top of page

TERMS AND CONDITIONS, 

PRIVACY POLICY, AND 

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQS) FOR FIENDISH® THERAPY BY FIENDISH® SOLUTIONS PRIVATE LIMITED

 

 

 

 

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

LAST UPDATED 13 November 2025

 

Please read the following terms carefully before using the site and the services available on the site:

 

A. TERMS OF USE

The terms of use (the “terms”) provided herein below are with respect to the access and use of the website (the “site”), the content and other services available on the site. The site may be accessed via, but not restricted to, the World Wide Web (www), smart phones and smart televisions. These terms shall apply whenever you access the site, on whatever device(s).

Using the site and the services made available on the site shall indicate that you have read these terms and have duly accepted them. In case you do not agree to the said terms enlisted herein, you must refrain from using this site and the services made available on the site.

The site fiendishtherapy.com and Fiendish® Therapy is owned, operated and maintained by Fiendish® Solutions Private Limited, a company registered under the Companies Act 2013 having Corporate Identification Number (CIN) as U74900KA2014PTC077961 and having registered address as #64, S. No. 74, CK Palya Road, Hommadevanahalli, Bannerghatta Road, Bangalore - 560083, Karnataka, India (“we/our/us”).

We may change these terms from time to time and we will update you about any material changes, either by sending you an email or by notifying you on the site. Unless we make clear otherwise, access to or continued use of the site and services listed on the site after the effective date of the revised terms constitutes your acceptance of the revised terms.

 

B. BINDING AGREEMENT

By using the Site and the services made available on the Site, you agree to be legally bound by these terms, which shall take effect immediately on your first use of the Site. This agreement is for an indefinite term and you understand and agree that you are bound by such terms till the time you access this Site.

 

C. DEFINITIONS

  1. ‘Creating an account’ shall mean by method via which a user can access and obtain the Services listed on the Site. It is clarified that a user does not need to create an account to simply browse or read the content displayed and available on the site.

  2. ‘Content’ means any content or information relating to any services listed on the site, and any other content or information made available on this site from time to time.

  3. ‘Client’ refers to any natural person who has availed the services as listed on the Site.

  4. ‘Client Data’ shall mean the details such as name, age, telephone number, email ID, address, scanned copies of forms/memos/documents/previous reports/applications, thought diaries, psychological tests and any other material that a client may provide and share at the time of creating an account on the Site.

  5. ‘Privacy Policy’ refers to our internal statement of that governs our practices of handling personal information of User(s) and Client(s).

  6. ‘Services’ refers to the psychological intervention/mental health therapy services such as Cognitive Behavior Therapy, Supportive Psychotherapy, Individual and Group Psychotherapy, etc. These services do not include psychological intervention or therapy for psychotic disorders. Examples of psychotic disorders are, schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorders, delusional disorder, brief psychotic disorder, substance induced psychotic disorders etc. It is clarified that we are not a medical service or suicide prevention helpline. If you are feeling suicidal, we would suggest you immediately call up a suicide prevention helpline or seek medical help. These services are provided by an RCI-registered Clinical Psychologist associated with Fiendish® Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

  7. ‘Session’ refers to a therapy session wherein the client(s) describes their current situation and their feelings about the situation and then the therapist(s) by using their expertise assists the client(s) in trying to resolve that problem. A session can either be a virtual session or a physical session. It must be remembered that a resolution during the session may or may not be achieved, and an improvement in the mental health condition is not guaranteed by us and we do not take liability for the same. Any improvement in any mental health condition depends on a number of psychosocial, circumstantial, and environmental factors which are not under the control of the therapist.

  8. ‘Therapy’ or psychotherapy is the process of working with an RCI licensed clinical psychologist to treat specific mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety, trauma, or simply the daily challenges.

  9. ‘Therapist’ or ‘psychotherapist’ shall refer to an RCI licensed clinical psychologist/mental health professional trained to provide treatment and rehabilitation.

  10. ‘Terms’ refers to the terms of use of the website;

  11. ‘You/User/Individual/Person’ and all its other form of grammatical variations shall refer to any natural person visiting and scrolling/browsing the Site. For the purpose of understanding this section “Natural person” means a person who has its own legal identity and personality i.e. an individual human being.

Please note that a user is not deemed be to a ‘client’ unless the user, after creating an account with us uses/obtains or purchases any services listed on the site.

 

D. PRIVACY AND DATA PROTECTION

Please read our Privacy Policy to understand what information we collect about you and how the said information is used by us. We further advise you to read the cookie policy carefully. You may request access, correction or deletion of personal data in accordance with our Privacy Policy and applicable data-protection laws.

 

E. ABOUT US

www.fiendishtherapy.com [the website] is owned and operated by Fiendish® Solutions Pvt. Ltd. The website is intended to provide information about the psychological services offered by Fiendish® Solutions Pvt. Ltd., to publish psycho-educational material, and to facilitate appointment requests via forms submitted on the Site.

Since the Site may be used to request appointments, please note that submission of a booking request and acceptance of the Terms & Privacy Policy on the Site is required; however, payments are not processed on the Site and are handled directly between the client and the practitioner following confirmation.

All therapeutic services described on this Site are provided by an RCI-registered Clinical Psychologist associated with Fiendish® Solutions Pvt. Ltd., and such services are rendered under professional and ethical standards prescribed by the RCI.

The session remains confidential between the therapist and the Client(s) and we do not publish or share the details of the sessions. All the information with respect to the sessions remains with the therapist(s) and we do not have any control on it. We do not interfere in the therapist-client relationship, unless acting on a particular complaint.

While we hope the online services are helpful to you, you understand and agree that the information, advice, or suggestions provided by the therapist(s) may not always be appropriate for certain problems/situations and should not be considered a substitute for a face-to-face or an in-person meeting with mental health experts.

Fiendishtherapy.com is not intended for situations where drug or medical treatment is appropriate and required. It is suggested to actively consult your therapist and act on the professional advice tendered by the therapist.

The Site aims to provide information and to accept appointment requests from persons interested in obtaining the services described. Where the Site collects a booking request via a form, the client will be required to read and accept the Terms & Conditions and the Privacy Policy and to provide the requisite information. Submission of a booking request does not itself create a client–therapist relationship until the appointment is confirmed by the Clinical Psychologist. Payments for confirmed appointments are to be made directly to the practitioner and are not processed via this Site.

 

F. RESTRICTIONS ON USE

You may use this Site for purposes expressly permitted by this site. As a condition of your use of this Site, you warrant to us that you will not use the Site for any purpose that is unlawful or prohibited by these terms.

