Terms and Conditions
Healthchoices Global - Terms and Conditions
Last Updated: July 2022
1. Privacy Policy
Healthchoices Global is committed to safeguarding your privacy when handling personal information. The following policies delineate your rights and elaborate on how Healthchoices Global collects, uses, and secures your data. If you have any inquiries regarding data handling, please contact us through our website or refer to our comprehensive privacy policy.
2. Service User Responsibilities Before Attending an Appointment
By scheduling an appointment with Healthchoices Global, you explicitly agree to the following:
Complete a Patient Registration form before your scheduled appointment, sending it back in a timely manner. Failure to provide this information in full may result in the appointment's delay or cancellation.
Include relevant details of your insurer, membership number, and any authorization codes within the patient registration form if you wish Healthchoices Global to claim on your behalf. Omission of this information may make you liable for direct settlement of fees.
Complete and return all appointment-related forms sent by Healthchoices Global before the appointment date to facilitate effective assessment.
Adhere to the payment and cancellation policies outlined in Section 3.
3. Healthchoices Global Services, Fees, and Cancellation Policy
3.1 Payment Terms
All appointments and services provided by Healthchoices Global are chargeable, and payment must be made in full by the patient on or before the day of the appointment. It is the patient's responsibility to ensure timely payments.
If a patient encounters difficulties in making payments or adhering to previously agreed payment plans, prompt communication with Healthchoices Global is required. Unsettled balances beyond 30 days without prior agreements for repayment may be forwarded to a collection agency.
3.2 Paying by Card and our Automatic Payment Collection Service
Initial Consultations: For initial consultations and first-time bookings, a minimum deposit of 50% of the total appointment cost is required upfront to secure the appointment. Full fees may be requested if the appointment is within 48 hours.
The remaining consultation fee is to be paid in full on or before the appointment day. Healthchoices Global will process this payment automatically after the appointment, with details securely stored through Square payment terminal.
Follow-up and Additional Appointments: All appointments, including follow-ups, are chargeable. Healthchoices Global securely stores payment details and processes automatic payments after each appointment for any remaining balances.
Patients can opt-out of automatic payments by contacting Healthchoices Global, with the responsibility to settle payments in full on or before the appointment day.
3.3 Paying by Bank Transfer
For patients opting to pay by bank transfer, the full amount is required in advance to secure the booking for both initial and follow-up appointments.
3.4 Insurance Cover
Initial Consultations: If covered by an insurance provider, Healthchoices Global will claim directly from the insurer on the patient's behalf. To facilitate this, patients must complete and return the patient registration with insurance details ahead of the appointment.
Patients are responsible for covering any excess due on new claims and keeping information about the policy up to date.
Patients are required to know the approved number of sessions by the insurer and keep these details current to prevent delays or disruptions in claims.
Patients will be responsible for any shortfall if the insurer does not cover the full fee.
Follow-up and Additional Appointments: Patients must be aware of the approved number of sessions by the insurer for follow-ups.
Patients need to keep insurance details up to date to avoid any delay or disruption with claims.
If insurers decline payments, the responsibility for payment falls on the patient through self-funding.
4. Cancellation Policy
Patients are required to provide the earliest notice possible if they are unable to attend an appointment. Healthchoices Global operates on a 48-hour cancellation policy.
Cancellation requests must be made at least 48 hours before the scheduled appointment time to avoid charges.
Bookings made less than 48 hours before the scheduled appointment time are not eligible for refunds.
Cancellations made with less than 48 hours' notice will be fully charged at 100% of the appointment fee, and the patient will not be eligible for any refund.
4.1 Late Policy
To ensure optimal service for all patients, Healthchoices Global requests that patients contact them if they are unable to attend an appointment on time. While efforts will be made to accommodate late arrivals, patients may be asked to reschedule or wait for a later available slot.
Patients arriving more than 5 minutes late without prior agreement may be considered a failure to attend, making them ineligible for a refund of pre-payment or deposit.
4.2 Failure to Attend
Patients failing to attend or arriving more than 10 minutes late to the scheduled start time will be considered to have missed the appointment. In such cases, patients will not be eligible for a refund of any pre-payment or deposit.
Healthchoices Global will require payment in full in advance for any future bookings.
5. Refunds
Refunds, if applicable, will be made only to the card originally used for the booking. While Healthchoices Global aims to process refunds promptly, it may take up to 10 working days for the refund to appear on the statement, depending on the bank. Healthchoices Global is not responsible for the processing time and advises patients to check with their bank or card provider.
6. COVID-19 – Virtual Appointments
In the current environment, all appointments are conducted by video call.
Patients are required to confirm their preferred method of contact (e.g., Skype or Zoom) in advance of their next appointment.
Patients should log in to their preferred method of contact at the scheduled appointment time on a desktop or mobile device, and the doctor or therapist will initiate the call or video call.
7. Prescribing and Prescriptions
Patients understand that there is no guarantee of receiving a prescription for any medication. The decision to issue a prescription lies solely with the psychiatrist during the consultation and is subject to Healthchoices Global medical team limitations.
Prescriptions are provided as part of the initial assessment and follow-up appointments where deemed appropriate by the psychiatrist. Requests for repeat prescriptions outside of scheduled appointments can be made through the Healthchoices Global website, with a separate charge applicable.
