PRACTICE POLICIES
APPOINTMENTS , CANCELLATIONS, AND NO SHOWS
Please remember to cancel or reschedule 48 hours in advance. You will be responsible for the entire fee if cancellation is less than 48 hours.
The standard meeting time for psychotherapy is 50 minutes. It is up to you, however, to determine the length of time of your sessions. Requests to change the 50-minute session needs to be discussed with the therapist in order for time to be scheduled in advance.
If you are late to a session and have not connected with the therapist prior to the start of session, I will wait until 15 minutes after the scheduled start of session. If you have not arrived before that time, we will not have a session that day, and you will be responsible for the full no show fee.
Cancellations and rescheduled session will be subject to a full charge if not received AT LEAST 48 HOURS IN ADVANCE. This is a time commitment that is made to you, and is held exclusively for you. If you are late for a session, you will lose some of that session time.
Scheduled appointments for which someone does not arrive, and has not reached out prior to the start time of the scheduled session, are referred to in this document as “no shows”. In case of a no show, the full late cancellation fee will be charged to the card on file the day of the no show.
A $25.00 service charge will be charged for any checks returned for any reason for special handling.
TELEPHONE ACCESSIBILITY
If you need to contact me between sessions, please leave a message on my voice mail. I am often not immediately available; however, I will attempt to return your call within 24 hours. If an emergency situation arises, please call 911 or any local emergency room.
ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION
I cannot ensure the confidentiality of any form of communication through electronic media, including text messages. If you prefer to communicate via email or text messaging for issues regarding scheduling or cancellations, I will do so. While I try to return messages in a timely manner, I cannot guarantee immediate response, and request that you do not use these methods of communication to discuss immediate therapeutic content and/or request assistance for emergencies.
Services by electronic means, including but not limited to telephone communication, the Internet, fax machines, and e-mail is considered telemedicine/telehealth by the State of California. Under the California Telemedicine Act of 1996, telemedicine is broadly defined as the use of information technology to deliver medical services and information from one location to another. If you and I choose to use information technology for some or all of your treatment, you need to understand that:
(1) You retain the option to withhold or withdraw consent at any time without affecting the right to future care or treatment or risking the loss or withdrawal of any services to which you would otherwise be entitled.
(2) All existing confidentiality protections are equally applicable.
(3) Your access to all medical information transmitted during a telemedicine consultation is guaranteed, and copies of this information are available upon written request.
(4) Dissemination of any of your identifiable images or information from the telemedicine interaction to researchers or other entities shall not occur without your consent.
(5) There are potential risks, consequences, and benefits of telemedicine. Potential benefits include, but are not limited to improved communication capabilities, providing convenient access to up-to-date information, consultations, support, reduced costs, improved quality, change in the conditions of practice, improved access to therapy, better continuity of care, and reduction of lost work time and travel costs. Effective therapy is often facilitated when the therapist gathers within a session or a series of sessions, a multitude of observations, information, and experiences about the client. Therapists may make clinical assessments, diagnosis, and interventions based not only on direct verbal or auditory communications, written reports, and third person consultations, but also from direct visual and olfactory observations, information, and experiences. When using information technology in therapy services, potential risks include, but are not limited to the therapist’s inability to make visual and olfactory observations of clinically or therapeutically potentially relevant issues. Potential consequences thus include the therapist not being aware of what they would consider important information that you may not yourself recognize as significant or important to present verbally the therapist.
MINORS
If you are a minor, your parent(s)/legal guardian(s) are legally entitled to some information about your therapy. I will discuss with you and your parent(s)/legal guardian(s) what information is appropriate for them to receive and which issues are more appropriately kept confidential.
TERMINATION
Ending relationships can be difficult. Therefore, it is important to have a termination process in order to achieve some closure. The appropriate length of the termination depends on the length and intensity of the treatment. I may terminate treatment after appropriate discussion with you, and a termination process, if I determine that the psychotherapy is not being effectively used, the psychotherapy is creating harm, and/or if you are in default on payment.
I will not terminate the therapeutic relationship without first discussing and exploring the reasons and purpose of terminating. If therapy is terminated for any reason, or you request another therapist, I will provide you with a list of qualified psychotherapists to treat you. You may also choose someone on your own or from another referral source.
Should you fail to schedule an appointment for three consecutive weeks, unless other arrangements have been made in advance, for legal and ethical reasons I must consider the professional relationship discontinued. This will require re-establishment of care based on the availability of my schedule.