CONFIDENTIALITY
In the overwhelming majority of situations, what someone tells a health professional will be confidential. This means that NO information can be disclosed to anyone (including parents, professors, coaches, other Linfield offices, etc.) without a written authorization from the client
The rare exceptions in which confidentiality would not be guaranteed are:
- if the client is determined to pose an imminent danger to self or to others
- if the client is under the age of eighteen and currently being abused
- if the client reports abusing a minor child or senior adult
- if a court of law orders that information disclosed in counseling be made available to a specified party or parties
Except for the circumstances noted above, information about someone’s contact with Health or Counseling services will not be released to other parties without a Release of Information authorization form signed by the student. This written form will specify to whom the information is to be released, the type(s) of information to be released, the purpose(s) for releasing the information, and the dates for which the release is in effect. The student may revoke a Release of Information authorization at any time.
Another important thing to know: Information kept about the services someone receives from the Student Health, Wellness and Counseling Center is not part of that student’s official Linfield academic file. Health and Counseling records are kept separately in Student Health, Wellness and Counseling Center under lock and key. No one except the Health and Counseling staff members have access to these records.
This means that if a professor, coach, parent, friend or anyone else contacts us and asks for information, we will politely explain that we are unable to provide this information without a signed form from a client specifically authorizing us to do so.