WEBSITE PRIVACY POLICY
APEX BEHAVIORAL HEALTH PLLC
Effective Date: September 18, 2026
Last Updated: September 18, 2026
1. INTRODUCTION
This Privacy Policy explains how Apex Behavioral Health PLLC ("Apex Behavioral Health," "I," or "my practice") handles information collected through the website apexncbehavioralhealth.com.
This policy covers website data only. It does not cover protected health information related to your care as a patient. If you are a current or prospective patient, please review my separate HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices, which explains how I protect your health information under federal and North Carolina law.
Privacy Officer: Nicole Joslin, PMHNP-BC
Email: info@apexncbehavioralhealth.com
Phone: (984) 339-0869
Mailing Address: 1600 Olive Chapel Road, Suite 124, Apex, NC 27502
If you have questions about this policy or about how information submitted through this website is handled, contact me using the information above.
2. WHAT THIS WEBSITE COLLECTS
Technical information collected automatically
When you visit this website, basic technical information is collected automatically by the website hosting platform. This may include your IP address, browser type and version, operating system, device type, the pages you viewed, the date and time of your visit, and the website or search engine that referred you.
Information you submit through the Send Message form
This website includes a Send Message form provided and hosted by SimplePractice, my practice management platform. When you use it, you are asked for your first and last name, the name you go by, your email address, phone number, date of birth, gender, the sex listed on your insurance policy, your state, whether care is for you or for someone else, and your message.
Information submitted through this form is transmitted directly to SimplePractice and stored in my practice management system. It is not collected or stored by my website host. Because this information can identify you and relates to seeking health care, it is treated as protected health information and is handled under my HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices.
Submitting this form does not create a provider-patient relationship.
Information you send by email or telephone
You may also contact me by email or telephone using the contact details published on this site. When you email me, I receive whatever information you choose to include.
If you contact me by standard email or voicemail rather than through the Send Message form, please do not include detailed health information, symptoms, medication details, or other sensitive personal information. Standard email and voicemail are not secure or encrypted methods of communication.
Secure messaging for established patients
Once you become a patient, non-urgent messages, routine questions, and prescription refill requests are handled through Spruce, a HIPAA-compliant secure messaging application, and through the secure SimplePractice client portal. You will receive an invitation to Spruce after you join the practice. Please do not use Spruce, the client portal, the Send Message form, or any other messaging channel for urgent or emergency concerns.
Scheduling and patient portal
The "Schedule Your First Appointment" and "Client Portal" links on this website take you to a separate, secure client portal operated by SimplePractice at nicole-joslin.clientsecure.me. Information you enter in that portal is not collected by this website. It is governed by my HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices and by SimplePractice's own privacy policy.
Analytics
This website does not use Google Analytics, a Facebook pixel, or any other third-party analytics or advertising tracking tool.
A Google Search Console verification tag is present on the site. Google Search Console reports aggregate, anonymized search performance data and does not identify individual visitors.
Tracking across other websites
I do not track visitors across other websites. I do not use advertising pixels, retargeting tags, or third-party behavioral advertising trackers on this website.
3. HOW I USE YOUR INFORMATION
Information collected through this website is used only for the following purposes:
To respond to inquiries about services, availability, fees, or scheduling
To verify insurance benefits where you have asked me to
To keep the website functioning correctly and securely
To understand in general terms how visitors find and use the website, so I can improve it
To meet legal or regulatory obligations that may apply
I do not sell your information. I do not rent, trade, or share your information with data brokers. I do not use website visitor information for advertising or behavioral targeting. I do not add you to a marketing or email list based on visiting this website or sending an inquiry.
Contacting me through this website does not create a provider-patient relationship. A provider-patient relationship begins only after you have completed intake paperwork and been formally accepted as a patient of the practice.
If you are experiencing a mental health emergency, do not use this website, the Send Message form, or email. Call 988 (Suicide and Crisis Lifeline), call 911, or go to your nearest emergency room.
4. THIRD-PARTY SERVICES
This website relies on the following third-party services. Each has its own privacy policy, and I am not responsible for the privacy practices of any third-party website or service.
