Mental health — pilot and telemedicine terms

02

Authorization before every clinical appointment

Clinical appointments may begin only after the responsible provider verifies and records the service’s registration or habilitation, the clinician’s credentials and permitted scope, and legal permission to treat a patient physically located in the stated country and state or region.

Location is reconfirmed at every encounter, including after travel. Nationality, a payment, a membership, consent, or the word “pilot” does not authorize clinical practice. If any required permission cannot be verified, routine clinical booking and delivery must remain unavailable; offer appropriate local referral instead.

The transition to a fully registered telemedicine service is targeted for December 31, 2026, subject to the competent Colombian health authorities and any other applicable authority. This is a planning target, not a representation that an application has been filed, a registration granted, or care authorized in every jurisdiction.

The December fee change does not override these prerequisites. Until verified, Global publishes the program’s requirements, not a certificate of regulatory compliance.

03

Pilot: no audio or video recording

No program session may be recorded during the pilot, which ends November 30, 2026, even if a participant offers consent. This prohibition covers platform and local recording, screen capture, automated transcription, AI meeting assistants and participant or observer recording.

The treating psychologist still maintains the legally required clinical record through the approved private process. Recording must remain disabled after the pilot until the separate technical, clinical and legal release requirements below are documented; no calendar date automatically enables it.

04

Future recording: separate, optional clinical consent

After formal release, a treating psychologist may propose recording only where clinically justified for assessment, documenting progress or an approved critical-case consultation. Before each recording, explain the exact purpose, modality, duration, custodian, storage country, authorized access, retention period or lawful criteria, deletion limits, security risks and withdrawal channel; obtain and document separate informed authorization before starting.

Do not use preselected consent or bundle it with payment or ordinary care. Refusal or withdrawal must not reduce access to otherwise appropriate care. For a minor, obtain legally valid representative authorization and age-appropriate assent, respecting applicable mature-minor rules; all identifiable participants in a joint session must agree.

Stop recording when authorization is withdrawn. Withdrawal prevents new optional recording or viewing but does not erase lawful prior use or records subject to mandatory retention or a legal hold; explain those limits and review deletion requests.

Routine content access is restricted to the treating psychologist. Exceptional lawful access for patient rights, safeguarding, security investigation or binding legal duties must be narrowly authorized and logged, never used as a general access permission.

Recordings cannot be used for advertising, donor inspections, student teaching, research, publication, staff entertainment or AI training.

05

Critical-case consultation: no transferable recordings

Use a minimum-necessary de-identified clinical summary first. An external psychiatrist or other qualified healthcare expert may view an excerpt only when critical clinical need is documented, a less intrusive option is inadequate, the patient has specifically authorized that consultation, and both the Department of Global Health and Philanthropy and the Director of the Mental Health Program have given written approval.

Verify the expert’s identity, credentials, jurisdiction and conflicts; obtain a signed confidentiality and limited-use agreement and any legally required data-processing or business-associate agreement before access. An NDA alone is not a lawful basis for disclosure.

Any permitted viewing occurs only in the treating psychologist’s controlled presence, with no file transfer, email, download, copying, screenshots, external recording or independent access. Viewing is itself a disclosure and must be recorded in the access log.

Remove names, faces, recognizable voices, metadata and identifying contextual details; blurring a name or assigning a code does not make a recording anonymous. If adequate de-identification cannot be established, the expert must not view the recording under this protocol: use a suitably de-identified summary or a separate lawful clinical referral.

Record the excerpt, recipient, purpose, consent, approvals, time and clinical conclusion. These approval steps must never delay necessary emergency protection or legally required reporting; disclose only what that separate legal duty permits.

06

Security, HIPAA and international privacy

Before clinical operation, document a privacy and security risk assessment, approved private intake and record storage, encryption in transit and at rest with managed keys, individual staff accounts, multifactor authentication, least-privilege permissions, access logs, vendor and subprocessor review, tested recovery and incident response, and a legally validated retention and deletion schedule.

Do not place IDs, clinical records or recordings in Global’s public forms, chat, donor database or ordinary email. Recording requires its own documented security release and tested removal of download and sharing permissions.

These are mandatory operating prerequisites, not a claim that Global has already implemented or audited an external clinical platform.

US citizenship alone does not determine HIPAA applicability. Before serving a person in the United States or handling information for a US covered entity, assess covered-entity or business-associate status, applicable federal and state privacy law, clinician authorization where the patient is physically located, consent and emergency response.

Where HIPAA applies, complete the required privacy, security and breach-response controls and business associate agreements with relevant vendors. Particular records may have additional restrictions, including substance-use treatment records where applicable. No blanket “HIPAA certified” or worldwide authorization is represented.

