POLICIES AND PRIVACY
THERAPY SERVICES. Therapy is a relationship between people that works in part because of clearly defined rights and responsibilities held by each person. As a client in psychotherapy, you have certain rights and responsibilities that are important for you to understand. There are also legal limitations to those rights that you should be aware of. I, as your therapist, have corresponding responsibilities to you. These rights and responsibilities are described in the following sections.
Psychotherapy has both benefits and risks. Risks may include experiencing uncomfortable feelings, such as sadness, guilt, anxiety, anger, frustration, loneliness and helplessness, because the process of psychotherapy often requires discussing painful aspects of your life. However, psychotherapy has been shown to have benefits for individuals who undertake it. Therapy often leads to a significant reduction in feelings of distress, increased satisfaction in interpersonal relationships, greater personal awareness and insight, increased skills for managing stress and resolutions to specific problems. However, there are no guarantees about what will happen. Psychotherapy requires a very active effort on your part. In order to be most successful, you will have to work on your goals for therapy outside of sessions.
The first 1-3 sessions will involve a comprehensive evaluation of your needs. By the end of the evaluation, I will be able to offer you some initial impressions of what our work might include. At that point, we will discuss your treatment goals and create a flexible initial treatment plan. You should evaluate this information and make your own assessment about whether you feel comfortable working with me. If you have questions about my procedures, I am very open to discussing them whenever they arise.
APPOINTMENTS. Appointments are 50 minutes, once per week at a time we agree on. Sessions may be more or less frequent as needed. If you need to cancel or reschedule a session, I ask that you provide me with 48 hours notice. If you miss a session without canceling, or cancel with less than 48-hours notice, my policy is to collect the full amount of your payment unless you have a unprecedented emergency. If I am able to schedule another client for that time slot, you will not be charged for your missed visit. In addition, you are responsible for coming to your session on time; if you are late, your appointment will still end on time.
FEES. As I do not currently accept health insurance, I do my best to make my services affordable. My fees are as follows:
It is my practice to charge my hourly fee on a prorated basis (I will break down the hourly cost) for other professional services that you may require such as report writing, telephone conversations that last longer than 20 minutes, attendance at meetings/consultations which you have requested, or the time required to perform any other service which you may request of me.
COLLABORATION WITH OTHER PROFESSIONALS. In order to provide quality services, I often need to speak with others, such as your medical providers, psychiatrists, past therapists, and/or other professionals. You will be asked to complete a release of information authorizing these exchanges; In some cases, I may not be able to provide services without this.
There are also times when I may seek counsel from colleagues so that I might provide people with the highest standard of care. In these circumstances, no identifying information about clients will be shared with my professional consultants.
CONFIDENTIALITY. The information disclosed by you is confidential and will not be released to any third party without written authorization from you, except where required or permitted by law. Exceptions to confidentiality include, but are not limited to, situations where you pose a threat of serious harm to yourself or someone else, cases involving suspected child, elder or dependent adult abuse and cases in which I am court-ordered to testify or produce records.
If you participate in couples or family therapy, I will not disclose confidential information about your treatment unless all person(s) who participated in the treatment with you provide their written authorization to release such information. However, I do not keep secret information gathered in individual conversations (whether by phone, email or in an individual session) if the information revealed in some way violates the integrity of the couples/family therapy (such as revealing an affair, substance problem, or intent to leave the relationship). Such information will, at some point, need to be revealed to the other partner for therapy to effectively continue. Please feel free to ask me about how this may apply to you.
CONTACTING ME. I am often not immediately available by telephone. I do not answer my phone when I am with clients or otherwise unavailable. At these times, you may leave a message on my confidential voice mail and your call will be returned as soon as possible. It may take one or two business days for non-urgent matters. If, for any number of unseen reasons, you do not hear from me or I am unable to reach you, and you feel you cannot wait for a return call or if you feel unable to keep yourself safe, please call 911 to request emergency assistance, go to the nearest emergency room, and/or call Helpline at (800) 346-2211.
OTHER RIGHTS. If you are unhappy with what is happening in therapy, I invite you to address this with me in person so that I can respond to your concerns. Such concerns will be taken seriously and handled with care and respect. You may also request that I refer you to another therapist and are free to end therapy at any time. You have the right to considerate, safe and respectful care, without discrimination as to race, ethnicity, color, sexual orientation, gender identification or expression, age, religion, national origin, or source of payment. You have the right to ask questions about any aspects of therapy and about my specific training and experience.