 

G. OBLIGATION OF A USER

You agree:

a) not to use this website for any unlawful purpose or in any way which is unlawful;

b) not to obtain or attempt to obtain any materials, content, or information through any means not intentionally made available or provided for through the website.

c) not to use the Site in any manner which could disable, overburden, damage, or impair the Site or interfere with any other party’s use and enjoyment of the Site.

d) not to use this Site in any way which infringes any patent, trade mark, copyright, trade secret, database right, other intellectual property right, right of confidence or other right of any other person or which breaks any law or breaches any contract.

e) Additionally, you or any person authorized by you shall not co-brand this Site, frame this Site, and download any content from this Site without the express prior written permission of an authorized representative of Fiendishtherapy.com

(Explanation: For purposes of these Terms, co-branding means to display a name, logo, trademark, or other means of attribution or identification of any party in such a manner as is reasonably likely to give a user the impression that such other party has the right to display, publish, or distribute this site or content accessible within this site.)

f) not to create any content or post any material to this Site or provide any information which—

  • is false, misleading, or inaccurate

  • is fraudulent or criminal,

  • is obscene, offensive, defamatory or unlawful in any other way,

  • causes annoyance, inconvenience or anxiety,

  • is a political campaign, commercial solicitation, a chain letter, mass mailing or any form of "spam", junk mail or advertising which has not been authorized by us in writing,

  • is likely to interrupt, damage or impair in any way any access to this Site,

  • results in the introduction of any software virus, trojan, worm, logic bomb or other material which is malicious or technologically harmful interfering with, damaging or destroying the proper function of this website or corrupting or destroying any content or other information of software code.

  • not to use this Site to imitate any individual or a person;

  • not to access or attempt to access this Site by any means except through the interface which is provided by us, unless you have been specifically allowed to do so in a separate agreement with us;

  • not to access or attempt to access this Site through any automated means including use of scripts or web crawlers and agree not to run any form of spam or auto-responder on this website.

NOTE that we reserve the right to report any breach of the Terms to any relevant law enforcement authority and further reserve the right to disclose your identity to that authority.

 

H. ADDITIONAL OBLIGATION OF A USER

a) You represent and confirm that you are of legal age to enter into a binding contract and you are not a person barred from using the site and/or receiving the services under the laws of India or other applicable law. For the purpose of understanding this portion, it is clarified that the site is not intended for users under 18 years of age. If you are under 18 years of age, do not use the site and do not provide us with any personal information. In case you have inadvertently provided us with your personal information, we reserve the right to delete the said information.

b) To avail a service on the site you should have and must continue to maintain at your sole cost: (1) all the necessary equipment necessary in order to access the site; (2) own access to the World Wide Web.

c) You shall be responsible for accessing the contents and services on the site and that access may involve internet service provider charges which are to be exclusively borne by you. Under any circumstances we shall not provide you the charges as stated herein.

d) You also understand that the site may include certain communications as service announcements and administrative messages. You acknowledge that the content is protected by intellectual property rights, including copyright.

e) You will not copy, modify, rent, lease, loan, sell, distribute or create derivative works based on any content which does not originate from you (either in whole or in part) unless you have permission to do so from the owner of the intellectual property rights in that content.

f) Additionally, you are solely responsible for ensuring that everyone who accesses this site through your password or account is aware of the Terms and complies with the Terms.

g) You shall also be responsible for providing and configuring your information systems and devices in order to access and use this website, including for implementing anti-virus protection and firewalls.

h) You agree to cooperate with us to prevent or remedy any unauthorized use.

 

I. CREATING AN ACCOUNT

 

To access certain parts of the Site or to request an appointment, you may be required to provide certain information or fill out a form. At present, the Site does not require you to create a login-based user account; however, you may be asked to provide personal details such as your name, contact information, and brief background relevant to your request for professional consultation.

You agree that the information you provide shall be accurate, current, and complete, and that you will not impersonate another individual or provide information on behalf of any other person without their explicit consent.

The submission of any form or request through the Site shall not, in itself, create a client–therapist relationship. Such a relationship shall be deemed to commence only upon written confirmation of appointment by the Clinical Psychologist representing Fiendish® Solutions Private Limited.

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of any communications received from us in relation to your appointment and for ensuring that your device and network connection are secure when submitting any information through the Site.

In accordance with the guidelines of the Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI), every client shall be required to furnish a valid government-issued photo identification document (such as Aadhaar card, passport, or driving licence) to the Clinical Psychologist upon request, prior to the commencement of consultation. This verification is necessary to maintain accurate professional records and ensure ethical compliance as per the RCI norms.

J. SERVICES

We offer the following services online:

  • Evidence-based psychotherapy for adult mental health conditions as described under the DSM – V and ICD 11.

  • Consultation

  • Psychological assessments for adults and interventions and assessments for child & adolescents are offered offline. 

K. RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS OF A CLIENT

a) Any service obtained/ purchased by the Client is activated from the date and time of such purchase. All services shall have duration and validity and will expire as soon as the duration ends. It is the duty of the client(s) to adhere to the validity/duration of the services.

b) In case, the client fails to use the purchased services during the validity period of the service, there is no provision to use the same service at another time. Such a service would be deemed as complete and no refunds or reschedules will be allowed.

c) The client(s) will have the freedom to choose a desired date and time slot for the sessions after obtaining the services from the site.

d) The client(s) can also reschedule the session. In case of rescheduling or delay, the client must notify the Therapist by sending an email to contact@fiendishtherapy.com 24 hours prior to the date and time sought by the client(s) for the session.

e) You understand and agree that all sessions whether audio or video are subject to the availability of the therapist. All sessions are conducted directly between the client and the Clinical Psychologist associated with Fiendish® Solutions Pvt. Ltd. The Company facilitates appointment requests via the Site but does not itself provide clinical services.

f) You take the responsibility for your decision to use (Fiendish® Therapy) as a provider of information and appointment facilitation. (Fiendish® Therapy) facilitates appointment requests via the Site; clinical services are delivered directly by the Clinical Psychologist associated with Fiendish® Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

g) After your session is over with the therapist, a 2 (working) day window will be available for addressing issues regarding the services (if any). In case of technical difficulties such as, but not limited to, difficulty in getting connected with the therapist, we will take the circumstances into consideration and depending upon genuineness of the situation, a rescheduled session will be given to the client(s).

h) It is clarified that the said rescheduling shall be done at our sole discretion. However, after the passage of 2 working days, no issue or complaint will be addressed and the session will be deemed as complete.

 

L. OBTAINING THE SERVICES BY CLIENT(s)

If you wish to obtain any service made available through us, you may do so by completing the intake form available on the site or by contacting the clinical psychologist for further guidance. The intake form enables the clinical psychologist to understand your needs and determine the nature and suitability of the services to be provided. Clients are not expected to self-diagnose or select services independently.

Before booking, you may be required to provide certain personal information and contact details, including identity verification documents upon request, in accordance with the guidelines of the Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI).

Please note that Fiendishtherapy.com does not directly process payments or store any financial data. All payments for consultations or related services shall be made off-site, to Fiendish® Solutions Pvt. Ltd., through secure methods such as UPI, NEFT, bank transfer, or other approved channels as communicated at the time of booking.

The applicable fees for sessions or other professional services shall be communicated and agreed in writing prior to the commencement of such services.

Fiendish® Solutions Private Limited shall not be responsible for any technical failure, transaction error, or interruption of services occurring at the client’s end or through any third-party payment intermediary. The amount paid by the client(s) for the services is used to compensate us for our administrative and maintenance costs, therapist fees, and related professional expenses.