Where the GDPR or another international privacy regime applies, establish the applicable territorial scope, lawful bases for health-data processing, patient rights, processor contracts, impact assessment where required and lawful international transfer mechanism before processing.

A consent checkbox does not resolve all these requirements. Patients receive the service-specific privacy notice and a private rights-request route before submitting health information. Mandatory patient, consumer and professional rights remain intact.

07

A subsidized program, with clear fee exemptions

The pilot is free through November 30, 2026. From December 1, 2026, the standard session price is USD 5, subject to lawful service availability. Sessions remain free for people aged 65 or older and for citizens or residents of a World Bank low-income economy under the classification effective when eligibility is assessed.

Either qualifying citizenship or qualifying residence is sufficient; the patient’s actual location is separately assessed for lawful care. Verify only necessary evidence privately, offer assistance where documents are difficult to obtain, and resolve eligibility before payment.

Classification changes are communicated prospectively and do not retrospectively reprice confirmed appointments.

The USD 5 contribution supports the program’s financial sustainability; microscopIA intends to cover most expenses as a social-responsibility initiative, complemented by voluntary philanthropic support. This is a co-funded model, not a claim that USD 5 covers the full clinical cost.

Donating is optional and never a condition for care, priority or a fee exemption. Support an initiative at /support or contact philanthropy@microscopiatech.com without sending patient information. Donors receive aggregate operational reporting, never access to another person’s session or clinical record.

08

Pilot and established Colombian telemedicine service

These safeguards apply to the pilot and to the future established mental health service. A pilot label or a free session does not waive clinical, privacy or professional obligations. No future service is activated merely by publishing these terms.

Before confirmation, the team must identify the actual legal healthcare provider, professional, authorized service and modality, patient location and applicable eligibility. A technology platform is not itself proof of healthcare authorization.

The Colombian framework includes Resolution 1644 of 2026, which supersedes Resolution 2654 of 2019, together with the applicable service-enablement framework under Resolution 3100 of 2019 and subsequent amendments. Provider and service registration in REPS and professional credentials must be verified where applicable.

A Colombian authorization does not automatically authorize care abroad; the patient’s physical jurisdiction must also permit the encounter.

For an established service, the care confirmation must state clinical scope, session duration, fees or exemption, response hours, referral arrangements, medical-record custodian, complaints channel and how to obtain records. Changes from pilot to established care require updated information and consent where material.

Existing patients need a continuity or referral plan; they must not be abandoned because the pilot ends.

09

Clinical records, access and service accountability

The treating professional documents assessment, consent, care decisions, emergency actions and follow-up in the authorized clinical record. The provider must disclose secure storage, authorized access, retention under applicable rules, rights-request procedure and incident response.

No clinical conversation is recorded by default. Research, publicity, student observation and AI training require a distinct lawful basis and appropriate permission; refusing optional uses must not block necessary care.

Telemedicine is offered only when clinically suitable. The professional may recommend in-person assessment, a higher level of care or referral, explaining why and helping arrange continuity. Communication limitations, inaccessible technology, medication needs and acute deterioration must be reassessed.

No chat assistant provides diagnosis, autonomous clinical triage or emergency dispatch.

Psychological care does not confer prescribing authority. Any future medical or psychiatric service requires an appropriately authorized professional, a defined scope and lawful prescribing process. Do not change prescribed treatment solely on website content.

The provider remains responsible for its organizational duties, and the clinician for professional duties; outsourcing cannot remove patient rights.

10

Children, adolescents and couples

A minor’s routine booking requires prior verification of the parent or legal guardian’s authority, a signed service-specific authorization and the signer’s national identity document through the designated private clinical channel. A national ID alone does not prove guardianship.

The team must review custody restrictions, relevant authority documents, safeguarding concerns and the minor’s understanding, views and assent as appropriate. The process is explained at /mental-health/guardian-authorization. General website acceptance is not clinical consent, and a public form does not authorize a booking.

Urgent safeguarding and mandatory legal exceptions require an individualized professional assessment; paperwork must never delay emergency assistance.

Explain confidentiality and its safety-related limits separately to the young person and guardian. Do not promise a guardian automatic access to every disclosure; access follows applicable law, the child’s best interests and clinical safeguarding duties.

For couples, establish who the clients are, obtain separate consent, explain individual disclosures and record access, and privately assess coercion or violence when appropriate. Do not require joint care when unsafe. Research, publicity, student observation and AI training need separate lawful permission and are not conditions of ordinary care.

11

Who may receive care

The program advertises psychological support for adults and older adults, children and adolescents, and couples according to the assigned psychologist’s competence and the appointments actually offered. Sessions are ordinarily 60 minutes, with up to two sessions per calendar month; unused appointments do not carry over.

