Privacy policy
Last updated — September 2026
I’m Aaron O’Connell, a clinical psychologist in private practice. This policy explains what personal information I collect through this website and my practice, why I collect it, and how I look after it. I follow the Privacy Act 2020 and the Health Information Privacy Code 2020, which sets stricter rules for health information.
What I collect
- When you get in touch. The details you enter in the contact form — your name, phone number, the best time to reach you, email address and message, depending on what you’re asking for.
- When you book. The details you enter on my booking page, which is run by Acuity Scheduling.
- When you join my email list. Your email address.
- When we work together. The health information you share in sessions, my clinical notes, the written plans I send you, and invoices.
- When you visit this website. Information about how the site is used, collected by Google Analytics. It doesn’t identify you by name (see Website analytics below).
Messages sent through this website
The contact form, the email sign-up and email in general aren’t a secure way to share sensitive information. Please keep your message to a brief outline — enough for me to understand what you’re looking for — and don’t include clinical details, your health history or anything else you’d want kept confidential. We can talk about those privately when we speak.
How I use it
I use your information to reply to you, arrange and provide appointments, keep clinical records, invoice, and — only if you’ve signed up — send occasional emails. I never sell your information or share it for marketing.
Where it’s kept
- Website messages and email sign-ups are received through Netlify, the service that hosts this website.
- Bookings are handled by Acuity Scheduling.
- Clinical records are kept in Zanda, a secure clinical practice management system. I use its note-taking tool to turn our conversation into structured clinical notes.
- Website usage statistics are collected by Google Analytics.
Some of these providers store information outside New Zealand. I choose services with strong security safeguards and share only what each one needs.
Website analytics
This website uses Google Analytics to understand how it’s used — for example, which pages are visited, how people find the site, and roughly which part of the country they’re in. Google Analytics sets cookies and collects information such as your device, browser and approximate location. It doesn’t tell me who you are, and nothing you type into a form is sent to it. Google’s advertising features are switched off.
You can stop Google Analytics collecting information about you by blocking cookies in your browser or installing Google’s opt-out browser add-on.
This website doesn’t use advertising cookies. It also remembers, in your browser only, whether you’ve already seen its welcome message, so it doesn’t show again during your visit. That isn’t sent anywhere.
Confidentiality
What you tell me is confidential. I’ll share your information only with your agreement — for example, with your GP, or with Southern Cross for an insurance claim — or where the law allows or requires it, such as when there’s a serious risk to your safety or someone else’s. I may discuss my work in professional supervision without identifying you.
How long I keep it
Clinical records are kept for at least 10 years after our last contact, as required by the Health (Retention of Health Information) Regulations 1996. Website messages that don’t lead to an appointment are deleted once they’re no longer needed.
Your rights
You can ask to see the information I hold about you, and ask me to correct it. Email aaron@cbt.co.nz and I’ll respond within 20 working days. You can leave my email list at any time using the link in any email, or by replying to let me know.
Concerns
If you have a concern about how I’ve handled your information, please talk to me first. You can also contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner (privacy.org.nz, 0800 803 909) or the Health and Disability Commissioner (hdc.org.nz, 0800 11 22 33).