 

M. REFUND POLICY

Refunds shall be made if the therapist cancels the sessions due to unavoidable circumstances. A full refund may be requested at least 24 hours before the scheduled session. However, no refunds shall be initiated if the client(s) cancels the therapy session at the twenty third hour. Requests made thereafter will not be eligible for refunds. The refund will be initiated within 6-7 working days.

 

N. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS

You understand and admit that we are the owner of all intellectual property rights in the site including any and all databases that hold relevant information about the site. This includes our registered trademarks for "Fiendish®": the word mark registered under Classes 41, 42, 44, and 45 in India (originally registered in 2015 and renewed in 2025); and the composite mark (image/logo plus the word "Fiendish®") registered under Class 35 in India (originally registered in 2018). You are aware that the said database is protected by laws governing the copyright and/or trademark regime in India. You further acknowledge that you may only use any such material available on the site in line with the laws applicable. If you do not use the materials in line with the laws applicable herein, we reserve all our rights conferred to us by law to remedy any such breach.

Additionally, you may not remove or alter, or cause to be removed or alter, any copyright, trademark, trade name, service mark, or any other data available on the site. Modification or use of the content except as expressly provided in these Terms will violate our intellectual property rights. Neither title nor intellectual property rights are transferred to you by access to this site.

 

O. CONFIDENTIALITY

Personal information or business information that you supply to us through the site, other than information that is in the public domain, will be treated confidentially and in line with our Privacy Policy (attach link). Confidential information will not be disclosed to any third party, including for the purposes of marketing, without your prior permission. We will only disclose your information if it is necessary for the performance of our services or where so required by law.

 

P. LINKS TO THIRD-PARTY WEBSITES

We use certain trusted third parties for the purpose of convenience providing high quality content, payment and subscription services, improve, promote and protect our services. We may use third party services to help us provide customer support, manage our advertisement display, data storage assistance and payment gateways. The third party services we currently use are:

  • GoDaddy

  • Wix,

  • Gmail,

  • Apple iCloud

  • Google Meet

  • Google Drive

  • WhatsApp,

You represent and warrant that you have read and have agreed to be bound by all applicable Terms and policies for any third-party websites. Links to such sites are provided as a service to users and are not sponsored by or affiliated with us. Links are to be accessed at your risk, and we make no representations or warranties about the content, completeness or accuracy of the sites linked to or from this site. You shall expressly hold us harmless from any and all liability related to your use of any third-party website.

From time to time, the website will legally utilize intellectual property owned by third parties related to our services. The rights in any third-party trademarks or host copyrighted works on this Website are retained by their respective owners. Nothing in this Agreement shall confer any right of ownership of any of the Trademarks or Copyrights to you.

Further, nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as granting, by implication or otherwise, any license or right to use any Trademark or Copyright by you. The misuse of the Trademark or Copyrighted works displayed in this site, or any other content on the site, is strictly prohibited and may expose you to liability.

 

Q. INDEMNITY

You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless the company, its subsidiaries and affiliated companies, and their officers, directors, employees, partners, contractors, representatives, agents, and third party providers from and against any and all claims, causes of action, damages, obligations, losses, liabilities, costs or debt, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees and costs) and all amounts paid in settlement arising from or relating to, breach of these Terms or violation of any laws. We reserve the right, at our own expense, to assume the exclusive defence and control of any matter for which you have agreed to indemnify us, and you agree to assist and cooperate with us as reasonably required in the defence or settlement of any such matters.

Further in no event shall Fiendish® Solutions Pvt. Ltd, nor its directors, employees, partners, agents, suppliers, or affiliates, be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages, including without limitation, court costs, attorneys’ fees, loss of profits, data, use, goodwill, or other intangible losses, resulting from any acts, opinions, advice, suggestions, information, omissions or services of therapists registered on the Site.

 

R. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

You understand and agree that in no event shall Fiendish® Solutions Pvt. Ltd., nor its directors, employees, partners, agents, suppliers, or affiliates, be liable for any user or any third party for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages, including without limitation, loss of profits, data, use, goodwill, court fees, attorneys’ fees or other intangible losses, resulting from (i) Your access to or use of or inability to access or use of the Site; (ii) any conduct or content of any third party on the Site; (iii) any content obtained from Fiendish® Therapy; and (iv) unauthorized access, use or alteration of the user’s transmissions or content, whether based on warranty, contract, tort (including negligence) or any other legal theory, whether or not we have been informed of the possibility of such damage, and even if a remedy set forth herein is found to have failed of its essential purpose.

In no event shall Fiendish® Solutions Pvt Ltd (and its brand Fiendish® Therapy, nor its directors, employees, partners, agents, suppliers, or affiliates, be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages, including without limitation, court costs, attorneys’ fees, loss of profits, data-use, goodwill, or other intangible losses, resulting from a dispute regarding any transaction conducted via the Site.

If applicable law does not allow the limitation of liability as set forth above, the limitation will be deemed modified solely to the extent necessary to comply with applicable law. This section (limitation of liability) shall survive termination or expiration of this agreement.

 

S. DISCLAIMER

Use of the services available on the site is not for emergencies. The site is not a suicide prevention helpline platform. If you are considering or contemplating suicide or feel that you are a danger to yourself or to others, you are advised to discontinue the use of the services immediately at your discretion. You are also advised to notify appropriate emergency medical personnel. If you are thinking about suicide, immediately call a suicide prevention helpline as available in your area.

 

T. AVAILABILITY, ERRORS AND INACCURACIES

We constantly update our offerings of products and services on the Site. The products or services offered on this Site may be mispriced, described inaccurately, or unavailable, and we may experience delays in updating information on the Site and in the advertising on other websites. We cannot and do not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of any information, including prices, product images, specifications, availability, and services. We reserve the right to change or update information and to correct errors, inaccuracies, or omissions at any time without prior notice.

 

U. TERMINATION

We reserve the right to modify, terminate, suspend or discontinue the platform or any part of the platform or the use of the platform, at any time, without any prior notice to you. Additionally, we may modify, terminate, suspend or discontinue your account or all users accounts, without any prior notice or liability, for any reason whatsoever, including without limitation if the user breaches the terms of this contract in any way and you agree not to hold us liable for any damages or losses caused while carrying out the above mentioned actions.

Upon termination, your right to use the Site will cease immediately. If you wish to terminate your account, you may simply deactivate your account and discontinue using the Site. By deactivating your account, you would no longer be able to login or avail the services listed on the site.