Psychotherapy has both benefits and risks. Risks may include experiencing uncomfortable feelings, such as sadness, guilt, anxiety, anger, frustration, loneliness and helplessness, because the process of psychotherapy often requires discussing painful aspects of your life. However, psychotherapy has been shown to have benefits for individuals who undertake it. Therapy often leads to a significant reduction in feelings of distress, increased satisfaction in interpersonal relationships, greater personal awareness and insight, increased skills for managing stress and resolutions to specific problems. However, there are no guarantees about what will happen. Psychotherapy requires a very active effort on your part. In order to be most successful, you will have to work on your goals for therapy outside of sessions.
The first 1-3 sessions will involve a comprehensive evaluation of your needs. By the end of the evaluation, I will be able to offer you some initial impressions of what our work might include. At that point, we will discuss your treatment goals and create a flexible initial treatment plan. You should evaluate this information and make your own assessment about whether you feel comfortable working with me. If you have questions about my procedures, I am very open to discussing them whenever they arise.
APPOINTMENTS. Appointments are 50 minutes, once per week at a time we agree on. Sessions may be more or less frequent as needed. If you need to cancel or reschedule a session, I ask that you provide me with 48 hours notice. If you miss a session without canceling, or cancel with less than 48-hours notice, my policy is to collect the full amount of your payment unless you have a unprecedented emergency. If I am able to schedule another client for that time slot, you will not be charged for your missed visit. In addition, you are responsible for coming to your session on time; if you are late, your appointment will still end on time.
FEES. As I do not currently accept health insurance, I do my best to make my services affordable. My fees are as follows:
- Individuals, couples & families: $175 for 50-minute sessions.
- Process Groups: $60 for 90-minute group sessions, weekly only
It is my practice to charge my hourly fee on a prorated basis (I will break down the hourly cost) for other professional services that you may require such as report writing, telephone conversations that last longer than 20 minutes, attendance at meetings/consultations which you have requested, or the time required to perform any other service which you may request of me.
COLLABORATION WITH OTHER PROFESSIONALS. In order to provide quality services, I often need to speak with others, such as your medical providers, psychiatrists, past therapists, and/or other professionals. You will be asked to complete a release of information authorizing these exchanges; In some cases, I may not be able to provide services without this.
There are also times when I may seek counsel from colleagues so that I might provide people with the highest standard of care. In these circumstances, no identifying information about clients will be shared with my professional consultants.
CONFIDENTIALITY. The information disclosed by you is confidential and will not be released to any third party without written authorization from you, except where required or permitted by law. Exceptions to confidentiality include, but are not limited to, situations where you pose a threat of serious harm to yourself or someone else, cases involving suspected child, elder or dependent adult abuse and cases in which I am court-ordered to testify or produce records.
If you participate in couples or family therapy, I will not disclose confidential information about your treatment unless all person(s) who participated in the treatment with you provide their written authorization to release such information. However, I do not keep secret information gathered in individual conversations (whether by phone, email or in an individual session) if the information revealed in some way violates the integrity of the couples/family therapy (such as revealing an affair, substance problem, or intent to leave the relationship). Such information will, at some point, need to be revealed to the other partner for therapy to effectively continue. Please feel free to ask me about how this may apply to you.
CONTACTING ME. I am often not immediately available by telephone. I do not answer my phone when I am with clients or otherwise unavailable. At these times, you may leave a message on my confidential voice mail and your call will be returned as soon as possible. It may take one or two business days for non-urgent matters. If, for any number of unseen reasons, you do not hear from me or I am unable to reach you, and you feel you cannot wait for a return call or if you feel unable to keep yourself safe, please call 911 to request emergency assistance, go to the nearest emergency room, and/or call Helpline at (800) 346-2211.
OTHER RIGHTS. If you are unhappy with what is happening in therapy, I invite you to address this with me in person so that I can respond to your concerns. Such concerns will be taken seriously and handled with care and respect. You may also request that I refer you to another therapist and are free to end therapy at any time. You have the right to considerate, safe and respectful care, without discrimination as to race, ethnicity, color, sexual orientation, gender identification or expression, age, religion, national origin, or source of payment. You have the right to ask questions about any aspects of therapy and about my specific training and experience.