Privacy Policy
Your privacy matters to us, on this website and in the therapy room. This page explains, in plain language, what information this website collects, why we collect it, and the choices you have. It covers the website at illinoisvalleycounseling.com. It does not replace the separate privacy notice you receive when you become a client.
The short version: If you request a call back, we use your name, phone number, and the choices you make on the form to call you back. We use analytics tools to understand how many people visit and how they reach us. We do not sell your personal information.
Who we are
Illinois Valley Counseling Services is an outpatient counseling practice with offices in Ottawa (747 E Etna Rd, Ottawa, IL 61350) and Mendota (901 Main St, Mendota, IL 61342). When this policy says "we," "us," or "our," it means Illinois Valley Counseling Services.
Information you choose to share
You can use this website without telling us who you are. If you fill out our "Request a Call Back" form, we collect:
- Your name (required)
- Your phone number (required)
- Preferred office (Ottawa, Mendota, or no preference)
- What you are looking for (for example, individual, couples, family, or teen counseling)
- Preferred time to call (morning, afternoon, evening, or any time)
- An optional note in the "Anything we should know?" box
If you call us, our office may see your phone number and will hear whatever you choose to share on the call.
Please keep health details off the form
The callback form is meant for scheduling only. Please do not include diagnoses, symptoms, medications, or other private health details in the form. A short note like "looking for a counselor for my teen" is plenty. If there is something important we should know, please call us at (815) 993-1614 and we will talk it through privately.
The form is not for emergencies
Form requests are reviewed during business hours, so they are not monitored around the clock. If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 (the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline), call 911, or go to your nearest emergency room.
How your form request reaches us
When you submit the callback form, it is sent over an encrypted connection (HTTPS) to a secure third-party form service (FormSubmit), which delivers your request to our office by email. Our office staff, and the administrative team that supports our scheduling, read the request and use it to call you back. We do not use form requests for marketing, and we do not add you to a mailing list.
Information collected automatically
Like most websites, we use a few tools to understand how the site is used so we can make it more helpful. These tools may collect information such as the pages you visit, how long you stay, the type of device and browser you use, your general location (such as city or region, based on your internet address), and the website or ad that brought you here.
- Google Analytics 4 (GA4). Google Analytics helps us measure visits, which pages are useful, how often people tap a phone number to call us, and how many callback requests are sent. When you send a callback request, Google Analytics only records that a request was made. We do not send your name, phone number, or note to Google Analytics.
- Cloudflare Web Analytics. Our website host, Cloudflare, provides basic, privacy-focused visit counts (such as page views and page load speed). It does not use cookies to track you.
- Advertising measurement. We may use Google Ads to help people in our area find us. If you arrive from one of our ads, Google may help us measure whether the ad led to a phone call or a callback request. We use this to decide which ads are worth running.
Cookies and your choices
Cookies are small files a website stores in your browser. Google Analytics and Google Ads use cookies to tell new visits from returning ones and to measure results. You have options:
- Install the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on.
- Adjust your browser settings to block or delete cookies, or browse in a private window.
- Manage how Google personalizes ads in My Ad Center.
- Learn more about how Google uses information from sites that use its services.
Blocking cookies will not stop you from reading the site, calling us, or requesting a call back.
How we use information
- To call you back and help you schedule an appointment.
- To understand how the website is used and improve it.
- To measure whether our advertising helps people find us.
- To keep the website secure and working properly.
- To meet legal requirements.
How we share information
We do not sell your personal information. We share information only with service providers that help us run this website and respond to you (such as our form service, email provider, website host, and analytics providers), when the law requires it, or to protect someone's safety. Our service providers may only use the information to provide their services to us or as described in their own privacy policies.
Your health information once you are a client
This website policy covers website visitors. Once you become a client, the health information you share with us in treatment is protected under federal law, including HIPAA (the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act), and Illinois law. How we use and protect that information is described in our Notice of Privacy Practices (NPP), which you will receive when you begin services.
Our Notice of Privacy Practices is available on request. Just call our office at (815) 993-1614 and we will provide a copy.
Children's privacy
This website is meant for adults, including parents and guardians looking for care for their children. We do not knowingly collect personal information online from children under 13. If you are a parent or guardian, please submit any callback request yourself. If you believe a child has sent us information through this site, call us and we will delete it.
How we protect information
This website uses an encrypted connection (HTTPS), and we limit access to callback requests to the staff who need them. No website or email system can be guaranteed to be completely secure, which is one more reason we ask you to keep health details off the form and share them by phone instead.
How long we keep information
We keep callback requests only as long as reasonably needed to respond to you and for ordinary business records. Our form service and email provider handle the messages they deliver under their own policies. Analytics data is kept according to the settings and policies of the analytics providers, and we review those settings periodically.
Illinois residents
Illinois law gives strong protection to mental health records, including the Illinois Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Confidentiality Act. Those protections apply to client treatment records and are described in our Notice of Privacy Practices. This website does not collect biometric information such as fingerprints or face scans. If you have questions about your privacy rights, please call us.
Links to other websites
Our site may link to other websites, such as insurance companies, crisis resources, or Google. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those websites, so we encourage you to read their policies.
Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time. When we do, we will change the effective date at the top of this page. Significant changes will be noted on this page.
Contact us
If you have questions about this policy or want to ask us to delete a callback request you sent, please call us at (815) 993-1614, Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 5 PM.