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Website Privacy Policy

Hands In Unity LLC | hiucare.com

Last updated: October 20, 2026

Who we are

Hands In Unity LLC ("HIU," "we," "us") runs this website. We are a provider licensed by and contracted with the Tennessee Department of Disability and Aging (DDA), offering Family Model Residential Support in East Tennessee. Our office is at 900 E Hill Ave. Ste 430, Knoxville, TN 37915. Phone 865-659-8279 (TRS 711).

This policy explains what information this website and the online forms linked from it collect, how we use it, and the choices you have. It covers the website and those forms only.

Health information is covered by a different notice

If you receive services from HIU, your health information is protected by our Notice of Privacy Practices, at hiucare.com/hipaa-notice. That notice explains your rights under HIPAA, the federal health privacy law. You can also ask us for a paper copy.

The short version

We do not use advertising or tracking cookies, and we do not sell your information.
Our web host keeps short-term technical logs, like any website.
Our referral form is run by an online form service that HIU uses. Please do not put medical details in it.
If you apply to become a Family Model Provider (FMP), we use your application only to review it, run required background and registry checks, and contract with you.
Our grievance form, when it is available, will run on Microsoft Forms in HIU's own Microsoft 365 account.
Questions? Contact our Privacy Officer, Daniel Byerley, at d.byerley@hiucare.com or 865-659-8279.

Information this website collects

1. Technical information collected automatically

Our website is hosted by Vercel. When you visit, Vercel's servers keep standard logs so the site can work and stay secure. These logs can include your IP address, your browser and device type (user agent), the pages you request, and the date and time. We use this information only to run, troubleshoot, and protect the site. Vercel keeps these logs only for a limited time set by our hosting plan, and then they expire.

2. Families referral form

The referral button on our Families page opens HIU's referral form on the form service's own website, not on hiucare.com. If you use the form, what you type goes to the online form service that HIU uses for referrals (such as Jotform or Microsoft Forms) and is stored in HIU's account with that service. When you submit the form, HIU staff are notified by email.

Please do not include medical details, diagnoses, medications, Social Security numbers, or Medicaid/TennCare ID numbers. The referral form is not meant for health information. If the referral involves health details, call us at 865-659-8279 and we will talk it through by phone.

The form service may also record technical information, such as your IP address, when you submit the form, as described in its own privacy policy. We use referral information only to contact you about services and to process the referral. We delete referrals once they are more than 2 months old, along with the email alerts about them and any copies or exports. We do this at the start of each month, so a referral may be kept for up to about 3 months. If a referral leads to services, the information needed for those services becomes part of the person's service record, which our Notice of Privacy Practices covers.

3. Grievance form (Microsoft Forms) - when available

We plan to offer an online grievance (complaint) form using Microsoft Forms in HIU's Microsoft 365 business account. It is not available yet. Until it is, you can raise a concern by phone at 865-659-8279 (TRS 711), by email to d.byerley@hiucare.com, or by mail to our office. See hiucare.com/report-a-concern.

When the form is live, your answers will be stored in HIU's Microsoft 365 account. Microsoft provides HIPAA business associate protections for Microsoft Forms. Only the HIU staff who handle grievances will be able to see responses. You will be able to submit without giving your name.

4. Applying to become a Family Model Provider (FMP)

Our website links to an online application for people who want to become Family Model Providers (FMPs). FMPs are independent contractors who support people in their own homes. The application is run by Jotform, an online form service, and opens on Jotform's website. What you enter is stored in HIU's Jotform account. When you submit it, HIU staff are notified by email.

What the application asks for:

Your full legal name, date of birth, and the last 4 digits of your Social Security number
Your driver's license number and state
Your phone number, email address, current address, and how long you have lived there
The names and dates of birth of other adults (18 and older) who live in your home
Your work history for the last 5 years, your caregiving experience, certifications and training, and professional and personal references
Yes/no screening questions about criminal convictions, abuse or neglect registry listings, and past terminations from caregiving or healthcare positions, plus any explanation you give
Information about your home, such as whether you own or rent, the number of bedrooms, smoke detectors, and transportation
Your signature and the date

The application does not ask for health information. Please do not include medical details in it.

Why we collect it: to review your application and decide whether you qualify to be an FMP under DDA requirements; to run the background and registry checks that DDA and TennCare require for people who provide these services, including checks on other adults in the home where required; and, if you are accepted, to prepare your contract with HIU.

Who sees it: only the HIU staff who handle FMP recruiting and screening. We share it outside HIU only as needed for the required checks, for example with the state agencies that run background checks and registries or with a background-check company working for us, and when the law requires it. Jotform stores it for us as our service provider.

How long we keep it: as long as needed to review your application, and as required by law and our DDA contract. If you become an FMP, the information becomes part of your contractor file.