English and Spanish depend on professional availability. Enrollment is not proof of clinical suitability or authorization in the patient’s country.

Access from a country does not mean clinical care is authorized there. microscopIA and the clinician must confirm the applicable jurisdiction, credentials, institutional permissions, coverage and an effective local emergency route. Planned registration or future expansion is not proof of present authorization.

If safe and lawful remote care cannot be arranged, the team must explain the limitation and facilitate an appropriate local referral.

12

Clinical scope, limits and continuity

Support may address emotional regulation, anxiety, depression and concerns within the psychologist’s competence. It does not replace emergency, inpatient, psychiatric or other specialist care when needed, and does not include medication prescribing.

Results are individual and are not guaranteed. Referral is based on assessed needs, not a label or diagnosis alone.

The clinician explains the proposed approach, reasonable alternatives, telehealth limitations and foreseeable risks, answers questions, assesses capacity and obtains informed consent. You may pause or withdraw consent, subject to lawful safety duties and required record retention.

Ending the pilot or transferring care requires a proportionate continuity plan, communication and referral; these terms do not authorize abandonment.

13

Before the first session: your safety plan

The care team must securely record and verify your identity, current physical address and country, callback number, at least two emergency contacts and their relationship to you, local police and fire/rescue numbers, and the name and telephone number of your usual health facility.

Confirm a reachable local emergency department or emergency medical service, including an internationally callable number where necessary. Discuss contact permissions, preferred order and any person whose involvement would create danger.

At every session, confirm your physical location, callback number, privacy, who is present and any changes to contacts. Do not attend while driving. If two suitable contacts or a workable local response cannot be established, the clinician must review a safe alternative before routine remote care starts; in an active emergency, obtaining a form must never delay emergency action.

Do not place these details in Global’s general forms or AI chat.

14

Suicide, self-harm and danger to others

The clinician assesses suicidal thoughts, self-harm, intent, plans, access to means, recent behavior, protective factors and available support as clinically appropriate. Thoughts alone do not automatically trigger police involvement. A credible threat to another person, severe agitation, intoxication, psychosis, mania or inability to remain safe also requires a proportionate clinical assessment and, when indicated, urgent in-person care.

The website assistant does not make these assessments.

For risk without immediate danger, agree a collaborative safety plan: personal warning signs, coping steps, safe people and places, professional resources, safer access to potentially harmful means and a specific follow-up or referral.

A promise not to self-harm is not a substitute for assessment or care. Plans must be understandable, culturally appropriate and practical in the participant’s location.

15

Imminent danger: clinician-led escalation

When assessment indicates immediate serious danger, the clinician seeks to maintain contact, confirms the location and calls appropriate patient-local emergency or crisis services. A safe support person may be asked to stay nearby and help reduce immediate hazards without putting themselves at risk.

Medical response is prioritized where appropriate; police, fire/rescue, other authorities or a potential victim are contacted only when clinically and legally justified. Do not confront an armed or violent person.

Disclose only information necessary for a lawful protective response, document the reason and recipient, and explain the disclosure when safe and lawful. The clinician seeks a confirmed handoff to responders or a responsible receiving service, records unsuccessful attempts and escalates through an alternative verified route.

Remote staff cannot guarantee response times or physically control the environment. This limitation does not remove their professional duties.

16

Disconnection and the Zoom phone channel

Agree before the session who calls whom if video fails. The clinician attempts the verified callback number. If contact is lost during a serious safety concern, the clinician acts on the last verified location and available information, contacts appropriate emergency resources and safe contacts, and does not treat silence as evidence that the risk has ended.

A Zoom-based telephone route may support callbacks and escalation only after its number, coverage, international dialing capability and availability are confirmed by the team. It is not inherently a local emergency dispatcher or a continuously monitored crisis line.

Outside an active session or confirmed coverage, use local emergency services rather than waiting for microscopIA.

17

Safeguarding, support people and follow-up

Suspected abuse, coercion, neglect or exploitation is assessed under applicable safeguarding duties, including risks affecting dependent adults. A support person is not automatically authorized to receive all clinical information and must not replace a participant who can decide for themselves.

The team must consider whether contacting someone could increase danger. Any future service for minors requires separate age-appropriate consent, assent, guardian and safeguarding arrangements before launch.

After an incident, the clinician documents assessment, decisions, contacts, disclosures, handoff and follow-up. microscopIA reviews operational failures and corrective actions through appropriate confidentiality safeguards. Follow-up timing is set by clinical need and receiving-service arrangements; routine pilot scheduling does not replace urgent care.