 

V. FORCE MAJEURE

You acknowledge that we shall not be liable for any failure or delay in performance of its obligations under this Agreement i.e. the Terms arising out of or caused, directly or indirectly, by circumstances beyond our reasonable control, including, but not limited to, act(s) of God; earthquakes; fires; floods; wars; civil or military disturbances; acts of terrorism; sabotage; strikes; lockdown, curfews epidemics; pandemics; riots etc.. A Party claiming the benefit of this provision shall, as soon as reasonably practicable after the occurrence of any such event, (a) provide written notice to the other Party of the nature and extent of any such Force Majeure condition; and (b) use commercially reasonable efforts to remove any such causes and resume performance as specified under this Agreement as soon as practicable

 

W. DISPUTE RESOLUTION

If any dispute(s), controversy(s) or claim(s) arises out of or in connection with these Terms, in which we are a party, the disputing parties shall use all reasonable endeavors to negotiate with a view to resolve the dispute(s) controversy(s) or claim(s) amicably. If a party gives the other party notice that a controversy(s) or claim(s) has arisen and the parties are unable to resolve the disputes in an amicable manner within 30 (thirty) days of service of the notice of dispute (or such longer period as the parties may mutually agree), then the controversy(s) or claim(s) shall be referred to arbitration in accordance with the below terms. Subject to the above clause, all Disputes or differences regarding this Agreement shall be submitted to final and binding arbitration. In the event of such arbitration:

a) The arbitration shall be in accordance with the rules of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, in force at the relevant time (which is deemed to be incorporated into this Agreement by reference).

b) All proceedings of such arbitration shall be in the English language. The venue and seat of the arbitration shall be in Bangalore and the courts of Bangalore shall have exclusive jurisdiction over the arbitration proceedings.

c) The Law governing the conduct of arbitration and the arbitration proceedings shall governed by the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, in force at the relevant time.

d) The arbitration shall be conducted before a sole arbitrator appointed by us;

e) Arbitration awards shall be final and binding on the parties; and

f) The existence or subsistence of a dispute between the parties, or the commencement or continuation of arbitration proceedings, shall not, in any manner, prevent or postpone the performance of those obligations of the parties under the Agreement which are not in dispute, and the arbitrators shall give due consideration to such performance, if any, in making a final award.

g) Nothing shall preclude a party from seeking interim or permanent equitable or injunctive relief, or both. The pursuit of equitable or injunctive relief shall not be a waiver of the right of the parties to pursue any other remedy or relief through the arbitration.

 

X. GOVERNING LAW

These Terms shall be governed by and constructed in accordance with the laws of India without reference to conflict of laws principles and disputes arising in relation hereto shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Bangalore.

 

Y. GRIEVANCE OFFICER

In accordance with Information Technology Act, 2000 and rules made there under, the name and contact details of the ‘Grievance Officer’ are provided below:

Name: Umang Narang

Phone No: +91-9650367884

E-mail Address: rivery84@gmail.com

Postal Address: Joy Restaurant, Main Bazar, Palampur, Himachal Pradesh. PIN: 176061.

 

​

 

PRIVACY POLICY

 

This Privacy Policy is effective from 11th September, 2022.

Updated on 18th November, 2025.

 

Through this Privacy Policy, we wish to make you feel more secure while using our website and sharing your personal information with us in addition to making you aware of our policy as outlined below.

 

Fiendish® Solutions Private Limited (“FSPL”, “we”, “us”, “our”) and its clinical psychology-oriented website fiendishtherapy.com, respect your privacy and are committed to protecting it. We take all the necessary steps for safeguarding and securing your personal data and keeping it confidential. This Privacy Policy outlines the manner in which your data is collected, processed, used and stored by FSPL solely for the purpose of facilitating appointment booking with our in-house Clinical Psychologist (registered with the Rehabilitation Council of India) and for providing mental-health related educational information.

 

We may share your personal information with third parties, in limited circumstances, as outlined below under “sharing data with third parties”. You are kindly advised to read our Privacy Policy carefully and use it to make informed decisions. This Statement may change from time to time which may affect how we use your data, so we encourage you to check the Privacy Policy Statement periodically for any such update. The most recent update date will be mentioned at the bottom of this page.

 

This Privacy Policy does not apply to or by those who are not engaged, employed, managed, owned or controlled by us at FSPL including any data collected or usage of a third-party application or website or advertisement that may link to or be accessible from the website. We are not responsible for the data collection or usage by such websites or their privacy policies. Therefore we encourage you to review the privacy policies of each site you visit.

 

 

YOUR RIGHTS 

 

We respect your privacy. If you would like us to delete the data we have collected about you, or would like to opt-out or unsubscribe from any promotional email or messages or any other electronic communication, you may contact us on contact@fiendishtherapy.com.

 

You may also place a “Do not track” request. We do put reasonable efforts from our end to honour such a request. However, we do not guarantee that we will be able to process every type of request made. This is subject to the requirement of maintaining of data under the law and does not cover the data collected by a third party and governed by their own respective policies.

 

In accordance with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (DPDP Act), you have the additional rights to request:

 

  • access to your personal data,

  • correction of inaccurate or incomplete data,

  • erasure of personal data unless retention is required by law,

  • information about how your data has been processed,

  • grievance redressal for any data-related complaint.

 

Such requests may be submitted to: contact@fiendishtherapy.com

 

 

CONSENT 

 

By creating an account on or continuing to use the services provided by us, you agree to our Privacy Policy in the manner provided in our Terms of Services as mentioned in this document. You also acknowledge that we may periodically modify, add or remove any content in this privacy policy based on our discretion, without prior notification.

 

PERSONAL INFORMATION WE COLLECT 

 

We collect the details provided by you during registration and any other information we learn about you while you use our website, and may have automatic access to certain information obtained from cookies sent to your browser and stored on your computer hard drive, acting as data controllers within the scope of this Privacy Policy. One or more of the following information about you may be collected by us, including but not limited to:

 

Contact information and personal identifiers such as name, username, address, email address, contact details including telephone number, demographic profile such as age, gender, occupation, education, IP address, PIN code or any other online identification.

 

User Content: The content provided by you including any comment or review and your communication with us. This also includes identity verification information for customer service support and any other requests, such as, audio recordings of the communication with our customer support. Commercial information, such your preferences or opinion on the service rendered by our website.

 

Online activity information: Your interaction with our website including browsing and search history, digital advertisements and log file information, which includes, but may not be limited to, your browser type, domain server through which you access our services and the webpages you visit.

 

Payment information: Your method of payment and payment card information may be stored such as, payment card number, expiration date, delivery address and billing address, however this will exclude the information of the CVV of your debit or credit card. We access your messages only for the purpose of OTP verification sent for making a payment. We do not have access to any other device information. The payment gateway is secured and encrypted using (whether using any encryption key etc.-This can be made available by the payment gateways themselves).

 

We also monitor website use and customer traffic patterns and collect only relevant information, to improve and provide better service available on our website.

 

Identity verification documents may be requested by the Clinical Psychologist in accordance with RCI regulations. Clients are required to provide a valid Government-issued ID upon request before consultation.

 

Information submitted through any intake form on the website is used solely for preliminary assessment and appointment scheduling; service suitability will be determined exclusively by the Clinical Psychologist.

 

PURPOSE OF PROCESSING YOUR PERSONAL DATA

 

We process your data for securing and improving our services, enhancing web browsing experience, knowing the audience size, understanding your preferences and providing you with a personalised experience and for responding to any inquiry or request you make. The specific information is collected and retained, as outlined in this Policy which is not used for any other purpose.

 

FSPL does not provide psychological diagnosis or treatment through the website itself; all clinical decisions are made solely by the employed Clinical Psychologist.

