Online Therapy Through Zoom

Over the past few years, the field of mental health care has witnessed a substantial transformation due to the rise of online therapy.

As technology continues to advance an increasing number of individuals are turning to virtual platforms to access the support they need.

At Kensington Counselling Rooms, we have chosen the online service of Zoom, for the additional encrypted security it offers, which makes it more confidential than services like Skype and FaceTime.

Just as in face-to-face psychotherapy and counselling, with online Zoom sessions, we recommend that you take some things into consideration. We ask everyone who is interested in this service to make an initial appointment with the practitioner of your choice. During the initial appointment with your counsellor, you will decide whether this way of working is the most beneficial for you. Although some of you may choose to carry on the therapy online after the coronavirus epidemic, you will also have an option to have your therapy face to face at 125 Gloucester Road.

As with face-to-face work, privacy is extremely important. Our practitioners work in a safe, private environment with no interruptions, and if Zoom sessions are to be effective, it will be necessary for you to also find a quiet and private space, with no interruptions for each online appointment, so that privacy and confidentiality can be maintained in the work.

Although online Zoom sessions offer more flexibility around time and schedules, you would be expected to have the same commitment to your online therapy or supervision as you would be asked to have for any face-to-face appointments. Punctuality and commitment are just as important, when the work is happening via Zoom.

Technical advice (if needed)

When you sign up for your initial appointment with a practitioner of your choice (see below):
1. Your counsellor will send you a link to the appointment.
2. Please click on the link before the appointment to make sure you can access the waiting area.
3. The program will most likely ask you to install a small Zoom interface.
4. You can configure audio and video during the call (see video on the right).
5. At the time of your online zoom counselling session your therapist will admit you to the call.

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Is zoom safe for counselling and psychotherapy?

In the US, health authorities specified criteria for safe online working for clinicians. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, also known as HIPAA compliance, is awarded to services that provide sufficient encryption and privacy for remote therapeutic and medical work. Facetime, Skype, Facebook or Google are not HIPAA compliant as they collect personal information or listen to the conversations. In our conversation with Skype, we were told that they listen to some of the calls to ensure the best quality of their service. As much as this is great for their product, this is not suitable for the privacy that counselling and psychotherapy require.
Zoom is HIPAA compliant and has a strong privacy policy. Even though in March 2020, some journalist identified flaws in the system that made it more vulnerable to hacking or spamming, the company have resolved the issues and continuously works on making Zoom safe. With the most AES 256-bit GCM encryption, Zoom is as safe as a bank website and we recommed it to our therapists and clients.

Counsellors and Psychotherapists offering Online Therapy via Zoom

If you think that online Zoom sessions could be a good option for you, check our directory of practitioners, choose one, and then get in touch with them to arrange an appointment.