18

Confidentiality, records and separate permissions

Clinical confidentiality is protected, with lawful exceptions for serious safety concerns, safeguarding and other applicable legal duties. The clinician must explain the limits before care. Access to records is limited to authorized persons for a defined purpose; emergency disclosure uses the minimum necessary information.

Clinical records must be kept outside public marketing, donor, association and ordinary research-participation databases.

The care-specific privacy notice must identify the responsible legal entity, secure rights-request channel, purposes, recipients, international processing, retention and applicable access/correction rights. Required clinical records cannot always be erased on request. Pilot sessions must not be recorded.

Any future recording follows the separate release, consent and critical-case consultation requirements above. Research, publication, marketing and AI training are not authorized by accepting these service terms; each requires its own lawful basis and, where applicable, separate consent and ethics review.

19

Access, fees, booking and cancellations

The free Mental Health Access membership activates automatically when the first session is booked. The pilot is advertised free through November 30, 2026. From December 1, 2026, the standard charge is USD 5 per session; eligible citizens or residents of low-income economies and patients aged 65 or older receive free sessions.

Active Students & Young Professionals and Clinicians & Investigators members may use up to three included mental-health sessions per membership month after the free pilot ends. This is a total of three sessions for members, not the ordinary two-session nonmember allowance plus three more; unused sessions do not carry over.

Confirm the relevant eligibility, age or residency evidence privately with the clinical team, the applicable country classification, availability and any taxes before booking. Eligibility for free care does not replace clinical suitability, consent or lawful professional authorization.

Planned Colombian registration is not proof of completed registration or habilitation.

Book at least 48 hours ahead and cancel or reschedule at least 24 hours before the appointment through My Booking or scheduling assistance. A late cancellation or no-show may count against the two-session monthly allowance when disclosed before booking; cancelling a free session does not create a monetary fee.

Review exceptional circumstances proportionately. Provider cancellation or non-delivery requires replacement or an appropriate refund for a paid undelivered service. A clinical crisis is handled through the safety protocol, never through a cancellation penalty.

Material fee or service changes require advance notice and do not retrospectively alter confirmed appointments.

20

Responsibilities, complaints and rights

microscopIA is responsible for its institutional permissions, platform arrangements, governance, secure operational processes and emergency infrastructure. The clinician is responsible for competent professional assessment, consent, records, risk decisions, referral and crisis activation.

Contracts between them cannot remove duties owed to participants. Participants should provide accurate location and safety information and tell the team when circumstances change.

For a non-urgent concern, contact contact@microscopiatech.com; for a payment issue, finance@microscopiatech.com. Send only basic contact details initially and request a secure channel for clinical information. You retain rights to complain to relevant professional, health, data-protection and consumer authorities.

These terms contain no waiver of negligent care, no guarantee against harm and no restriction on remedies that law protects. A general website acceptance is not clinical informed consent or confirmation of eligibility.

21

Personal accounts, sharing and fraud prevention

Individual accounts, memberships, bookings and included benefits for services on microscopiatech.com and Global are personal and non-transferable unless an accepted written institutional or group agreement expressly permits named users. Do not share credentials, resell access, impersonate another person, let another person attend or complete an assessment in your name, or use another member’s allowances.

A third party may pay for the named beneficiary without becoming that beneficiary.

An authorized guardian, accessibility assistant or institutional administrator may help with permitted administration through an agreed arrangement. Assistance must not disguise who receives care, training or assessment. Using a shared household connection, travelling or using more than one personal device is not by itself proof of fraud.

Deliberate misrepresentation, credential misuse and unauthorized sharing may constitute a contractual breach and, where applicable law and evidence support it, fraud. microscopIA may restrict affected access while investigating a credible security concern.

Review is based on relevant evidence and proportionate verification under the Privacy Policy. Where safe and legally permitted, the person receives the reasons and an opportunity to explain or request review at contact@microscopiatech.com.

Report a compromised account promptly; a victim of account theft is not automatically treated as the offender.

Confirmed misuse may lead to correction, separate named accounts, suspension or termination of affected access under the accepted terms and applicable law. There is no automatic fine, blanket forfeiture of prepaid fees or cancellation of earned scientific credit.

Assess undelivered services, authorized work and statutory refund, cancellation and dispute rights individually; contact finance@microscopiatech.com for billing review. Material changes apply prospectively with required notice and acceptance; this clause does not retroactively amend an existing agreement.

22

Mental-health benefit for active members

Students & Young Professionals and Clinicians & Investigators include up to three eligible mental-health sessions per membership month with automatic free Mental Health Access Plan activation at the first booking. This is three sessions total for an active member, not the ordinary two-session nonmember allowance plus three additional sessions.

Clinical suitability, local authorization, consent and available appointments remain required. Unused sessions do not roll over. See /terms/memberships for the current offer.

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