Website hosting - Duda
This website is hosted on the Duda platform. Duda may collect basic technical data about visitors for website hosting, performance, and security purposes. Duda does not receive or store information submitted through the Send Message form. For more information, visit: duda.co/privacy
Contact form - SimplePractice
The Send Message form on this website is provided and hosted by SimplePractice. Information you submit through it is transmitted directly to SimplePractice and is covered by the Business Associate Agreement I maintain with them. For more information, visit: simplepractice.com/privacy
Patient portal and scheduling - SimplePractice
The scheduling and client portal links on this website direct you to a secure client portal operated by SimplePractice at nicole-joslin.clientsecure.me. Any information you enter there is handled under my HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices and SimplePractice's own privacy policy. For more information, visit: simplepractice.com/privacy
Search Console - Google LLC
This website is verified with Google Search Console, which provides aggregate, anonymized data about how the site performs in Google Search. It does not identify individual visitors. For more information, visit: policies.google.com/privacy
Linked external resources
The Resource and FAQ page on this website links to outside organizations including NAMI, DBSA, Mental Health America, AANE, the NC Board of Nursing, the NC Department of Health and Human Services, and cms.gov. These links are provided for your convenience. Once you leave this website, the privacy practices of those organizations apply, and I have no control over them.
5. COOKIES AND TRACKING
This website uses essential cookies necessary for the site to function properly, including cookies that support page loading, security, and basic site performance.
This website does not use analytics cookies, advertising cookies, retargeting cookies, or cross-site tracking cookies.
You can control or disable cookies through your browser settings. Instructions are available in the help section of your browser. Disabling essential cookies may affect how parts of the website function.
Do Not Track signals: Because this website does not track visitors across other websites, there is no cross-site tracking activity to disable in response to a Do Not Track browser signal.
6. DATA RETENTION
Inquiry emails and voicemails are retained only as long as needed to respond to your inquiry and to maintain a reasonable business record, typically no longer than 12 months, unless you become a patient or unless a longer period is required by law.
Information submitted through the Send Message form is stored in my practice management system and is retained under the retention rules described in my HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices.
Technical and server log data is retained by the website host according to Duda's standard retention practices.
If you become a patient of the practice, your clinical records are maintained separately in my electronic health record system and are retained under HIPAA and North Carolina law. Those retention periods are described in my HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices and are considerably longer than the periods described above.
7. YOUR RIGHTS
Regarding information collected through this website, you have the right to:
Ask what website-related information about you I hold
Request that I correct information that is inaccurate
Request that I delete website inquiry information about you
To make a request, email info@apexncbehavioralhealth.com or write to the mailing address in Section 1. I will respond within 30 days.
North Carolina does not currently have a comprehensive consumer data privacy statute of the kind enacted in states such as California, Colorado, or Virginia. I extend the rights described above to all website visitors regardless of where you live.
Information you submit through the Send Message form is treated as protected health information. The broader rights described in my HIPAA Notice of Privacy Practices apply to that information, including your right to access it, request correction of it, and request restrictions on its use.
8. CHILDREN'S PRIVACY
Apex Behavioral Health PLLC provides psychiatric care to adults aged 18 and older only. This website is not directed at children, and I do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under the age of 13.
If you believe a child under 13 has submitted personal information through this website, contact me at info@apexncbehavioralhealth.com and I will delete it promptly.
9. UPDATES TO THIS POLICY
I may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in the website, the services I use, or applicable law.
When this policy is updated, the revised version will be posted on this page with a new effective date at the top. Material changes will be noted clearly. Your continued use of the website after an update means you accept the revised policy.
10. CONTACT
Questions about this Privacy Policy or about information collected through this website:
Nicole Joslin, PMHNP-BC
Privacy Officer
Apex Behavioral Health PLLC
1600 Olive Chapel Road, Suite 124
Apex, NC 27502
Phone: (984) 339-0869
Email: info@apexncbehavioralhealth.com
Billing inquiries: billing@apexncbehavioralhealth.com
License #5006901 | North Carolina Board of Nursing | ncbon.com