FAQs
About SymTrend
What is SymTrend?
Who is SymTrend?
How can I contact SymTrend?
Using SymTrend.com
What equipment do I need to use SymTrend?
Do you provide analyses based on my entries?
Do you make recommendations based on my entries?
Can you help me find a doctor?
How do I find information about a medical problem?
How do I use SymTrend to communicate with my Clinician?
Fees and Subscriptions
How do I subscribe?
How much does it cost?
How do I renew a membership?
How do I cancel my subscription?
If I cancel my subscription, will I still have access to my data?
Can I use the site without paying for a subscription?
If I register, will you or other third parties solicit me?
Your Account
How do I change my username?
How do I change my e-mail address?
How do I change my password?
How do I change my health challenge?
How do I choose a clinician?
How do I delete my account?
Privacy & Security
How secure is my personal information?
Does SymTrend back up all data?
Does SymTrend sell information or e-mail addresses to others?
What are cookies?
How does SymTrend use cookies?
Can I block cookies while using SymTrend?
Does SymTrend collect personal information and are they provided to third parties?
I want to use SymTrend for my child, how do you protect the privacy of children?
Can I check to see if someone has accessed my account?
For Clinicians
Can I use my handheld to view patient data?
Do clinicians have to pay for a subscription to SymTrend?
What if the available Health Logs do not address my needs?
How do I access my patient's data?
About SymTrend
What is SymTrend?
SymTrend Inc. was founded in 1998. Its mission is to revolutionize behavioral
and mental health care through broad, powerful, yet easy-to-use applications
of information technology to routine, individual patient care. To achieve this
goal, SymTrend Inc. has invented and developed the SymTrend treatment support
system. The SymTrend system is a whole new way of obtaining and using the information
people need to improve personal and mental health. It combines the power of
the Internet, of mobile technology, and of advanced
statistical methods to form the first comprehensive treatment support system
for mental and behavioral health care.
The founders, through their clinical and personal experience designed SymTrend to:
- Produce information that is more accurate, complete, clear, and timely.
- Resolve medication and other treatment issues faster and more definitively.
- Reduce misinformation and its untoward consequences.
- Boost patient functioning, while boosting clinical efficiency.
- Alleviate family tensions that arise when mental illness strikes a member.
- Reduce the cost of care through these care quality improvements.
Who is SymTrend?
The clinical principals at SymTrend are on the staff of the Harvard Medical School
and are leaders in their disciplines. They include the psychologists,
neuropsychologists, and statisticians who have authored original
research and contributed chapters to textbooks. Our clinicians are well known
for inventive, practical, behavioral approaches to optimizing the functioning
of those who must contend with a debilitating psychiatric or neurological condition.
Business Leadership
Minna Levine, OTR/L, PhD, President, combines experience in two sectors: medicine/academia
(Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, Northeastern University, and Children's
Hospital, Boston) and management/marketing (Bank of Boston, Mercer Management
Consulting, and Forbes Consulting Group). In each sector, Minna engaged in information
systems development. At Children's Hospital, she authored the first clinical
database for day-to-day tracking of patient reports in 1991. At Northeastern
University, she managed and helped design a campus-wide, pre-Internet, e-mail
and class bulletin board system in 1988. During her tenure in various market
research positions, she developed a novel market segmentation methodology for
use with retail transactional databases, and developed tools for customer relationship
management and personalization of web communications for large retailers. Minna
led the transformation of the SymTrend prototype into the SymTrend system.
Clinical Scientific Leadership
Ron Calvanio, PhD, was the inventor
of the SymTrend prototype. He is an Instructor, Department of Neurology, Harvard
Medical School, the co-author of numerous research reports in neuroscience journals
such as Brain, Neurology, Neuropsychologia, and Brain Injury, and a consultant
to clinical trials. For nineteen years, Ron was Director of Neuropsychology
at Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, a Partners Healthcare System hospital
and the largest rehabilitation hospital in United States and is now a member of the Neurology
Department of the Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston.
Jane Holmes Bernstein, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer - Children, is part
of the Neuropsychology Program at the Children's Hospital, Boston and was its director until the fall of 2004.
She is an
Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychology (Psychiatry), Harvard Medical School.
Jane is a nationally recognized authority on child neuropsychology. Jane teaches
locally and nationally on the assessment of behavior in children. She has worked
to make SymTrend useful for children, adolescents, and parents.
