Terms and conditions set out the expectations for the Client and the Therapist (Caroline Murphy) to ensure that both parties are protected in the event that a disagreement occurs. Please read the terms and conditions and contact Caroline Murphy if you have any questions.

 

A) Initial Assessment

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1. You will receive an email or letter confirming the details of your child’s initial appointment including the date, time, location and fee.

 

2.  At the end of the first appointment, Caroline Murphy will explain whether your child requires further speech and language therapy support. This may be discharge, further assessment, onward referral or a block of therapy.

 

3. Caroline Murphy will let you know whether she has the appropriate clinical skills and experience to meet your child’s needs.

 

4. Caroline Murphy will signpost you to other professionals / services / organisations if necessary.

 

B) Further Appointments/Therapy

 

1. Your child must have attended an assessment appointment with Caroline Murphy before starting therapy. You are welcome to share reports from other professionals with the Therapist.

 

2. Therapy sessions can be arranged in your home and/or your child’s educational setting.

 

3. Therapy appointments will be agreed and booked in advance. The Client and Therapist will agree the number of sessions at the point of booking.

 

4. The Client and Therapist will review the need for further sessions at the end of each block of sessions.

 

5. Therapy sessions lasts a minimum of 45 minutes (up to 60 minutes) unless agreed otherwise. This time may include direct work with your child, observation, discussion and liaison with your child's communication partners, modelling of strategies and writing up of notes.

 

6. No fee will be charged for time spent planning outside of the therapy sessions.

 

C) Fees

 

1. The fee for your child's initial speech and language assessment will be invoiced prior to the initial assessment. The invoice must be paid in full in advance by the date on the invoice. Unpaid invoices will lead to cancellation of appointments. 

 

2. Fees for all therapy sessions must be paid online in advance. 

 

3. Additional reports, meetings or visits will be invoiced once completed. Caroline Murphy will seek your agreement prior to undertaking any additional work that will incur further fees or charges.

 

4. Please refer to the “Services and Fees” section on carolinemurphyslt.co.uk for further information.

 

D) Fee Changes

 

1. Fees are subject to annual increases from 1st September each year.

 

2. Existing clients will be given 4 weeks notice of any changes in fees

 

3. Fee increases will not apply to therapy blocks which have already started or sessions which have already been booked or invoiced.

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E) Payment terms:

 

1. Invoices for an initial assessment must be paid by the date on the invoice. 

 

2. The preferred method of payment is via bank transfer to the following account:

Account name: C A M Murphy

Sort code: 53 70 44

Account number: 11522526

 

2. Cash or cheque payments are  accepted for initial assessments and payment by cash or cheque must be given on the day of the initial assessment. 

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F) Non-Payment

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1. The following process will apply in the event of non-payment:

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• Caroline Murphy will contact you in writing to remind you that payment is overdue.

• If an invoice is not paid within the  date stated on the invoice, you will receive written notice that the planned appointments will be suspended until payment is made in full. 

• If payment is not received in full within 7 days of planned sessions being suspended, Caroline Murphy reserves the right to discharge your child and end the referral. 

• At no point will clients be allowed to take their payments into arrears. 

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G) Health Insurance:

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1. If you are claiming fees through a private health insurance company, you will need to pay the fees in full in accordance with the payment terms above and then claim this back through your insurance.

 

2. It is recommended that you check with your insurance company prior to booking appointments to ensure that you are covered under the terms and conditions for your health insurance company.

 

H) Travel

1. This is included within your fees unless where indicated.

 

I) Cancellations

 

1. If Caroline Murphy needs to cancel an appointment, she will let you know as soon as possible and reschedule the appointment.

 

2. There may be certain situations (such as illness or family circumstances) which mean that you need to cancel an appointment at short notice.

 

3. If you do need to cancel an appointment please contact Caroline Murphy by email or telephone as soon as possible.

 

4. The session will be refunded in full if you contact Caroline Murphy before 07.15 on the day of the appointment.

 

5. If you cancel the appointment after 07.15 on the day of the appointment, a cancellation fee of £35 will be incurred.

 

J) Non-attendance

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1. The full session fee will apply in the event of non-attendance. Non-attendance includes:

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- If you are not in when Caroline Murphy attends an appointment at your home.

 

- If your child is not at school or pre-school/nursery  when Caroline Murphy attends a pre-arranged visit.

 

2. It is your responsibility to inform Caroline Murphy if your child is not going to be at school or preschool for an appointment.

 

K) Reports and Programmes:

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1. Reports and programmes will be supplied to you on request.

 

2. Unless expressly included in the session fee or otherwise agreed, an additional fee calculated by reference to hourly rates will be charged for writing reports and/or programmes.