 

The website does not allow clients to select a clinical service; information provided is used only to assist the Clinical Psychologist in determining suitability for consultation.

 

All data is processed in accordance with the DPDP Act, 2023, using lawful purposes with explicit consent and with implementation of reasonable security safeguards.

 

HOW WE COLLECT YOUR PERSONAL DATA

 

We may receive or collect your personal data from various sources in the following ways:

 

Personal data provided by you: The information you may directly provide us with when you use our website, such as when you create an account or any information request we make when you contact us with a complaint or otherwise.

 

Personal data collected via forms you fill: We may ask you to provide us with certain information at the time of use, of any part of our website, such as by requesting to fill out a form.

 

Cookies and automatic collection methods: We automatically collect information regarding website usage or the browsing patterns, the customer traffic, your IP address, information about your network or location, using common technologies, such as cookies, pixel tags, web beacons and the similar, when you interact with our website or customer support or open an email which we may send. Please refer to the section below for more information.

 

Affiliates: The service providers or third-party partners who work with us such as, advertising companies or analytics providers.

 

Other online interactions: We obtain your personal information from social media platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter only when you interact with us using these platforms or log in using the credentials thereof.

 

 

USE OF COOKIES, PIXEL TAGS AND TRACKING

 

Cookies 

 

We use cookies (a small piece of information) to store information on your computer hard drive and then access it to get certain information. Different providers may assist us with the research who will be bound by the terms and conditions. This helps us to gather statistical data such as the domain name, the last page visited, improving your navigation on this website, enabling us to serve better giving a personalise enhanced experience. You may disable cookies by changing the settings to refuse some or all cookies sent, depending on your browser. However, certain features of the website may become inaccessible or not function properly if you disable or refuse cookies. This included the Web Analytics used for the same purpose. Read the Cookie policy.

 

Pixel Tags

 

We may use pixel tags (also known as web bugs or clear GIFs) on our website that help to track visitors and gather valuable information such as the actions that customers take while browsing the website, the effectiveness of the features available, and advertisements which help understand the audience and customize browsing experience. 

 

Tracking technologies used by affiliates or advertising partners

 

We may work in collaboration with service providers that use cookies and other tracking technologies, which collect anonymous information about you for remarketing, online behavioural tailored advertising and ad delivery, or for sharing the information collected with us to help us improve our service.

 

HOW WE USE YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION

 

We may use or may have used the information we have about you for:

 

Providing and improving our services: To provide better valued services to you, such as processing payments and managing payment history, maintaining your account that you may have with us, and improve our business, including advertisements, website and other business functions.

 

Communication and Analytical purposes: To respond to your requests, inquiries or complaints and understand how you use our website, your preferences.

 

Marketing and Advertising: For a personalised-tailored advertising which may be via email or message or any other medium.

 

Legal compliance: For complying with the law requirement and regular standards of retaining information about its users, to detect, identify and prevent any loss or misuse, fraudulent, or illegal activity.

 

FSPL acts only as a facilitator for appointment booking and does not operate as an intermediary platform connecting multiple professionals. All services are rendered solely by our employed Clinical Psychologist. FSPL’s liability is strictly limited as described in the Terms & Conditions.

 

SHARING DATA WITH THIRD PARTIES

 

In general, we do not share your personal information with companies, organizations, or individuals outside of Fiendish® Solutions Private Limited, except with our affiliates or associated business partners who strictly follow our instructions and keep the data confidential and in limited situations, as follows:

 

Disclosures with consent

 

We may ask you for your consent for sharing personal data with other third-party which has not been covered in this Privacy Policy.

 

Affiliates

 

We share your personal data within the company. In the event of a merger, acquisition, joint ventures, dissolution, liquidation, restructuring, business collaboration or any other business transaction, we have the right to disclose or transfer your personal data.

 

Service providers

 

We share your personal data with the service providers who have access to such information only to perform specific functions and are not authorized to use it for any other purpose. They are required to maintain the same level of security. Amongst other things, service providers help us “target ads”, distribute emails, offer customer service, maintain our website and provide technological solutions, conduct surveys, process payments. 

 

We reserve the right to use, transfer and share anonymous data about users, which does not include any personal data, for developing our business, such as for analysing the customer statistical data.

 

Social Media Platforms

 

We work with third parties such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest that provide for account login or other functionalities, or our website may contain hyperlinks to such sites including their advertisements. This is done for your convenience or to engage the audience. Our Privacy Policy does not apply to such unaffiliated sites and does not imply an endorsement by us. Usage of such features will bind the user to their respective Privacy Policy. If you do not want your data to be accessed or shared by these third parties, you must avoid using any of these features.

 

Online third-party companies 

 

We may share information with third-party companies for marketing, advertising and any other purposes. This helps us to create customised targeted advertisements to attract more users.

 

Mandatory disclosures

 

We may disclose your personal data on your request to a third party or to the extent required by law, to comply with a court order or any legal investigation. We are not responsible for how your data will be maintained and the privacy thereof.  

 

We do not sell, rent, or otherwise monetise client clinical information or appointment-related data.

 

HOW WE SECURE YOUR INFORMATION

 

We take reasonable measures to protect personal data from misuse, loss, unauthorized access alteration or unlawful destruction or whatsoever, arising due to the usage of the website or in connection with the website due to any error, system failure and the like. 

 

Although we are fully dedicated to protecting your personal data and have necessary security tools, we assume no liability or responsibility for any unauthorized third party access or transmission or other causes beyond our control. No method of electronic transmission or storage, is fully secure. We encourage you keep your username and password confidential and not to share with anyone, however, when you have any reason to believe that your username or password has been compromised, please contact us, the contact information has been provided at the bottom of this page. We also have the right to take necessary steps, without any prior notice, when we believe that you have violated our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

 

While we take reasonable measures to secure data, clients understand that no digital system is completely secure and agree to assume responsibility for safeguarding their own login credentials.

 

CHILDREN PRIVACY

 

Our website is not directed at, or intended for use by, children under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect or process the personal data of children in our website. If you believe your child may have provided us with their personal data, you may contact us using the information in the Contact Information section of this Privacy Policy for the deletion of such data.

 

DATA RETENTION 

 

We retain your personal data for as long as is necessary for the purpose for which we collected such data and thereafter, delete the same within a period of six months. This includes the legal requirement of maintaining the data or any other accounting or such requirements.

 

Retention and deletion practices comply with the DPDP Act, 2023, including storage limitation and purpose limitation principles.

 

 

CORRECTION OF DATA

 

You must provide us with correct information about yourself and request us for amendment of any changes that may have taken place, for instance, change of name or address. In the event, we discover that any information previously provided is incomplete, we may request for an update.

 

ADDITIONAL DISCLOSURE

 

We reserve the right to remove your personal data for any reason from our website or to request access to, and modification of such data, with your consent.

 

UPDATES TO THE PRIVACY POLICY

 

We reserve the right, at our own discretion, to change, modify, add or remove portions of this  Privacy Policy at any point of given time without prior notice to you. Only in the event of a material/significant change, we will provide a notification through an email associated with your account or post a notice on our website. Your continued use of the website will constitute your consent to the terms of the updated Policy. We encourage you to review this page periodically in order to be up to date on the most recent version. This Privacy Policy is effective as of the date mentioned at the bottom of the page which remains in effect until a new policy supersedes it and becomes effective. 

