Terms & Conditions for all Website Visitors

Welcome to Give an Hour. These Terms & Conditions (“Terms”) govern your use of the Give an Hour website, giveanhour.org, and your interactions with Give an Hour’s online resources, programs, services, communications, and other offerings that link to these Terms (collectively, the “Services”). 

Give an Hour (“Give an Hour,” “GAH,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) is a nonprofit organization that works to develop resilient individuals and communities by increasing access to mental health support, resources, education, peer support, and connections to mental health professionals. 

By accessing or using our Services, you agree to these Terms. Certain programs or activities may have additional terms, consent forms, participation agreements, or requirements. If additional terms apply, they will be provided to you in connection with the applicable program or service. 

1. Give an Hour’s Role

Give an Hour provides mental health resources, education, peer support programming, and opportunities for individuals to connect with participating mental health professionals and other resources. 

Unless expressly stated otherwise, Give an Hour does not itself provide medical diagnosis, clinical treatment, psychotherapy, or other professional health care services through this website. 

Information and resources provided through Give an Hour are intended for informational, educational, and support purposes and should not be considered medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. 

Participating mental health professionals are independently responsible for their professional services, clinical judgment, treatment decisions, and relationships with their clients. 

2. Not for Emergencies or Crisis Response

Give an Hour’s website, email, text messaging, peer support programs, provider connection services, and other communications are not emergency or crisis response services and should not be used to request immediate emergency assistance. 

Messages or requests submitted to Give an Hour may not be monitored or answered immediately. 

If you or someone else is experiencing an immediate or life-threatening emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department. 

If you are experiencing a mental health, suicide, or substance use crisis, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. 

3. Mental Health Resources and Provider Connections

Give an Hour may assist individuals in identifying or connecting with participating mental health professionals or other resources. 

Give an Hour does not guarantee: 

• that a particular provider will be available; 

• that an individual and provider will be an appropriate match; 

• that a provider will accept an individual as a client; 

• the availability, duration, or outcome of services; 

• any particular clinical result; or 

• the qualifications or suitability of resources or providers outside the Give an Hour network. 

Individuals are responsible for deciding whether a particular provider or resource is appropriate for their needs. 

A professional relationship with a participating mental health provider is between the individual and that provider. Providers exercise their own independent professional judgment and are responsible for complying with the laws, regulations, licensing requirements, and professional standards applicable to their practice. 

4. Peer Support Programs

Give an Hour offers peer support programs designed to provide connection, shared experience, education, and mutual support. 

Peer support is not psychotherapy, medical care, or a substitute for professional mental health treatment. Peer support facilitators do not act as an individual’s therapist, physician, or other health care provider solely by virtue of facilitating or participating in a Give an Hour peer support program. 

Participants are expected to interact respectfully and follow any community guidelines, confidentiality expectations, safety requirements, or participation rules provided for a particular group or program. 

While Give an Hour may establish expectations regarding participant confidentiality, Give an Hour cannot guarantee that another participant will maintain the confidentiality of information shared in a group setting. Participants should use their own discretion when deciding what personal information to share. 

Give an Hour may limit, suspend, or end an individual’s participation when necessary to protect participants, facilitators, program integrity, or the safety and effectiveness of the group. 

5. Educational Resources, Trainings, and Events

Give an Hour may provide educational materials, trainings, webinars, presentations, events, continuing education activities, and other resources. 

Unless specifically stated otherwise, these materials are provided for educational and informational purposes and do not constitute medical, legal, financial, or other individualized professional advice. 

Participation in a training or educational program does not by itself create a professional, clinical, supervisory, employment, or other special relationship between the participant and Give an Hour. 

Additional registration requirements, continuing education requirements, cancellation policies, participation terms, or other conditions may apply to particular trainings or events. 

6. Donations

Give an Hour may accept charitable contributions through our website or third-party donation platforms. 

Donations are subject to applicable law and any restrictions or designations accepted by Give an Hour. 

Unless otherwise stated or required by law, charitable contributions are generally nonrefundable. Give an Hour will provide donation acknowledgments or receipts as appropriate. 

Third-party payment processors may process financial transactions on our behalf. Their separate terms and privacy practices may also apply to those transactions. 

Information regarding how Give an Hour handles donor information is available in our Privacy Policy. 

7. Information You Provide

When you submit information through our website, forms, registrations, applications, requests for support, provider network, donation pages, surveys, or other Services, you agree to provide information that is accurate to the best of your knowledge. 

You are responsible for keeping information reasonably current when updated information is necessary for Give an Hour to provide a requested service or administer your participation in a program. 

You should not intentionally submit false, misleading, fraudulent, or unlawful information. 

Information you provide is handled in accordance with our Privacy Policy. 

8. Text Messaging

Give an Hour may offer text messaging to communicate with clients and individuals seeking support, program participants, mental health professionals and other providers, peer support participants and facilitators, volunteers, donors, partners, event or training participants, and other members of the Give an Hour community. 