Healthchoices Global will not include a prescription or clinic letter for appointments lasting less than 25 minutes.
Patients may be required to book an appointment for repeat prescriptions, which will be communicated by Healthchoices Global. All prescriptions issued outside of appointments are chargeable.
7.1 Controlled Medication:
Healthchoices Global aims to send all controlled medication prescriptions to a pharmacy of the patient's choice (not deliverable to residential addresses). While prescriptions are sent via Royal Mail with an attempt at recorded delivery, Healthchoices Global cannot guarantee delivery time frames and will not be liable for delays or issues at the pharmacy.
7.2 Non-Controlled Medication
Healthchoices Global aims to send all medication prescriptions (non-controlled) to the patient's chosen pharmacy via Royal Mail recorded delivery. Some pharmacies may accept prescriptions via Fax or Email, provided patients furnish the necessary contact information.
7.3 Pharmacy Charges
Patients will be charged by the pharmacy for medication, as private prescriptions are fulfilled at a cost determined by the pharmacy. Patients have the choice to fulfill the prescription and incur the cost. Prescriptions acquired from Healthchoices Global are valid only at legal UK pharmacies.
Patients acknowledge the responsibility to read provided information and instructions on prescriptions carefully. It is essential to contact the psychiatrist, another doctor, or pharmacist for clarification if questions arise or full understanding is lacking.
8. Assessment Letters
Healthchoices Global commits to providing an assessment letter after every assessment with the psychiatrist, outlining the diagnosis. The guarantee is to provide this letter within three weeks following the initial assessment appointment date. Follow-up appointments may not always include a letter, and provision is at the discretion of the psychiatrist. Additional letters, reports, or documentation requested by the patient after the initial assessment will incur an additional cost.
9. Declaration
By booking an appointment with Healthchoices Global, patients confirm the following:
The provided information is, to the best of their knowledge, accurate and complete.
Completion of a Patient Registration Form is required before the appointment.
Understanding that practitioners are directly liable for the care provided.
Acknowledgment that Healthchoices Global may contact them using the provided details for care or appointment discussions.
10. Zero Tolerance Policy
Healthchoices Global is committed to delivering high-quality care, necessitating a good relationship between patients, staff, and practitioners. To protect all parties involved, Healthchoices Global emphasizes the following inappropriate behaviors, which will not be tolerated:
SwearingThreatening or abusive behavior
Intoxication
Verbal or physical abuse
Inappropriate advances towards staff
Healthchoices Global enforces a zero-tolerance policy towards such behavior, particularly threats or violence. The organization reserves the right to terminate an appointment and seek police assistance if deemed necessary.
11. Personal Data
Healthchoices Global collects and processes personal data from all clients, including basic contact information (name, date of birth, gender, address, email, and GP contact details) and sensitive personal data (presenting problem information, therapy, psychology, and psychiatry records).
If clients complete a Healthchoices Global website-based enquiry form, additional information provided will be collected.
Payments: Healthchoices Global does not retain credit card details, utilizing the services of Stripe, a specialized organization, to maintain this information securely. Third-party payment processors may store information according to their privacy policies.
GP Details
Clients are required to provide GP details within the registration form. These details must be kept up to date. Clients have the option to authorize or not authorize Healthchoices Global to contact their GP, and Healthchoices Global will follow this instruction.
In emergency or safeguarding situations, Healthchoices Global is legally obligated to contact the GP.
Healthchoices Global is not liable for any harm or loss arising from nondisclosure of GP details.
Sharing Information Between Healthchoices Global Healthcare Professionals
Healthchoices Global takes privacy seriously, using personal information only to provide requested services. Confidential information will not be divulged except as outlined in these Terms and Conditions. Exceptions include situations where information is already public knowledge, required by a court or governmental authority, known to the recipient before disclosure, obtained from someone else without breaching confidentiality, or provided to professional advisers for internal business purposes.
If clients do not provide the requested personal information, Healthchoices Global may be unable to offer the appropriate services.
Force Majeure
Neither party is liable for failure to perform obligations due to circumstances like Acts of God, war, invasion, civil war, rebellion, government sanction, blockage, embargo, labor dispute, strike, lockout, or interruption of electricity or telephone service. If a party asserts Force Majeure, they must prove reasonable steps were taken to minimize delay or damages, substantial fulfillment of non-excused obligations, and timely notification of the other party.
Use of Information
Healthchoices Global uses information collected to:
Provide services.Process payments.
Send information about services to those who have opted into email updates.
Work with analytics partners to understand user interactions.
Assigned mental health professionals have access to patient profiles containing necessary information.
Record Retention
Healthchoices Global is required to keep patient information for at least eight years following discharge or the last appointment. Records may be retained longer based on indications like claims or serious incidents. Children's records are kept until after their 25th birthday.
Healthchoices Global does not share personal information with third parties for marketing purposes.
For further information, refer to the Privacy Policy on the Healthchoices Global website.
Healthchoices Global cannot provide emergency services or support.
As Healthchoices Global does not offer emergency services, individuals in need of urgent assistance are advised to contact 111 or Samaritans on 116 123 in case of an emergency.
Health Choices Global operates globally under the name ORO, specializing in mental health.
Correspondence Address: 2 Harley Street, London, W1G 9PA.