 

To the extent the  Privacy Policy is in conflict with any other terms, policy, rules or codes of conduct, the terms contained in these Terms of Service and in the present Privacy Policy shall govern.

 

If at any point you do not agree to any portion of the recent version of our Terms of Service, the Privacy Policy, or any other rules, you must immediately stop using our service.

 

DISPUTE RESOLUTION 

 

Where a privacy dispute or complaint cannot be resolved through our in-house dispute resolution procedure, we grant you the right to require that we enter into binding arbitration with you pursuant to the dispute procedure. No amendment to the Privacy Policy shall apply to any dispute of which we had actual notice before the date of the amendment.

 

CONTACT US/ INFORMATION

 

If you have questions or concerns regarding this Privacy Policy Statement, email us at contact@fiendishtherapy.com or contact us by phone number +91-8826402788, or by writing to us at: 64, CK Palya Road, Hommadevanahalli

Bangalore – 560083

 

If you are submitting a request on behalf of any other person, you must provide proof that you have been authorized by the said individual, to act on his or her behalf. We have the authority to  deny a request from an authorized agent, if the proof of such validation has not been provided. 

 

 

 

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQS)

 

Online Therapy

 

1. How do I prepare for the online appointment?

 

We recommend that you complete these steps at least one day prior to your appointment:

 

  • Make sure your device is fully functional.

  • Download the video conferencing app on the device you will be using.

  • Read the terms & conditions, privacy policy, and FAQs as advised

  • Verify your information with us, such as, demographics and medical information.

  • Verify your appointment timing and confirm the same.

  • Fill in required forms and upload/mail them with the required documents (consent form) and signature (electronic, if necessary).

  • Complete the payment using applicable payment options.

  • In the event of any issue, you may contact us on the details provided in the “contact information” or mail to contact@fiendishtherapy.com.

 

2. What equipment is required for online therapy sessions?

 

Online therapy requires access to a smartphone, computer or any other electronic device with a camera, microphone, and speakers.

3. How does an online session help?

Online therapy or tele-psychotherapy provides psychotherapeutic services via video, audio, text, chat, or email, which can be accessed from anywhere. It is a good option for people who have difficulty accessing such services due to health issues, schedule, location, and even for those who are not comfortable with face-to-face/in-person therapy or are new to therapy.

4. Are online sessions effective?

Among the many benefits of online therapy, one can find this method beneficial especially during a pandemic such as the Covid-19. As technology has evolved and most services are available online, online sessions help to connect with a therapist at one’s own convenience. This can be availed as standalone treatment or alongside traditional sessions. Many popular therapeutic approaches are designed in such a manner that they remain effective even when offered as online therapy sessions. Studies indicate that in many situations online therapy is as effective and successful as the traditional method.


However, this is not recommended in certain situations. For instance, people with severe emotional, psychotic or psychological issues such as, schizophrenia or those with suicidal tendencies. They require intensive care. It is also not recommended for people who cannot regularly attend their sessions due to poor connectivity and/or knowledge.

5. When do you need help?

Psychological help provides support to those undergoing challenging situations in life and to those who have emotional difficulties, including trauma caused by past experiences. One may also need help when subjected to emotional abuse, or when one is experiencing stress or others kind of difficulties. Although some people seek professional help immediately, many others do not. However, most people benefit from therapeutic interventions.

6. How do I book an appointment for an online session?

The website does not allow users to choose services; user submits an intake form or requests guidance. 

To start your healing journey, you may fill out the intake form or contact the clinical psychologist for further guidance, after which the appropriate service will be advised. Appointments are booked only after an initial clinical review.

7. Can I avail of a trial consultation?

No, we do not provide any trial sessions.

8. What should I expect during my first session?

During the first and sometimes the second session, your therapist will get to know you, your problems, build trust and understanding, and schedule future therapy sessions.

Seeking Treatment

1. What treatments are offered?

Psychological therapies may include, but are not limited to, Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) and Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT). During CBT, the therapist helps clients to examine and work with their thoughts, feelings and behavioural patterns. IPT examines how a person’s relationships and interactions with other individuals can affect their own thoughts, feelings and behaviours. DBT is used to help individuals cope with borderline personality disorder (BPD). 

IMPORTANT: There are various other interventions that may be suitable for a particular client’s needs and the decision is made only by the treating RCI-registered clinical psychologist. 

2. Will I get the same psychologist every time?

At present, all services are provided by a single RCI-registered Clinical Psychologist, and therefore you will meet the same professional for all sessions, subject to availability.

3. Can I talk to the therapist at any time I want? [In cases of emergencies?]

You can book an appointment with the clinical psychologist based on his availability. In case of general emergencies, an attempt shall be made to respond as soon as possible but we do not guarantee a time frame). If it is a psychiatric emergency, you should contact a psychiatrist in person. For more details please email at contact@fiendishtherapy.com or call +91-8826402788.

4. How many sessions are required?

The number of sessions and their frequency depend on your requirements and how you respond to therapy.

5. What is the duration of each session?

Each session lasts 50 minutes on an average. However, the therapist may extend the session as per the requirement or in an extremely urgent situation, subject to additional charges.

6. How do I modify my appointment timing?

You may do so under “My Account” section, by logging in with your account credentials and selecting your desired timing, when this feature becomes available. At the moment, please contact us directly.

7. Can I take a session along with my partner and how much fee would be applicable?

Usually, online therapy is for individuals. It is recommended that couples should either take two different sessions or meet in-person for therapy.

8. If I want to connect particularly with a female/male therapist, is it possible?

At present, we cannot accommodate gender-specific therapist requests, as only one male clinical psychologist is available. However, the psychologist is trained to work sensitively with clients of all gender identities and sexual orientations.

9. How do I contact the therapist if I have a doubt regarding homework/assignments/prescription?

You may contact us with any inquiry that you may have, with the details of the therapist. After verifying your details, we will get in touch with the therapist and provide you with the information sought by you. Please note, we do not provide prescriptions of any sort.

10. My reports are in my regional language. What needs to be done?

We recommend getting your reports translated into English from a person specialised to do so.

 

Payments & Refunds

1. How much does it cost?

The cost per session ranges from ₹3,000 per session of 50 minutes depending on the intervention and/or assessments, which is advised after your intake review.

2. What does the fee package cover?


Our fee structure covers your consultation with the clinical psychologist. At present, no packages are not offered, and sessions are scheduled only after clinical review of your intake form.

3. How do I pay my bill?

You can pay your bill through My Payment section if and when this feature becomes available. 

Currently, we accept:

UPI (Google Pay/Phone Pe)
Net Banking (IMPS/NEFT).

4. Whom can I contact if I have any questions about my bill?

If you have any questions about your bill, you may speak with our customer support by writing to contact@fiendishtherapy.com.

5. Can I avail the benefit of my Mediclaim?

No, you are not entitled to claim the benefit of your Mediclaim.