Depending on your relationship with Give an Hour and the communications you have agreed to receive, messages may include information regarding programs and services, scheduling and reminders, mental health resources, provider or volunteer opportunities, trainings and events, partnerships, donations and fundraising, organizational updates, and other Give an Hour activities. 

By opting in to receive SMS messages from Give an Hour, you agree to the following: 

Opting Out. You may cancel SMS communications at any time by replying STOP to a Give an Hour text message. After you send STOP, we will send you an SMS message confirming that you have been unsubscribed. After that, you will no longer receive SMS messages from that number unless you subsequently opt in again. 

Help. If you experience issues with our messaging program, reply HELP for assistance or contact Give an Hour at info@giveanhour.org. 

Carrier Responsibility. Mobile carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages. 

Message and Data Rates. Message and data rates may apply to messages sent to you from Give an Hour and messages you send to us. Message frequency varies. Questions regarding your text or data plan should be directed to your wireless provider. 

Privacy. Information regarding how Give an Hour collects, uses, shares, and protects personal information, including mobile information and SMS opt-in information, is available in our Privacy Policy. 

Sensitive Information. Standard SMS text messaging may not be a secure or confidential method of communication. Please do not send highly sensitive personal, health, financial, or other confidential information through SMS unless specifically instructed to do so through an appropriate communication method. 

Emergencies. Give an Hour text messaging is not an emergency or crisis response service. Messages may not be monitored or answered immediately. For emergency or crisis assistance, please use the resources identified in Section 2 above. 

9. Email and Other Communications

When you provide Give an Hour with contact information, we may communicate with you regarding requests you make, programs in which you participate, donations, registrations, administrative matters, and other communications appropriate to your relationship with Give an Hour. 

Where required, we will obtain your consent before sending promotional or marketing communications. 

You may unsubscribe from promotional emails using the unsubscribe mechanism provided in those communications. Unsubscribing from promotional communications does not necessarily prevent Give an Hour from sending administrative, transactional, safety-related, or service-related communications. 

10. Third-Party Websites, Services, and Resources

Give an Hour’s website and Services may contain links to or integrate with websites, technology platforms, payment processors, resources, or services operated by third parties. 

Links are provided for convenience or informational purposes and do not necessarily constitute an endorsement of the third party or its services. 

Give an Hour does not control third-party websites or services and is not responsible for their content, availability, security, privacy practices, or actions. 

Your interactions with third-party services may be governed by their own terms and privacy policies. 

11. Intellectual Property

Unless otherwise indicated, content made available through Give an Hour’s website and Services—including text, graphics, logos, designs, videos, educational materials, training materials, downloads, and other content—is owned by or licensed to Give an Hour and is protected by applicable intellectual property laws. 

You may access and use publicly available materials for your own personal, noncommercial, informational use unless otherwise stated. 

You may not reproduce, modify, distribute, sell, license, publicly display, publish, or create derivative works from Give an Hour content for commercial purposes without prior written permission, except as permitted by law or by separate written agreement. 

Nothing in these Terms transfers ownership of Give an Hour’s intellectual property to you. 

12. Acceptable Use

You agree not to use Give an Hour’s website or Services (including, but not limited to clinical services, virtual programs, chats, trainings, peer support spaces and communications) to: 

• violate applicable law; 

• impersonate another person or misrepresent your identity or affiliation; 

• submit knowingly false or fraudulent information; 

• harass, threaten, abuse, exploit, or harm another person; 

• interfere with the operation or security of our website or technology; 

• attempt to gain unauthorized access to systems, accounts, or information; 

• introduce malware, malicious code, or other harmful technology; 

• collect information about other users without authorization; 

• use Give an Hour’s content or Services for unauthorized commercial purposes; or 

• engage in conduct that materially interferes with another person’s ability to use our Services safely. 

Give an Hour may restrict or terminate access to its Services when we reasonably determine that these Terms, program requirements, or applicable law have been violated. 

13. Privacy

Your privacy is important to Give an Hour. 

Our collection, use, disclosure, and protection of personal information is described in our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated into these Terms by reference. 

Because of the nature of Give an Hour’s mission and programs, individuals may voluntarily provide sensitive health or mental health information. Please review the Privacy Policy for additional information regarding our handling of such information. 

14. Disclaimer of Warranties

Give an Hour works to provide accurate, useful, and reliable information and Services. However, except as otherwise expressly provided, the website, resources, and Services are provided on an “as is” and “as available” basis. 

To the extent permitted by law, Give an Hour makes no warranties, express or implied, regarding the operation, availability, accuracy, completeness, reliability, suitability, or results of its website, resources, or Services. 

Nothing in this section limits obligations that cannot legally be excluded or limited. 

