Our commitment to respectful care.

At Blue Door Psychology, we are committed to providing a respectful, supportive experience for all clients and families. We believe everyone has the right to be heard, understood and treated with dignity.

We understand families may be navigating a difficult time, and we will always aim to communicate with care, fairness and professionalism.

We also believe our team has the right to work in a safe environment. We ask all clients and visitors to treat our staff with courtesy, consideration and respect at all times. This applies to all forms of communication, including in person, phone, video calls, email and written correspondence.

Our team are encouraged to make reasonable judgement calls about situations where they feel unsafe or uncomfortable, and this policy helps us respond to unacceptable behaviour in a consistent and professional way.

Unacceptable behaviour.

Examples of behaviour that may be considered unacceptable include (but are not limited to):

Aggressive , abusive or intimidating behaviour.

This includes verbal or written behaviour that causes our team to feel threatened, bullied, harassed, offended, or unsafe, including:

• Threatening language in person, by phone, or in emails/messages.

• Malicious allegations.

• Inappropriate or offensive comments on social media.

• Inappropriate banter, including innuendo, jokes or stories that are sexual, humiliating, or degrading.

• Derogatory or discriminatory remarks, including comments relating to race, sex, gender identity, sexuality, age, disability, religion or any other protected characteristic.

• Any form of physical violence, aggressive conduct, or threats of violence.

Unreasonable demands or vexatious complaints

What is considered unreasonable will depend on the circumstances and the seriousness of the issue raised. Examples may include:

• Refusing to follow a reasonable complaints process.

• Repeatedly contacting the clinic in a way that is disproportionate to the concern raised.

• Excessive volume of correspondence, or unreasonable time demands on staff.

• Insisting on speaking to a particular team member when a suitable alternative has been offered.

We recognise that persistence is not necessarily unacceptable behaviour. This section applies where communication becomes unreasonable, hostile, or significantly disrupts our ability to provide care.

Our response and procedures.

No member of our team is expected to tolerate unacceptable behaviour. When this occurs, we may take steps to protect staff and other clients, including:

• Ending a phone or video call.

• Not responding to abusive or aggressive emails/messages.

• Asking a person to leave the clinic premises.

Where appropriate, we will usually provide a clear warning so the person has an opportunity to modify their behaviour. Depending on the situation, we may also:

• Ask you to change your behaviour and explain why it is not acceptable.

• Remove ourselves from the interaction if the behaviour continues.

• Document the incident in clinic records.

• Review the situation and determine next steps, which may include limiting communication methods or discontinuing services.

• Contact police or emergency services if we believe there is a risk to safety or a criminal offence may have occurred.

Questions, concerns, or complaints.

If you have any queries or concerns about this Client Conduct Policy, please contact us by phone or email, or discuss it with us in person.

You can also view or download our Complaints and Feedback Process via our website.