6. What happens when the session does not take place?

In the event, your session does not take place, you are entitled to a 100% refund.

Privacy & Confidentiality

1. Do I need to submit any additional documents or a proof of identification?

Yes, a valid government ID card needs to be submitted while filling out the required form. However, we may request you to upload your medical records if we are required to liaise with medical practitioners at any time to improve your treatment outcomes.

2. Who can gain access to my personal data such as my medical documents?

All the information that you share with us is secure and confidential. We respect your privacy and therefore, take all the necessary steps to safeguard your information which is shared only with the assigned professional. No other person has access to it. Personal data is processed in accordance with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.

3. Can I sign up to receive appointment reminders?

Yes, you can sign up for receiving your online session appointment reminders via email or text message when this feature becomes available. At the moment, we do not offer this feature. 

4. How do I opt out?

For opting out of our services, you may directly contact us or send us an email as per the details provided in the “contact us” section.

 

Telepsychotherapy in Detail 

 

1. Which are the legal bodies that regulate the conduct of psychologists?

 

The Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI) is the legal body tasked with regulating, monitoring, and providing guidelines on training, qualifications, and quality of counselling and therapy services being provided. The Telemedicine Practice Guidelines issued in March 2020[1], supplemented by the Guidelines issued by the Department of Clinical Psychology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS) provides the basic framework for regulating tele-psychopathic services. Besides, the services offered on this website are provided exclusively by an RCI-registered Clinical Psychologist, who adheres to all tele-psychotherapy guidelines prescribed by NIMHANS.

[1] Telemedicine Practice Guidelines, available at https://www.mohfw.gov.in/pdf/Telemedicine.pdf.

2. What are tele-psychotherapy services?

 

As per the Guidelines issued by the Department of Clinical Psychology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, tele-psychotherapy services are defined as “the provision of psychotherapy services using telecommunication technologies including email, text messaging, video conferencing, online chat, messaging, or internet phone”.[2]

[2] Guidelines for delivering tele-psychotherapy services, Department of Clinical Psychology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, available at: http://nimhans.ac.in/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Guidelines-for-Telepsychotherapy-Services-17.4.2020.pdf.

3. Why is tele-psychotherapy gaining more relevance?

 

Tele-psychotherapy is relevant during pandemic outbreaks, when a patient is unable to travel, or when the movement of people is restricted entirely, thus reducing the opportunities to seek in-person therapy sessions. To adapt to these challenging times, the use and acceptance of technology are necessary to keep therapy sessions accessible and continuous for those in need.

 

4. How is tele-psychotherapy conducted?

 

Tele-psychotherapy is conducted using real-time communication technology such as text/calling with the help of various applications which allow for the same, such as Skype/WhatsApp or any other application. Tele-psychotherapy can be a standalone therapy session, or it can be used in conjunction with in-person therapy sessions. IMC (Professional Conduct, Etiquette, and Ethics Regulation, 2002) must be followed by all mental wellness experts including psychiatrists while conducting tele-psychotherapy. Although clinical psychologists are not medical professionals, we adhere to the stringent norms prescribed by IMC and applicable data protection standards including DPDP Act 2023.

 

5. Who can receive tele-psychotherapy services?

 

The practitioner should carefully assess each and every client to ascertain their suitability for tele-psychotherapy, keeping in mind the limitations and modality associated with this form of consultation. The Telemedicine Practice Guidelines March 2020, under proviso 3.1.1 stipulates that telemedicine should only be offered after carefully examining sufficient and appropriate context. The clinical psychologist should exercise their professional judgment to decide whether a telemedicine consultation is appropriate in a given situation or an in-person consultation is needed in the interest of the patient. They should consider the mode/technologies available and their adequacy for a diagnosis before choosing to proceed with any health education or counselling. They should be reasonably comfortable that telemedicine is in the patient’s interest after taking a holistic view of the given situation.

Broadly, the following clients or group of clients can be considered suitable and offered tele-psychotherapy after assessing their needs, suitability and consideration of alternate option:

  1. Pre-registered clients for whom a detailed evaluation has been completed earlier, and a provisional diagnosis has already been made. They may have also completed a psychotherapy intake session in-person. This would ensure continuity of psychological services in situations where there is sustained disruption of in-person psychotherapy sessions (e.g., due to the Covid-19 pandemic) or when in-person sessions are not possible due to geographical relocation, etc.

  2. Clients who have accessed helplines (e.g. those set up during the COVID-19 pandemic) and are referred for more intensive/longer-term psychotherapy services.

  3. Clients who are referred for psychotherapy by health professional colleagues/ organizations/ others or those who seek psychotherapy services directly.

  4. Client factors such as cognitive abilities, current clinical status, and their comfort with using this method. Those with severe psychopathology and/or suicide risk are not suitable for tele-psychotherapy sessions. Other appropriate options such as in-person psychiatric evaluation and treatment or other appropriate referrals would be recommended for these groups of clients.

  5. Technological and logistical factors such as access to and comfort with technology (e.g., mobile phones, internet connectivity), and reasonable level of privacy for the client in their home setting.

  6. When clinical psychologists/trainees are working in multidisciplinary teams/with other professional colleagues/consultants, it is advisable to include these members in decisions regarding tele-psychotherapy services planned for each client.

 

6. What are the legal compliances required for tele-psychotherapy sessions?

 

The practitioner must mandatorily take the informed consent of his client to conduct the tele-Psychotherapy session. This is in line with the Tele-Medicine Guidelines under proviso 3.4.2 and regulation prescribed by the RCI. The proviso 3.4.2 reads as: “An Explicit patient consent is needed if: A Health worker, mental wellness expert or a Caregiver initiates a Telemedicine consultation”. 

The relative advantages and potential limitations of tele-psychotherapy sessions vis-à-vis in person psychotherapy sessions also need to be outlined. If therapist and client are in remote locations, the informed consent form could be sent via email to the clients. They should have the opportunity to seek any clarifications from the therapist, if needed, before providing consent. Clients may respond via email that they have read the document, understood it and give consent for this method of service provision.

 

In addition to the above, all tele-psychotherapy services comply with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (“DPDP Act”). Explicit consent is obtained before processing personal data, and clients may exercise all rights under the DPDP Act, including the right to withdraw consent and the right to correction.

 

7. What confidentiality issues need to be addressed?

 

Clinical psychologists are obligated to adhere to rules prescribed by the RCI and tele-medicine guidelines, to try and ensure confidentiality, inform clients about the limits to confidentiality, and address risks to confidentiality specific to the use of technology in service delivery. Telemedicine Practice Guidelines March 2020, under proviso 3.7.1 expressly deals with medical ethics, data privacy and confidentiality. Quoted herein the said part which is relevant: 

 

  • “3.7.1 Principles of medical ethics, including professional norms for protecting patient privacy and confidentiality as per IMC Act shall be binding and must be upheld and practiced.

  • 3.7.2 Registered mental wellness expert would be required to fully abide by Indian Medical Council (Professional conduct, Etiquette and Ethics) Regulations, 2002 and with the relevant provisions of the IT Act, Data protection and privacy laws or any applicable rules notified from time to time for protecting patient privacy and confidentiality and regarding the handling and transfer of such personal information regarding the patient. This shall be binding and must be upheld and practiced.” 