Dorothy (Dot) Lucci, M.Ed.,CAGS, Consultant - Children, is Director of
Consultation at Massachusetts General Hospital/YouthCare. She is a nationally
recognized speaker and consultant regarding children diagnosed with ASD and has
published in peer reviewed journals. She is on the Board of Directors of the
Asperger's Association of New England and is an adjunct faculty member at Lesley
University and Antioch University and a school psychologist by training.
Statistics Leadership
Richard Goldstein, PhD, is a nationally recognized biostatistician who
has published widely on statistical software and recently won the coveted Mosteller
award of the Boston Chapter of the American Statistical Association. Rich is
a lecturer in the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at Harvard
Medical School.
Advisory Board
Dan Bricklin, MBA, is a nationally recognized and honored pioneer in
PC and web software design. Dan invented the PC spreadsheet while at the Harvard
Business School and holds patents for other software innovations. He holds
an honorary doctorate of letters from Newbury College. Dan has been on SymTrend
Inc.'s advisory board since the company's inception and remains in close contact
to advise about system design and strategic business matters. Dan is also a member of the SymTrend Board of Directors.
Gary B. Mesibov, PhD, is a nationally recognized leader in Autism research and practice.
He is the former director of Division TEACCH at the University of North Carolina/Chapel Hill.
He has written extensively on the subject of Autism and on the TEACCH structured teaching method.
Gary has been the Principal Investigator on two small business grants with SymTrend.
SymTrend development has been partially funded by three small business grants from the National Institute of Mental Health: R41-MH075162, R42-MH075162, and R41-MH086153.
How can I contact SymTrend?
SymTrend, Inc.
65 Henry St.
Cambridge, MA 02139-4820
Toll free: 1-866-SYMTREND
Telephone: (617) 491-7510
Fax: (617) 484-1430
support@symtrend.com
Using SymTrend.com
What equipment do I need to use SymTrend?
There are three ways to use SymTrend. The first is using a personal computer (PC - IBM compatible or Macintosh)
connected to the Internet. Data is entered into your Health Log and graphs of
your progress are generated on the website. Any type of personal computer with
an Internet browser will work. SymTrend communication software and web viewing work best
when using a broadband connection to the Internet (e.g., DSL, fiber optic, cable). The browsers supported by the system include:
Internet Explorer 8.0 or higher, Firefox 3.6 or higher, Safari 5.0 or higher and Mac Firefox 3.5 or higher.
The second way to enter information into SymTrend is using a handheld computer. SymTrend has apps for the iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad. You can go to the iTunes App store and download the SymTrend app at no fee. You will be able to sign up for a SymTrend account from the App and can use it for a 14-day free trial. If you subscribe to SymTrend's service you can continue to use the App for data entry.
The third way to enter information into SymTrend is using a mobile phone that has a data plan and a browser for Internet access. DO NOT USE THIS METHOD IF YOU PLAN TO USE AN IPHONE. The phones tested include the iPhone and Android phones. Sign up for an account online and select an e-Diary. When you go to the SymTrend website using your browser, scroll down to the bottom of the home page and click on the Go-Mobile link at the bottom of the page to enter data from your phone. Also at the bottom of the home page is a Go-Mobile-Lite link for those browsers that do not work with the higher resolution Go-Mobile link.
You may use both mobile and online methods at any time. (For example, if you do not have your phone/handheld with you, but do have access to a desktop, you can enter Health Log data directly onto the website). However, graphs charting your progress cannot be viewed on a mobile device. All output is viewed on the website.
Do you provide analyses of my entries?
No, we do not provide text analyses of your entries on the website; the system provides charts and tables for you and your clinician to interpret.
The system documentation in the Learning section provides
explanations about how to interpret the graphs created and gives some examples.
The Report function produces a set of charts and tables that display change in your ratings over time.
For an additional fee ($150/hour), SymTrend support staff will provide phone-based tutorials about
SymTrend use and about interpretation of the patterns in your SymTrend charts. You may find it
useful to review your first charts with one of the experts so that you can learn how to
look for trends and for triggers of problems. Contact
support@symtrend.com for assistance.
Do you make recommendations based on my entries?
No, we cannot. This site has only general health information in the Learning
part of the system. We cannot provide specific advice to you or offer a diagnosis. The videos
on the SymTrend Standard home page and papers in the Learning section describe SymTrend uses for a
variety of conditions; some uses may require supervision by a trained clinician or educator.
If you have a problem that requires medical attention, please contact your physician
or another healthcare provider right away. Bring your graphs with you when you
visit the provider to use as a memory aid for describing your symptoms. Your clinician
should be able to help you understand relationships among your answers and help you evaluate
what the charts mean in terms of the impact of treatments, stress, or other triggers.
