West Coast Therapy   

GDPR POLICY

Last Updated: October 2026

General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) EU Law

Data Protection Act (2018) – Irish legislation that gives effect to GDPR

Privacy Policy

Who is West Coast Therapy?

West Coast Therapy is an independent online clinical psychology service offering therapy throughout Ireland to people aged 18 and over.  Dr Michelle Hopkins set up the service in May 2018.  She is a Chartered Clinical Psychologist as recognised by both the Psychological Society of Ireland and the British Psychological Society.

West Coast Therapy recognises that your privacy is important and Dr Michelle Hopkins who is the Data Controller (in data protection terms), is committed to respecting your privacy.  The personal data you share will be held and used in accordance with EU GDPR law, with appropriate protection, security and management applied to this data.

The following policy informs you how Dr Michelle Hopkins collects, processes and stores your personal data.  For the purposes of complete transparency, she will take you through the journey from initial contact and starting therapy, right through to the end of therapy. 

What personal data is collected?

When you use the West Coast Therapy Contact form, email or telephone West Coast Therapy, the information you share will be collected privately and manually by Dr Michelle Hopkins.  Once the therapy assessment appointment is arranged, the following information will be collected:

• Personal information for the registration form

• An attendance record will be set up

• Agreement will be documented in relation to the online therapy protocol, including confidentiality and limitations, consent, risk, payment, cancellation and health insurance

• Information may be collected using mental health screening tools and other assessment measures, as deemed clinically necessary.

• Online sessions, which are never recorded and are bound by the EU-US Data Privacy Framework for Zoom and Google Meet.  AI Note taking is also never used.

During the therapy assessment appointment, any information you share including reasons for coming to therapy, presenting difficulties and personal history will be collected.  This will then inform and guide the therapy plan going forward.

Information will also be collected for each therapy session and will provide the basis for clinical psychology reports, as requested by clients or referrals to other mental health services.  Your personal data may also be shared anonymously in clinical supervision.

How is your information stored?

Your personal data is initially stored in a file in a locked fire proof cabinet and then transferred into an electronic record with unique and strong password protection.  The laptop used for storage of all electronic records and delivery of online therapy, is securely encrypted and locked in a separate cabinet.

How long is your information stored for?

Your personal data is only kept for as long as is necessary in order to use it as described above and for legal purposes, should this arise.

The Psychological Society of Ireland's requirements and those of professional indemnity insurer PPS, are that personal data for people aged 18 and over is stored for 7 years, starting from the date of the last therapy session. 

The data privacy is maintained for this period of retention and then all personal data is deleted from the laptop.

Will your personal data be released to third parties?

All personal data is held accordance with the Psychological Society of Ireland’s Guidelines for Confidentiality and Record Keeping (2022), and Code of Professional Ethics (2019).

Your personal data will not be used for any other purpose than to provide you with a confidential and professional clinical psychology service.  However, there are limitations to confidentiality should your level of risk to self or others increase during therapy.

Your personal data may be shared with your consent, with other professionals, to access further care and support via the mental health team in your local area.  In the event it is not possible to gain your consent, a clinical and ethical judgement will be made as to whether confidentiality is waived.

Dr Michelle Hopkins may also be requested by An Garda Síochána or by Court Order to release personal records and will by law, comply with this request.

West Coast Therapy will not share your personal data with any commercial organisation or sell this information on to third parties for any reason, including marketing.

Cookies Policy: West Coast Therapy Website (incl. Contact form) 

Because West Coast Therapy's website is built using the Google Sites platform, certain cookies are necessary to make the website function properly, while others help us analyse traffic to improve your experience. In accordance with Irish law (the ePrivacy Regulations 2011) and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), we obtain your consent for non-essential cookies.

What Are Cookies?

Cookies are small text files placed on your computer or mobile device by websites that you visit. They are widely used to make websites work more efficiently, as well as to provide reporting information to the website owners.

Types of Cookies We Use

We categorise the cookies used on our Site into two categories:

Essential Cookies

These cookies are strictly necessary to provide you with the services available through our Site and to use some of its features, such as secure areas or basic page navigation. Because they are essential, you cannot refuse them without affecting how our Site functions. Google automatically sets these operational cookies to host and maintain the site.

Analytics and Performance Cookies (Non-Essential)

We use Google Analytics to understand how visitors interact with our website. These cookies collect information in an aggregate and anonymous form, such as:

• The number of visitors to the Site

• Where visitors have come to the Site from

• The specific pages they visit

This data helps us improve the user experience and design of our website. These cookies are only dropped if you explicitly accept them via our cookie consent banner.

Marketing Cookies  (Non-Essential)

None are used.

Website Contact Form

The information you provide when emailing or completing and submitting the West Coast Therapy Contact form is processed by Google's EU infrastructure.  It is held securely in West Coast Therapy's Google Workspace and only accessible by Dr Michelle Hopkins.  This information is held temporarily for up to two months.  Then it will either be automatically deleted if no further contact has been made with you or transferred into an encrypted and password protected computer database, if your referral has been accepted.

How We Use Google Infrastructure

As West Coast Therapy's website is hosted on Google Sites, Google may collect system information and performance data related to your visit to ensure platform stability and security. For more detailed information on how Google processes data, please visit the Google Privacy & Terms.

Managing and Controlling Cookies

You have the right to decide whether to accept or reject non-essential cookies.

• Cookie Banner: When you first visit West Coast Therapy, you will see a cookie banner. You can choose to "Accept" analytics cookies or decline them.

• Your Browser Settings: You can set or amend your web browser controls to accept or refuse cookies. If you choose to reject cookies, you may still use our website, though your access to some functionality and areas of our website may be restricted. 

Further Information 

For more information and to read through your rights please visit the Data Protection Commission website https://dataprotection.ie

Any questions about West Coast Therapy's privacy policy, concerns or complaints about how your personal data is handled or matters relating to your records telephone +353 87 189 7188, email info@westcoast-therapy.ie or use the Contact Form to get in touch.

You have the right to request the processing and transfer of your personal data.  This will be actioned in accordance with GDPR legislation within one calendar month of receipt of your request by email.  If requests are deemed complex, then this can be extended by two further months.

In line with GDPR, and for the purposes of data security and maintaining confidentiality, we reserve the right to provide printed copies instead of electronic files.  Given this, your personal data will be released to you in printed form via secure registered post.

Dr Michelle Hopkins reserves the right to update this GDPR policy at any given time.