 

This includes obligations under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, including lawful processing of personal data, reasonable security safeguards, and breach notification duties, to the extent applicable.

 

  • Data Sharing: During the process of taking the informed consent, both the client and therapist should state and agree that neither of them would record the session and share the session content via any means. 

  • Security System: It is imperative that tele-psychotherapy services require the use of network and system which are secure against any possible data breeches. The client must be informed of the possibility of unintended breaches of security due to gaps in technology despite safeguards, for which neither the client nor the therapist may be held responsible.

  • Data Storage: All sensitive data relating to the client and therapy session should be stored in a safe and secure manner. Data should be protected using a proper anti-virus solution to prevent any loss or corruption of data. 

 

Reasonable security measures shall comply with DPDP Act 2023 obligations for data fiduciaries.

 

Limits to confidentiality: As in face-to-face sessions, concerns regarding the risk of harm to the client or others constitute the limits to confidentiality and these need to be discussed with the client.

 

All personal data, including sensitive personal data such as mental health information, is processed strictly in accordance with the DPDP Act 2023. Data is used only for providing psychological services, stored securely, and is not shared without explicit consent unless required by law or where there is risk of harm.

8. What are the procedures of documentation required under the law?

 

Tele-psychotherapy requires various documentation to be preserved at different stages of psychotherapy sessions. Under Section 13 of the RCI Notification 1998, the registered psychologist must maintain proper documents, etc.  Section 13 of the RCI notification reads as: “Maintenance of registers, etc.- Every professional shall maintain the proper daily record of persons examined, certificates, reports or prescriptions issued and the accounts of consultation fee, service charges and other charges received by him.” Further, Telemedicine Practice Guidelines March 2020 proviso 3.7.2 mandates that certain documents pertaining to consultation has to be maintained by the mental wellness expert. The relevant part is stated below: 

 

“3.7.2 MAINTAIN DIGITAL TRAIL/ DOCUMENTATION OF CONSULTATION It is incumbent on mental wellness expert to maintain the following records/ documents for the period as prescribed from time to time: 3.7.2.1 Log or record of Telemedicine interaction (e.g., Phone logs, email records, chat/ text record, video interaction logs etc.). 3.7.2.2 Patient records, reports, documents, images, diagnostics, data etc. (Digital or non-Digital) utilized in the telemedicine consultation should be retained by the mental wellness expert 3.7.2.3 Specifically, in case a prescription is shared with the patient, the mental wellness expert is required to maintain the prescription records as required for in-person consultations.”

 

Therefore, the documents which are required to be maintained by the psychologist can be summarized as:

 

  • Reasons for the choice to use tele-psychotherapy services for a particular client.

  • Documentation of all tele-sessions should be maintained including details such as date, time, duration, modality of sessions, client and therapist details, and brief session notes in a uniform format. A sample Therapy Session Recording as prescribed under the Mental Health Care Act, 2017 can be accessed at (main.mohfw.gov.in › files › Final Draft Rules MHC Act, 2017 (1), dated 20th September, 2017). 

  • Details of any crisis or recommendations made for accessing emergency contact/other services.

  • Any consultation or referral to another professional or service; e.g. a psychiatrist for evaluation/medication, state administration or agencies in contexts of risk/violence.

  • Reasons for stopping or temporarily discontinuing tele-psychotherapy sessions if adjudged to be unhelpful to the client or any change in tele-psychotherapy medium used, along with clear recommendations about other options for continued care.

  • The document pertaining to the informed consent obtained from the client detailing that all the necessary information regarding tele-psychotherapy sessions has been duly explained to the client, and that the client has understood it, and is willingly opting for the tele-psychotherapy services. 

 

Documentation practices also follow Section 8 and Section 9 of the DPDP Act 2023 regarding data accuracy, purpose limitation, and reasonable security safeguards.

 

9. What is considered as a misconduct by a clinical psychologist, therapist etc. in tele-psychotherapy consultation?

Tele-Medicine Guidelines under proviso 3.7.1.4 states that in addition to all general requirements under the MCI Act for professional conduct, ethics etc., while using telemedicine all actions that willfully compromise patient care or privacy and confidentiality, or violate any prevailing law are explicitly not permissible. The relevant part of the provision is quoted below: 

 

  1. “Clinical psychologist, therapist etc. insisting on telemedicine, when the patient is willing to travel to a facility and/or requests an in-person consultation

  2. Clinical psychologist, therapist etc. misusing patient images and data, especially private and sensitive in nature (e.g., clinical psychologist, therapist etc. uploads an explicit picture of patient on social media etc.)

  3. Clinical psychologist, therapist etc. who use telemedicine to prescribe medicines from the specific restricted list

  4. Clinical psychologist, therapist etc. are not permitted to solicit patients for telemedicine through any advertisements or inducements”

Misuse, unlawful sharing, or negligent handling of personal data in violation of the DPDP Act 2023 also constitutes professional misconduct.

 

10. What is the process of a tele-psychotherapy consultation?

 

As per the proviso 4.1 of Telemedicine Practice Guidelines 2020 which reads as “Specifically, this section details with the key elements of the process of teleconsultation to be used in the First consults and Follow up consults when a patient consults with a mental health expert”, and Directives of National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, the process of tele-psychotherapy can be summarized as: 

 

  1. Tele-psychotherapy sessions are to be conducted only on appointment basis, as emergency services do not fall within its purview.

  2. Appointments can be fixed via text messages or email. Email communication may be used for sending resource material to clients, if needed.

  3. A reasonably private and quiet space for sessions, for both therapist and client, needs to be ensured before the initiation of sessions. 

  4. During video-conferencing, ensure the ideal positioning of camera so that both the therapist and the client are visible, and clear any personal belongings in the background. 

  5. All other applications and notifications should be minimised to reduce distractions during the sessions. 

  6. The date/time/frequency/potential duration of psychotherapy session to be discussed in advance along with the procedure for rescheduling missed sessions or those interrupted due to problems with internet or mobile connectivity/related issues.

  7. During the session, if there are any difficulties in communication (technical) the session will be terminated and a new appointment will be scheduled. 

  8. The turnaround time for responding to email communication should also be specified by the therapist for each specific client. 

  9. Tele-psychotherapy sessions cannot involve the use of artificial intelligence (AI) based intervention unless the same has been approved by a relevant agency in the country.  

 

AI-based tools are not used in therapy on this website. All services are provided exclusively by an RCI-registered Clinical Psychologist.

 

11. Who can offer tele-psychotherapy services?

 

ONLY qualified clinical psychologists under the Mental Health Care Act, 2017, who are recognized to practice as clinical psychologists in India according to the Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI) guidelines ARE ALLOWED to offer tele-psychotherapy services.

At present, this website offers tele-psychotherapy services exclusively through one RCI-registered Clinical Psychologist. The website itself is not a mental-health platform and does not independently provide therapy; it functions only as an appointment-facilitation and information-providing website.

bottom of page