How we handle your information

Who we are

This website is operated by Blackstone Health Services, a provider of online psychotherapy, workplace well-being programs and executive coaching based in Malawi. We are the data controller for the personal information described in this policy. You can contact us about privacy at admin@bhsmalawi.com.

What we collect

We collect only what we need to respond to you and, if you go ahead, to provide a service.

• When you send a request through the website: your name, email address, country, the service you are interested in, how you would like us to reply, your message, and your phone number if you choose to give it or ask us to reply by phone or WhatsApp.
• When you become a client: the details needed to arrange and provide sessions, such as appointment times, payment records and clinical notes kept by your therapist.
• When you visit the website: our web server records standard technical logs (such as IP address, browser type and pages requested) to keep the site secure and working. To prevent spam, the inquiry form briefly stores a scrambled (hashed) form of your IP address for one minute.

We do not use analytics, advertising or social media tracking on this website. We do not ask for payment details through the website.

Why we use it

• To answer your request and arrange a service. We rely on your consent, which you give when you submit the form, and on the steps needed to enter into an agreement with you.
• To provide therapy, programs and coaching. This is necessary to perform our agreement with you and to meet our professional obligations.
• To keep records we are required to keep, such as financial records, and to meet other legal obligations.
• To keep the website secure and prevent misuse, which is in our legitimate interest and yours.

We never sell your information or use it for marketing without your separate permission.

Health information

Information about your mental health, relationships or family is sensitive personal data. We collect it only when you choose to share it for the purpose of receiving care, and we apply stricter controls to it. Please keep your first message brief and avoid detailed personal or medical history; you can share more in conversation.

Confidentiality in therapy

What you discuss in therapy is confidential. As with all counselling professionals, there are limited circumstances in which confidentiality may need to be set aside: where there is a serious risk of harm to you or another person, or where disclosure is required by law. Your therapist explains these limits before therapy begins and, wherever possible, discusses any disclosure with you first.

Who we share it with

We share personal information only where necessary:

• with the members of our professional team who provide your service;
• with service providers who host our website and email, or provide the video-calling platform used for sessions, under terms that require them to protect it;
• where the law requires it, or to protect someone from serious harm.

Transfers outside Malawi

Some of our service providers, such as email and video-calling services, may store data on servers outside Malawi. When this happens we use providers that offer adequate protection and appropriate safeguards, as the Data Protection Act requires.

How long we keep it

• Inquiries that do not lead to a service: deleted within 12 months of our last contact.
• Client and clinical records: kept for as long as our professional and legal obligations require, then securely destroyed.
• Financial records: kept for the period required by tax law.
• Server security logs: kept for a short period, normally no more than 30 days.

How we protect it

The website uses an encrypted (HTTPS) connection. Access to client information is limited to the people who need it. Form submissions are sent by email and are not stored in the website's database. If a personal data breach affects you, we will notify you and the Data Protection Authority as the law requires.

Your rights

Under Malawi's Data Protection Act, 2024, you can ask us to:

• tell you what information we hold about you and give you a copy;
• correct information that is wrong or incomplete;
• delete information we no longer need to keep;
• restrict or object to certain uses of your information;
• move information you gave us to another provider;
• withdraw consent you have given, at any time.

Write to admin@bhsmalawi.com. We will respond as quickly as we can and within the time the law allows. If you are not satisfied, you can complain to the Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA), which is the Data Protection Authority.

Cookies and tracking

This website does not set cookies for visitors and does not track you. Fonts and images are served from our own website, and we do not embed content from other sites such as maps, videos or social media. See the cookie policy for details.

Children

Our therapy services are for adults aged 18 and over. We do not knowingly collect information from children through this website.

Changes and contact

We may update this policy. The date at the top shows when it last changed. For any question about this policy or your information, write to admin@bhsmalawi.com. See also our terms and conditions.