Can you help me find a doctor?
Unfortunately, no. Many hospitals and health insurance plans are able to provide
doctor referrals and we suggest you contact them.
How do I find information about a medical problem?
The disease specific Tours on the SymTrend Standard Home Page, the
SymTrend Standard Manage Your Care section, and the SymTrend ADL Library have information about many of the diagnoses with which
SymTrend can be used. See the SymTrend Standard Links page and the SymTrend ADL Strategize pages for recommended websites where
you may find other information that may be helpful to you.
How do I use SymTrend to communicate with my clinician?
SymTrend is a powerful tool for patients to accurately communicate their symptoms
and events to their clinician. You may choose to print out your charts to bring to
a visit, or you may grant your clinician access to your online account at
SymTrend to review the information on his/her schedule. A clinician may sign
up at SymTrend for free.
If you wish to give your clinician permission to view your account, go to the Link With Clinician option under the Your Account menu. Check the box next to your clinician's name. If your clinician is not listed, follow the link to a page of information you may print out and give to your clinician. It will show your SymTrend user name, tell the clinician how SymTrend works, and describe how the clinician may sign up.
Once your clinician registers at SymTrend, he/she can send you an e-mail asking you to give permission to view your account. No one, including a clinician, can view your account without your permission. By checking your clinician's name, you are giving that clinician permission to view your account. You may go to the same page (Your Account > Link With Clinician) to revoke that permission.
Fees and Subscriptions
How do I subscribe?
If you will be using any SymTrend app on an iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch, download the app form the iTunes store and sign up for a SymTrend
account from the app. Otherwise,
click on the Personal Subscriptions link under Sign Up Now on the SymTrend Standard home page.
Click on the Sign Up Now link on the SymTrend ADL, SymTrend Sleep, or SymTrend Toilet home pages.
Fill out the registration form that comes up and check the Privacy and Terms of Use policies. After approving
the Terms of Use and Privacy, you will be given access to your account at no cost for 14-days. You can try all features of the system
for the 14 days. You will then be reminded to pay for a subscription. Click on the Your Account > Products> More link
on the Navigation bar to get to the billing page.
Click on the subscription option you want on that page and submit your credit card information. Instructions are
there if you prefer to pay by check or money order.
How much does it cost?
SymTrend Standard costs $10.00 for a period of 6 months. SymTrend ADL and No More Meltdowns cost $10.99 for one year. SymTrend Toilet and SymTrend Sleep are free for
one year. If you would like to
customize a Health Log or receive phone-based tutorials or consulting services, additional fees apply.
How do I renew a subscription?
One month and again two weeks before the end of the subscription, you will be notified
that your subscription is about to expire by email if you have provided a valid email address. In
the email, there will be a link that will take you to our Billing page.
To get to the Billing page, click on the Your Account > Products> More link
on the Navigation bar.
How do I cancel my subscription?
To cancel a subscription, you must contact SymTrend.com by e-mail at support@symtrend.com
or US mail at SymTrend, Inc., 65 Henry St., Cambridge, MA 02139-4820. Cancellations
are not retroactive; subscription fees are not refunded for time not used, so
you may just let the subscription lapse.
If I cancel my subscription or let it lapse, will I still have access to my data?
Former subscribers will still be able to make charts and reports based on data
already entered into the system. However, they will no longer be able to download
or upload data or enter Health Log or Care Records into the system.
Can I use the site without paying for a subscription?
You can use the SymTrend Standard app without paying for 14 days.
Beyond that, you cannot use the site without paying for a subscription. After your paid
subscription to SymTrend lapses, you can get access to the records stored there. You
will not be able to add information to those records, however, without further payment. Some health information is available for free in the disorder-specific tours on the Home Page.
If I register, will you or other third parties solicit me?
We will only contact Users, without explicit permission, about system status
information (such as scheduled upgrades, down time or changes in functionality)
and account information, as part of the registration process, or in response
to inquiries. We will not sell our user list. We will notify you if the company is sold and about
changes to our privacy policy, when they occur.
Your Account
How do I change my username?
Your member ID (your login name) and the Progress Report Name, the name that
is printed on Charts and in the upper right hand of the screen when you log
in, may be changed from the Account Info item under the Your Account menu on the Navigation bar.
How do I change my e-mail address?
Under the Your Account menu on the Navigation bar, choose Account Info.
How do I change my password?
Under the Your Account menu on the Navigation bar, choose Account Info.
How do I change my Health Challenge?
This issue is only relevant for the SymTrend Standard product.
Change your Health Challenge by selecting Account Info under the Your Account heading on the Navigation bar.
