Privacy Statement

Last updated: September 2026

As an acupuncturist and doula I work with information that is personal and sometimes sensitive. I handle it carefully and comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This statement explains which data I process, why, how long I keep it and what rights you have.

Contact details

Acupuncturist Gaia Picciolini
Kometensingel 377
1033 BK Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Phone: 06 48 22 86 04
Email: info@acupuncturistgaia.nl
Chamber of Commerce (KVK) number: 62644211

Gaia Picciolini is the data protection contact for this practice. You can reach her using the details above.

Personal data I process

I process your personal data because you use my services and/or because you provide it to me yourself. This concerns:

  • First and last name
  • Gender
  • Date of birth
  • Address details
  • Phone number
  • Email address
  • Information about your health and your symptoms
  • Information about your treatments and how they progress
  • Details of your GP or other practitioners, if you share them

Special and/or sensitive personal data

Under the GDPR, health data counts as special category data. I process it because it is necessary in order to treat you properly. I only record what is relevant to your treatment, and I am happy to go through my notes with you if you would like to know what they say.

My website and services are not aimed at children under 16. If I treat someone under 16, it is only with the consent of a parent or guardian.

Why I need this data

I process your personal data for the following purposes:

  • Performing the treatment agreement: examining, treating and keeping a client record
  • Contacting you about your appointment, by phone or email
  • Scheduling and managing appointments
  • Preparing and sending invoices and processing payments
  • Meeting statutory obligations, such as the tax retention requirement and the Dutch Medical Treatment Agreements Act (WGBO)

The legal basis for this processing is the performance of the treatment agreement, compliance with a legal obligation and — for health data — your explicit consent.

I do not take decisions based on automated processing or profiling. Everything that happens in the practice is done by me personally.

How long I keep data

I do not keep your personal data longer than is necessary for the purpose for which it was collected:

  • Client record (medical data): 20 years after the end of the treatment agreement, or longer if that is reasonably necessary for good care. This is a statutory retention period under the WGBO.
  • Financial records and invoices: 7 years, under Dutch tax law.
  • Email and other correspondence: as long as needed for your treatment or my administration, after which I delete it.

Sharing with third parties

I do not sell your data and I do not share it with third parties for commercial purposes. I only pass on data where this is necessary to perform our agreement or to comply with a legal obligation. Specifically, this may involve:

  • Your health insurer — via the invoice you submit yourself. It contains the legally required details: your name, address, date of birth, the date of treatment and the treatment code.
  • Other healthcare providers, such as your GP, midwife or gynaecologist — only with your explicit consent.
  • My bookkeeper, for financial administration.
  • A locum, if I am replaced due to illness or holidays — only the data needed to treat you safely.

With parties that process data on my instructions I conclude a data processing agreement, so that your data is protected to the same standard there.

Cookies and this website

This website uses no tracking cookies, no analytics software and no advertising networks. I do not measure your behaviour on this site and I do not build visitor profiles.

The site does use a few technical services:

  • Local storage for your language choice. If you click NL or EN, or dismiss the suggestion to read the page in the other language, your browser stores that choice locally (under the name lang_explicit) so the suggestion does not appear again. This information stays on your own device and is not sent anywhere. You can clear it in your browser settings.
  • Google Fonts. The typefaces are loaded from Google's servers, which means your IP address is passed to Google.
  • Google Maps. The contact section contains an embedded map. It loads when you visit the page and sets Google cookies. If you would rather it did not, you can block it with a cookie blocker or open the address directly in your own maps app.
  • mijnDiad booking widget. The online scheduling system you use to book an appointment is provided by mijnDiad. The details you enter in that form (name, email address, phone number and the time slot you choose) are stored by mijnDiad so that I can schedule your appointment. I have a data processing agreement with mijnDiad.

Google's privacy terms apply to Google Fonts and Google Maps. These services are technically required to display the site; no analytics or advertising profile is linked to them from this website.

Security

I take the protection of your data seriously and take appropriate measures to prevent misuse, loss, unauthorised access, unwanted disclosure and unauthorised alteration. Among other things:

  • The website works exclusively over a secure HTTPS connection.
  • Digital records are password-protected and accessible only to me.
  • Paper records and notes are kept under lock and key.
  • I am the only practitioner working in the practice; there are no staff with access to your record.
  • As a healthcare provider I have a statutory duty of confidentiality.

If you have the impression that your data is not properly secured, or you see signs of misuse, please contact me at info@acupuncturistgaia.nl.

Your rights: access, correction and deletion

You have the right to view, correct or have your personal data deleted. You also have the right to withdraw your consent to the processing, to object to the processing, and to exercise your right to data portability — meaning you can ask me to send your data in a common file format to you or to another organisation you name.

Send your request to info@acupuncturistgaia.nl. To be sure the request comes from you, I will ask you to identify yourself when we meet or speak. I will respond as quickly as possible, and in any case within four weeks.

Please note: the statutory 20-year retention period under the WGBO applies to the medical record. I can only honour a request for destruction as far as the law allows.

If you are unhappy with how I handle your data, I would like to hear it from you first. If we cannot resolve it together, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Dutch supervisory authority, the Dutch Data Protection Authority.

Changes

I may update this privacy statement, for example if the law or my way of working changes. The most recent version is always on this page, with the date at the top.

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