Your rights: you can ask what information your application contains, ask us to correct it, or withdraw your application. Contact our Privacy Officer, Daniel Byerley, Co-founder and Executive Director, at d.byerley@hiucare.com or 865-659-8279 (TRS 711).

Security: we limit access to the staff who need it and use reasonable safeguards. Jotform uses a secure (encrypted) connection when you submit the form, and HIU's Jotform account uses Jotform's HIPAA security features, which store what you submit in encrypted form.

Not covered by our HIPAA notice: applicants are not people who receive services from HIU, so application information is not covered by our Notice of Privacy Practices. We still protect it as this policy describes.

5. No other forms on this site

Apart from the referral form, the grievance form, and the FMP application described above, our website does not collect anything you type. To reach us, please call 865-659-8279 (TRS 711) or email d.byerley@hiucare.com.

6. Email and phone calls

If you email us, your message is stored in HIU's Microsoft 365 business email. Regular email is not fully secure, so please do not send detailed health information by email unless we have arranged a secure way to do so. If you call us, we may take notes to follow up on your request.

Cookies, analytics and advertising

We do not use advertising cookies, tracking pixels, or social media trackers.
We do not use website analytics.
Our site may use small files or storage that are strictly needed for it to work.
If a page includes content from another company, such as an embedded map or form, that company may set its own cookies and collect your IP address under its own policy. Links to Google Maps and to our online forms open those companies' own websites, where their privacy policies apply.

If we ever add analytics or other tools, we will update this policy first.

Photos of people we support

We do not post identifiable photos of the people we support on this website or our social media without written, signed consent from the person or their legal representative.

We use information from this website only to respond to you, process referrals, FMP applications and grievances, and run and protect the website. We do not sell or rent your information, and we do not share it for advertising.

We share information only:

With the service providers that run parts of this website for us: Vercel (hosting), the online form service we use for the referral form (such as Jotform or Microsoft Forms), Jotform (FMP application), the email services we use for form alerts and messages, and Microsoft (email, and the grievance form when available)
For FMP applications, with state agencies or a background-check company, only as needed for the required background and registry checks
When the law requires it, or to report suspected abuse, neglect or exploitation as Tennessee law requires
To protect someone's safety, or to protect our rights and the security of the site

How long we keep information

Referral form submissions: deleted once they are more than 2 months old, along with the email alerts about them and any copies or exports. We delete them at the start of each month, so a submission may be kept for up to about 3 months.
Grievances (when the online form is available, and grievances received by phone, email or mail): 6 years from when the grievance is resolved, as our grievance procedure requires, then deleted (along with any email copies) at our next monthly records check
FMP applications: as long as needed to review the application, and as required by law and our DDA contract. If you become an FMP, the information becomes part of your contractor file.
Website server logs: only as long as our hosting plan keeps them (see above)
Emails you send us: as long as needed to respond and to keep any records the law requires

How we protect information

We use reputable service providers, limit access to the staff who need it, and use the security features of our Microsoft 365 account. No website or email system is completely secure, which is why we ask you not to send medical details through the referral form or regular email.

Children's information

This website is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 through it. A parent, guardian or other adult may contact us about services for a young person. If you believe a child under 13 has sent us information through this site, contact us and we will delete it.

Your choices and requests

You can ask us what information you sent through this website, ask us to correct it, or ask us to delete it, unless we must keep it by law. Contact our Privacy Officer, Daniel Byerley, Co-founder and Executive Director, at d.byerley@hiucare.com or 865-659-8279 (TRS 711), or by mail at 900 E Hill Ave. Ste 430, Knoxville, TN 37915.

Questions and complaints

If you have a question or concern about this policy, contact Daniel Byerley, Co-founder and Executive Director, Privacy Officer: d.byerley@hiucare.com, 865-659-8279 (TRS 711), 900 E Hill Ave. Ste 430, Knoxville, TN 37915. Office hours: Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern Time.

If your concern is about the privacy of your health information, you can also file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights:

Online: HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) Complaint Portal, https://ocrportal.hhs.gov/ocr/smartscreen/main.jsf
Phone: 1-800-368-1019 (toll-free) | TDD: 1-800-537-7697
Email (questions or help filing): OCRMail@hhs.gov
Mail: Office for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 200 Independence Avenue, S.W., Room 509F, HHH Building, Washington, D.C. 20201

We will not retaliate against anyone for raising a privacy concern.

Links to other websites

Our site links to government and other websites, such as tn.gov and hhs.gov. We are not responsible for their privacy practices. Please read their policies.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy. We will post the new version on this page and change the "Last updated" date at the top. If we make a significant change, such as adding analytics or a new form, we will update this page before the change takes effect.

Language and disability help. If you speak a language other than English, free language help is available. Free large print, sign language interpreters and other aids are also available. Call 865-659-8279 (TRS: 711).