How do I choose a clinician?
Under the Your Account menu, select Link With Clinician. Highlight your
clinician's name and click on the Save Changes button. If your clinician is not listed, follow the link to a page
of information you may print out and give to your clinician. It will show your
SymTrend user name, tell the clinician how SymTrend works, and describe how
the clinician may sign up.
Once your clinician registers at SymTrend, he/she can send you an e-mail asking you to give permission to view your account. No one, including a clinician, can view your account without your permission. By checking your clinician's name, you are giving that clinician permission to view your account (and in some cases to enter data into your account. You can revoke permission to view your account by going back to the Link With Clinician menu item under the Your Account heading on the Navigation bar.
How do I delete my account?
SymTrend will only delete an account from the system upon receipt of a letter
requesting it be done, with a signature, through the US mail at SymTrend, Inc.,
65 Henry St., Cambridge, MA 02139-4820. Please indicate your user name and other
information about the account, such as the dates during which it was used and
the Health Log used, so that we may verify that it is correct. We will send
a confirmatory e-mail to the e-mail account linked to the SymTrend account,
prior to deleting it, to ensure we have been given instructions from the appropriate
person. We recommend against deleting the account, however, because you may
need to reference the information in the future, should difficulties with your
health occur.
Privacy & Security
How secure is my personal information?
We have taken great care to create a secure and safe online environment that
is dedicated to Users' privacy and confidentiality. We maintain physical, technical
and administrative safeguards designed to secure data against foreseeable risks
such as unauthorized use, access, disclosure, destruction and modification. There have never been any breaches to our security.
Does SymTrend back up all data?
SymTrend keeps backup files as a protection against natural disasters, equipment
failures or other causes. These backup files are designed to protect patients,
clinicians and us as they reduce the risk of loss of valuable data. We take
exceptional care and caution with these files, although we do not guarantee
or ensure against loss of data. However, until backup records are erased, they
receive the same privacy and security protections as your other records. The
media is kept locked away, except when it is in transit from one location to
another or in use.
Does SymTrend sell information or e-mail addresses to others?
No e-mail addresses or specific patient information will be sold directly to anyone; we will notify
you, however, if the company is sold.
SymTrend may aggregate health data after removing names and all identifying
information for use in providing guidelines for treatment of individuals with
similar Health Challenges, age and gender. We will sell access to the aggregated
data for medical research purposes only.
What are cookies?
Cookies are small files sent to a user's hard drive by a web server when a web
site is accessed. They store information about the user. Not all web sites use
cookies. There are two types of cookies: session and persistent.
- Session cookies are used only for the current visit on a web site. They
are deleted when the browser is exited or the computer turned off. They are
used to carry a user's authorized account information from page to page within
the web site.
- Persistent cookies are stored on the user's hard drive for use each time the web site is visited. They are used to identify the user and to store preferences, eliminating the need to enter this information every time. They can also be used to collect and report how users navigate, what pages they view and when they visit.
How does SymTrend use cookies?
SymTrend uses session cookies for several purposes. For example, a session cookie
is created when the User logs on, and exists only as long as the User has his/her
browser open. The cookie becomes useless when the User logs off, or after 20
minutes of no activity on the system. It is imperative that Users log off the
system at the end of a session, particularly if using a shared machine. These
session cookies are necessary for security - to check that someone attempting
to access a database or chart has the correct username.
Persistent cookies are used to store optional information about a user's preferences only; no personal information is stored in a persistent cookie. A user can disable persistent cookies and still be able use SymTrend.com.
When you first log into the system, your browser may ask you if you want to save your username and password. If you choose to do so, your browser will store this information. For security reasons, we do not recommend that you answer, "yes", to this question, since anyone who uses the computer can log on with your name and password.
Can I block cookies while using SymTrend?
A session cookie may be necessary to access certain features available on our
site and our site will not work properly if the browser is set to reject session
cookies.
Does SymTrend collect personal information and are they provided to third
parties?
Personal information about Personal Users can only be disclosed to third parties in
certain circumstances. These include providing services for which the Patients
have subscribed, maintaining our system, or providing payment operations. SymTrend
may make personal information about a User available to contractors the company
hires to perform services for it. When this happens, SymTrend will take appropriate
steps to ensure that the information is treated confidentially by these contractors.
SymTrend also makes patient information available to professionals whom the patient has selected, and who have registered with
SymTrend.
Information we gather regarding from patients' payment information is maintained separately from individual health care and logging data.