 

3. Reports and/or programmes can be shared with other professionals.

 

4. Reports and/or programmes will be sent to you via post or by email.

 

L) Resources:

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1. Unless otherwise agreed, the cost of any resources used provided to you are included in the session fees. 

 

2. An electronic copy of resources for school or pre-school can also be provided at no extra charge.

 

3. Further copies can be provided at additional cost (price given on enquiry)

 

4. If you would like resources to be laminated this can be provided at a charge of 50p per laminate.

 

5. Laminating fees will be charged at the end of each therapy block.

 

M) Data Protection:

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1. All client details, case notes and correspondence will be stored securely and treated confidentially according to General Data Protection Regulations and the Data Protection Act 1988.  Caroline Murphy stores client data on the GDRP compliant Writeupp patient management software system.

 

The Therapist is registered with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

 

2. Reports and programmes are password protected.

 

3. Any paper based confidential information is stored securely in accordance with General Data Protection Regulations and the Data Protection Act 1988.

 

4. All client records will be kept securely until a child is 25 years old. After this time all records relating to the child will destroyed.

 

N) Safeguarding:

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1. Caroline Murphy has an enhanced DBS certificate. Clients may see the Therapist’s DBS certificate at any time.

 

2. In the event of a safeguarding concern, where your child or another person is at risk of harm, Caroline Murphy has a legal obligation to share concerns and information with relevant professionals in line with the Working Together to Safeguard Children (2018) statutory guidance. The Therapist will communicate concerns to the Client except where it is felt that this may increase the risk to the child or the Therapist. 

 

3. Caroline. Murphy has a Level 3 Safeguarding Children certificate. This was renewed in December 2019.

 

O) Liaison with other professionals: 

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1. For the best outcomes for your child, Caroline Murphy may liaise with other professionals involved in your child’s care. Consent will be gained for this. 

 

2. This includes professionals such as NHS Speech and Language Therapists, teaching and support staff in schools, Early Years practitioners, SENCOs, your GP or other medical/educational staff.

 

3. Written consent regarding the sharing of information about a child will be gained from the Client at the initial assessment.

 

4. At initial assessment, the Client will be required to read and sign a consent form. The Client reserves the right to request that the Therapist does not share information. The exception to this is where there are safeguarding concerns. Please see section N above. 

 

P) Parking: 

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1. For home visits at addresses where there is controlled parking only, the Client is required to provide Caroline Murphy with a paper/electronic visitor’s permit for the entire duration of the session. Online booking for parking is acceptable provided that it covers the entire and not just part of the planned session. 

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2. Caroline Murphy has the right to terminate the appointment if the Client cannot provide a visitor's parking permit where this has been pre-arranged and there is no available parking due to controlled parking restrictions.

 

Q) Use of Video: 

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1. Some assessments and therapy techniques involve the use of video to record your child playing with you.

 

2. The videos are temporarily stored on an encrypted, password protected tablet. Once the video has been used as needed in therapy, it will be deleted. No copies will be retained. Any digital recordings made on videoconferencing platforms such as Zoom Pro will be deleted immediately following use. 

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3. Where possible, the Client's own electronic device will be used to video record sessions. The client may choose to upload, store and share videos with the Therapist on a platform such as Google Docs or WhatsApp (end-to-end encryption). 

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4. Unless agreed by the Therapist, the Client may not video/audio record the Therapist at any time. Screenshots may also not be made during telehealth/virtual appointments. 

 

R) Electronic communication:

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1. Email is not a secure method of communication. With your written consent, email will be used for correspondence and sending letters, reports and other documents.

 

2. Documents will be sent as attachments and will be password protected and saved in Printed Document Format (PDF).

 

3. Correspondence via email to other professionals will be copied to you as necessary.

 

4. Your Therapist will refer to your child in emails by their initials only unless a child's parents/caregivers have given their verbal/written consent to use the child's first name.  

 

S) Complaints: 

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1. In the event that you are not satisfied with the service you have received,  please contact Caroline Murphy in the first instance. Most issues can be resolved through discussion. 

 

2.  If it is not possible to resolve matters, and you wish to complain formally, please contact the Association of Speech and Language Therapists in Independent Practice at www.helpwithtalking.com

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T) Termination of Therapy: 

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1. The Client may terminate therapy at any time. If a block of therapy has already been arranged and paid for, no refund will be given for the remaining sessions if the client decides to terminate therapy before a block has ended.  

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2. Caroline Murphy reserves the right to terminate her services at any time.  Any therapy sessions already paid for by the client which have not been delivered will be refunded in full. 

 

Caroline Murphy (2021)

Independent Consultant Speech and Language Therapist 

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