about children.

Depending on the child's age, developmental capacity and circumstances, consent or authority may be obtained from a parent or legal guardian. Where appropriate, children and young people will also be involved in decisions about their information and care.

Different requirements may apply in circumstances involving separated parents, parenting or court orders, guardianship arrangements or a young person who is able to make their own decisions about their healthcare.

PATC considers the individual circumstances when determining appropriate consent, access and information-sharing arrangements.

PATC does not disclose personal or health information unless there is an appropriate reason or authority to do so.

With consent or other appropriate authority, information may be shared with people or organisations involved in a client's care, education or support, including:

• parents and caregivers
• general practitioners and paediatricians
• psychologists
• speech pathologists
• occupational therapists
• social workers and other allied-health professionals
• schools, kindergartens and early childhood services
• NDIS providers and support coordinators
• other professionals or services nominated by the client or family.

We aim to disclose only the information reasonably necessary for the relevant purpose.

There may also be circumstances where PATC is required or authorised by law to disclose information, including where necessary to respond to a serious threat to someone's life, health or safety or to comply with applicable legal obligations.

PATC's website is hosted and managed using GoDaddy.

Information submitted through our website, including contact and enquiry forms, may be processed through GoDaddy's systems before being received by PATC.

Please avoid including unnecessary sensitive, health or clinical information in a general website enquiry.

Where detailed information is required for an intake, referral, assessment or clinical service, PATC may direct clients to our practice-management or clinical systems.

Information provided through a clinical intake or referral process may become part of the client's health record.

Our website may also use cookies, analytics or similar technologies to understand how the website is used, maintain website functionality and improve our services.

PATC uses Splose as a practice-management system.

Splose assists PATC with managing client information, appointments, referrals, clinical documentation, communications, billing and other aspects of service delivery.

Personal and health information provided to PATC may be entered into and stored within Splose as part of a client's clinical and administrative record.

Access to client records is limited to authorised PATC team members who require access for legitimate clinical, administrative or operational purposes.

PATC may also use specialist assessment and scoring platforms, communication services, accounting and payment systems, information technology providers and other professional software required to provide and administer our services.

PATC uses third-party providers to support the operation and delivery of our services.

Depending on the service being provided, these may include:

• website hosting and website services
• practice-management systems
• psychological and allied-health assessment platforms
• electronic communication services
• accounting and payment systems
• information technology and security services
• other administrative or clinical technology providers.

These providers may process or store information on PATC's behalf.

PATC takes reasonable steps when selecting and using third-party providers to protect the privacy and security of personal and health information.

PATC takes reasonable steps to protect personal and health information from misuse, interference, loss, unauthorised access, modification and disclosure.

Information may be stored within Splose and other electronic systems used by PATC, as well as within systems operated by service providers such as GoDaddy where information is submitted through our website.

Security measures may include, where appropriate:

• password-protected systems and devices
• multi-factor authentication
• individual staff accounts
• access controls based on staff roles and responsibilities
• secure practice-management and clinical systems
• device and network security
• secure processes for transmitting clinical information
• staff confidentiality and privacy requirements
• appropriate backup and data-management procedures.

Access to personal and health information is limited to people who require the information for legitimate clinical, administrative, operational or legal purposes.

Some technology and service providers used by PATC may use infrastructure located outside Australia or process information in other countries.

Where this occurs, PATC takes reasonable steps to understand how service providers handle personal information and to meet its obligations under applicable Australian privacy laws.

Information about individual providers' privacy and data-handling practices may also be available through their respective privacy policies.

PATC maintains clinical records in accordance with applicable Victorian law and relevant professional and regulatory requirements.

Records are retained for the periods required by applicable laws and professional obligations.

When information is no longer required to be retained, PATC takes reasonable steps to securely destroy or appropriately de-identify it where required.

PATC may communicate with clients, families and other professionals by email, telephone, SMS or other electronic methods.

Electronic communication can carry privacy and security risks. PATC takes reasonable precautions when communicating personal and health information and may use more secure methods where appropriate.

Please contact PATC if you have concerns about receiving information electronically or would like to discuss communication preferences.

You may request access to personal or health information PATC holds about you or, where you have appropriate authority, your child.

In most circumstances, access can be provided. There are circumstances where access may be limited or refused where permitted or required by law.

PATC may need to verify your identity and your authority to access the information before releasing records.

Requests can be made using the contact details below.

If you believe personal or health information held by PATC is inaccurate, incomplete or out of date, you may ask us to correct it.

PATC will take reasonable steps to ensure the personal information it holds is accurate, complete, relevant and up to date as appropriate.

PATC maintains processes for responding to suspected privacy and data breaches.

If a data breach occurs, PATC will take appropriate steps to contain and assess the breach and reduce potential harm.

Where a breach meets the requirements of the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme, PATC will notify affected individuals and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) as required.

If you have a question or concern about how PATC has collected, used, stored or disclosed your personal or health information, please contact us.

We will review privacy concerns and complaints and aim to respond within a reasonable timeframe.

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may have the right to contact an external privacy or complaints body, including the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) or the Health Complaints Commissioner Victoria, depending on the nature of the matter.

PATC may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes to our services, technology, legal obligations or information-handling practices.

The current version will be published on our website with the date it was last updated.

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, would like to request access to or correction of personal or health information, or have a concern about how PATC has handled your information, please contact us:

Psych Assessment & Therapy Centre (PATC)
8 Garsed Street
Bendigo VIC 3550

Phone: (03) 6185 0021
Email: admin@patc.com.au