15. Limitation of Liability

To the extent permitted by applicable law, Give an Hour and its directors, officers, employees, volunteers, and agents will not be liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising from or related to your use of, or inability to use, the website or Services. 

Give an Hour is not responsible for the independent professional acts or omissions of participating mental health professionals or other independent providers. 

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability where such exclusion or limitation is prohibited by applicable law. 

16. Changes to These Terms

Give an Hour may update these Terms periodically to reflect changes in our Services, programs, technology, practices, or legal requirements. 

When we update these Terms, we will revise the “Last Updated” date at the top of this page. 

Material changes may be communicated through additional notice when appropriate or required by law. 

Your continued use of the Services after updated Terms become effective constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms to the extent permitted by applicable law. 

17. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Maryland, without regard to conflict-of-law principles, except where applicable law requires otherwise. 

18. Contact Us

Questions regarding these Terms & Conditions may be directed to: 

Give an Hour
PO Box 1532
Clarksburg, MD 20871
Email: info@giveanhour.org 

Additional Terms Applicable to Participating Providers 

The following additional terms apply to mental health professionals and other licensed or certified professionals participating in the Give an Hour provider network (“Providers”). 

By registering for or participating in the Give an Hour provider network, you acknowledge and agree to the following additional terms. 

19. Professional Qualifications

You represent that you are appropriately licensed, certified, or otherwise professionally qualified and in good standing in each jurisdiction in which you provide services through your participation in the Give an Hour network. 

You will provide services only within the scope of your education, training, professional qualifications, licensure or certification, and applicable law. 

You are responsible for maintaining all licenses, certifications, registrations, continuing education, and other professional requirements applicable to your practice. 

20. Changes in Professional Status

You agree to notify Give an Hour within 10 days of any material change in your professional status, including disciplinary action, suspension, restriction, expiration, revocation, or another change that may materially affect your eligibility to participate in the Give an Hour network. 

21. Professional Liability Insurance

You agree to maintain professional liability or malpractice insurance when required by your profession, licensure or certification, applicable law, or Give an Hour’s provider network requirements. 

You are responsible for ensuring that your coverage is appropriate for the professional services you provide. 

22. Independent Professional Responsibility

You understand that Give an Hour facilitates connections between individuals seeking mental health support and participating Providers. 

Give an Hour does not direct or control your independent professional judgment, diagnosis, treatment decisions, clinical practices, or provider-client relationships. 

You are responsible for determining whether you are qualified and able to accept an individual as a client and whether the individual’s needs are appropriate for your practice. 

23. Client Screening and Safety

Give an Hour does not guarantee the identity, background, condition, suitability, behavior, or circumstances of individuals who may contact or be connected with you through the Give an Hour network. 

You are responsible for conducting the intake, screening, assessment, informed consent, safety planning, or other procedures that you determine are professionally or legally appropriate. 

You agree to take reasonable precautions consistent with applicable professional standards to support the safety and appropriateness of your professional relationships. 

24. Professional and Legal Requirements

You agree to provide services in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations and the ethical and professional standards applicable to your profession. 

You are responsible for compliance with requirements applicable to your professional practice, including requirements concerning informed consent, confidentiality, privacy, recordkeeping, mandatory reporting, professional boundaries, telehealth, continuity of care, and emergency or crisis procedures. 

25. Client Privacy and Confidentiality

You are responsible for maintaining the privacy and confidentiality of information you receive from or about clients in accordance with applicable law and professional standards. 

Your professional relationship with a client may create legal, ethical, or professional privacy obligations separate from Give an Hour’s obligations. 

Providers should not disclose confidential or individually identifiable client information to Give an Hour except when authorized by the client or otherwise permitted or required by applicable law. 

26. Independent Relationship with Give an Hour

Participation in the Give an Hour provider network does not create an employment, agency, partnership, joint venture, or clinical supervisory relationship between you and Give an Hour. 

Unless separately agreed in writing, you participate as an independent professional and remain responsible for your professional services, decisions, records, insurance, and compliance obligations. 

27. Provider Information

You agree to provide accurate and current information regarding your professional qualifications, licensure or certification, contact information, availability, areas of practice, and other information reasonably requested by Give an Hour in connection with the provider network. 

You agree to notify Give an Hour when this information materially changes. 

28. Give an Hour Provider Network

Participation in the Give an Hour network does not guarantee that you will receive referrals or client connections. 

Give an Hour does not guarantee that an individual connected with you will become or remain your client or make any guarantee regarding the outcome of a referral, connection, or professional relationship. 

29. Termination of Provider Participation

Give an Hour reserves the right to suspend or terminate a Provider’s participation in the Give an Hour network, with or without cause, at any time. 

Termination of participation in the network does not alter the Provider’s independent professional responsibilities to existing clients, including obligations concerning continuity of care, appropriate termination of services, referrals, records, and client communications.