Personal information provided regarding Clinicians (such as e-mail address) would not be generally available to anyone. Information about Clinicians, such as their specialty and affiliation, will be posted so that Patients can identify their Clinician in the process of granting the Clinician access.
Note that some information that is maintained by SymTrend cannot be identified with a User personally and/or is not confidential. For example, SymTrend may solicit questions or answers to questions or comments and suggestions from Users. We do not link personally identifiable information about Users to such questions, answers, comments or suggestions. Also, SymTrend may use data, without identifying information (with names, e-mail addresses removed), to compile general health statistical data to be used in providing guidelines for the treatment of individuals with similar complaints, ages and genders. Because such data does not contain information that could be associated with any User personally, it is not "personal" information subject to the use and disclosure restrictions set forth in our Privacy Policy.
I want to use SymTrend for my child, how do you protect the privacy of children?
SymTrend strives to protect and care for the privacy of children in the
same manner as we believe their parents would. In some respects, we will take
additional steps regarding members under 13 years old. Consistent with the Children's
Online Privacy and Protection Act of 1998 (COPPA), we will not register or otherwise
collect Personal Information from persons who identify themselves as being under
the age of 13 during the registration process without the prior verifiable consent
of that person's parent or guardian. All information provided about children
must be obtained and entered with the specific consent of a parent or legal
guardian. Any inadvertently gathered information from a child will be deleted
and we will not share any such information with any third party.
Can I check to see if someone has accessed my account?
Select the Link With Clinician option under the Your Account heading on the Navigation bar. A summary of activity in your
account is listed on that page. You can see if your clinician accessed your
account, if there were unsuccessful login attempts, and see how often someone
logged into your account. If you feel there was inappropriate access, contact
us at support@symtrend.com or US mail
at SymTrend, Inc., 65 Henry St., Cambridge, MA 02139-4820.
For Clinicians
Can I use my handheld to view patient data?
There is no handheld computer application for the clinician to view charts at this time. Clinicians with Professional Plus accounts may enter data into their patient/client/student's paid account
when permission to access the account is granted. This is helpful when doing
observations of behaviors or frequent evaluations. Clinicians with Professional Plus accounts can enter information into SymTrend with a mobile phone that has a data plan and a browser for Internet access. The phones tested include the iPhone and any Android phone. Sign up for an account and select an e-Diary. When you
go to the SymTrend website, scroll down to the bottom of the home page and click on the Go-Mobile link at the bottom of the page to enter data from your phone. Also at the bottom of the home page is a Go-Mobile-Lite link for those browsers that do not work with the higher resolution Go-Mobile link.
Do Clinicians have to pay for a subscription to SymTrend?
No. Clinicians can set up an account and view their patients' data at no cost
at this time.
If a clinician wants to collect data regularly about a patient/student in a Health Log,
a personal account must be set up in the patient's name and the standard subscription fee is charged.
If the patient/student and clinician are entering data into the same account, the clinician must also pay for a Professional Plus subscription. If a professional wants to author his/her own Health Logs for use by patients/clients in his/her practice, he must pay for that type of Professional Plus account ($500/year). Contact SymTrend support if you want to set up access to the authoring tool (1-866-796-8732) or support@symtrend.com.
What if the available Health Logs do not address my needs?
Customized Health Logs can be created for users for an additional fee. We encourage
input from the clinician in the design of these Logs. Clinicians can design
a Log and associated graphs for use by patients in their practice that can be
forwarded to the patients when they subscribe. Call the support line at 1-866-SYMTREND (1-866-796-8732)
to talk about logging and monitoring needs and receive an estimate of the cost
of a specialized Log. You may decide whether the Health Log you design can become available to the
general public.
How do I access my patient's data?
A clinician will have access to patient data when granted permission. If the patient
revokes access to the data, the clinician loses access to previously
saved files and notes. Clinicians are encouraged to keep hard copies of documents
if they anticipate a need to have more detailed records of their patient's data
after termination of treatment.
On the main page of the Clinician account, a box is provided for initiating communication with a patient to ask for access to his/her account. You need to know the patient's SymTrend user name to send the message. Otherwise, you can ask your patient to go to the Your Account > Link With Clinician menu selection from his/her account to select you as a Clinician. When this happens, a message is sent to you and notification of that message is displayed on your main page. Click on the message notification and respond, "yes", to the access request.
Once the accounts are linked, the Clinician's main page provides a list of all names associated with accounts to which the Clinician has been granted access. A click on the patient's name brings up the patient's "chart"; this chart displays some basic information and provides links to the specific patient's graphs, reminder setting page, and Care Records.
Last updated, October, 2015.
