Informed Consent Form

Informed Consent Form

BPD Coach

1. Purpose and Overview

This Informed Consent Form explains what the BPD Coach tool is, how it works, what to expect when using it, and what your rights are as a user. By checking the consent box (or taking another affirmative action), you confirm that you understand the purpose and limitations of this service, and that you voluntarily agree to participate.

🔍 What Is BPD Coach?

BPD Coach is an AI-powered support and educational tool created by Personality Disorder CIC. It is designed to assist informal carers — such as parents, partners, and family members — who support someone with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD).

It offers:

  • Psychoeducation about BPD and caregiving challenges
  • Suggestions for communication strategies, emotional regulation, and crisis de-escalation
  • Role-play interactions based on real-life scenarios
  • Guidance grounded in psychological models like DBT, MBT, CAT, Schema Therapy, and GPM

❌ What It Is Not

BPD Coach is not:

  • A therapy or counselling service
  • A diagnostic tool
  • A real-time crisis response system
  • Supervised or monitored by a human clinician
  • Suitable for individuals with BPD seeking support for themselves

📝 Your Consent

By proceeding, you acknowledge that:

  • You understand what the tool offers and its limitations
  • You are using the Service voluntarily and can withdraw at any time
  • You have read and understood the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy
  • You are over 18 and acting in a caregiving capacity

You may download a copy of this form for your records.

2. Risks and Benefits

Before using BPD Coach, it is important that you understand both the potential benefits and the risks of engaging with the tool. This ensures your consent is informed, voluntary, and based on a realistic understanding of what the service can and cannot offer.

✅ Potential Benefits

Users of BPD Coach may experience:

  • Improved understanding of BPD symptoms, behaviours, and emotional responses
  • Increased confidence in responding to difficult situations as a carer
  • Access to practical tools for setting boundaries, validating emotions, and managing distress
  • Reduced sense of isolation through recognition of common carer challenges
  • Education grounded in evidence-based psychological therapies

These benefits are not guaranteed, and their extent may vary based on your individual circumstances, consistency of use, and engagement with the material.

⚠️ Potential Risks

Although BPD Coach is designed with care and safeguards, there are inherent risks to consider:

  • Emotional discomfort: Some topics may trigger sadness, frustration, or anxiety — particularly if they reflect real challenges in your caregiving relationship.
  • False reassurance: As the content is AI-generated, it may appear helpful without being accurate or appropriate to your unique situation.
  • Inadequate support in crisis: The tool is not capable of recognising or responding to emergencies reliably. Crisis-related input should always be directed to human services.
  • Misinterpretation: AI suggestions may be misunderstood or applied in ways that worsen communication or cause unintended conflict.
  • Privacy concerns: Although we work to protect your data (see Privacy Policy), any data you submit carries some risk if misused, especially if you share identifiable personal information in your prompts.

🧭 Using the Tool Responsibly

You are encouraged to:

  • Use BPD Coach in a calm, private, and emotionally safe setting
  • Take breaks if you feel overwhelmed or upset
  • Contact your GP, therapist, or a crisis service if you experience distress
  • Avoid inputting real names or identifiable information when describing others

3. Voluntary Participation and Withdrawal

Your use of BPD Coach is entirely voluntary. You are free to start, pause, or stop using the tool at any time, without penalty, restriction, or obligation to explain.

✅ Voluntary Participation

  • You are under no obligation to create an account or continue using BPD Coach after consenting.
  • Consent is not a contract — it grants us limited permission to process your information for the duration of your participation.
  • You may choose to skip questions, end sessions early, or avoid using features that feel unhelpful.

🚪 Withdrawal from the Service

You may withdraw your participation by:

  1. Logging out and ceasing use of the Service;
  2. Requesting account deletion (if applicable);
  3. Emailing us to revoke consent for data processing (see Section 5 for contact info).

Upon withdrawal:

  • Your access to the tool may be deactivated (particularly if you’re on a paid plan);
  • We will delete your personal data, unless we are required to retain it for safeguarding, legal, or audit purposes (see our [Privacy Policy]);
  • Any anonymised interaction data already processed for safety or platform development purposes will not be recoverable or identifiable.

🛠 Opting Out of Research or Feedback (if applicable)

If you’ve opted into any research, user testing, or optional feedback mechanisms, you may withdraw from those components separately without affecting your general access to BPD Coach.

4. Confidentiality and Data Handling

We take your confidentiality seriously and aim to protect any personal data you provide in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

This section summarises how your data will be handled when using BPD Coach.

🔒 Data We May Process

Depending on how you use the Service, we may collect:

  • Your email address and basic account details (if you register or subscribe)
  • Anonymised or pseudonymised interaction content (e.g. text prompts, AI responses)
  • Technical data such as device type, IP region, and usage metrics
  • Any sensitive personal data you voluntarily submit through prompts

We do not actively collect identifying information about the individual with BPD whom you support. You are encouraged to use pseudonyms and omit identifying details whenever possible.

📁 How We Use Your Data

We use your data to:

  • Operate and improve the BPD Coach tool
  • Detect harmful or crisis-related input
  • Respond to your support enquiries
  • Track usage metrics for safety and performance
  • Comply with legal obligations

Your full data rights are explained in the [Privacy Policy].

🧷 Safeguards and Limits to Confidentiality

All data is handled in accordance with our internal data protection policies, which include:

  • Encryption during transmission and storage
  • Limited access for staff on a need-to-know basis
  • Anonymisation of data used for analysis or quality assurance

However, confidentiality may be broken if:

  • We believe you or someone else is at imminent risk of serious harm
  • We are legally compelled to disclose information (e.g. court order or safeguarding duty)
  • You make a disclosure that requires referral to a statutory agency under UK safeguarding law

In such cases, we will take proportionate steps to share only the information necessary and, where appropriate, attempt to inform you in advance.

5. Contact and Questions

We want you to feel fully informed and empowered in your decision to use BPD Coach. If you have any questions about this consent form, the tool itself, or how your data will be handled, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

📮 Contact Details

Personality Disorder CIC
Company Number: 16363152
24 Pope Crescent
Enderby
Leicester
England
LE19 4QT

Email: [Insert support or data protection email]
Subject line: Informed Consent – Question or Concern

📝 Acknowledgement of Understanding

By ticking the consent box or affirmatively proceeding with the use of BPD Coach, you confirm that:

  • You are aged 18 or over;
  • You have read and understood the contents of this Informed Consent Form;
  • You understand that BPD Coach is not a substitute for therapy or medical advice;
  • You are participating voluntarily and can withdraw at any time;
  • You understand your rights regarding privacy and data protection.