CONTACTING ME. The most appropriate time to discuss any issues of concern is during our scheduled sessions. Due to my work schedule, I am often not immediately available by telephone. While I am usually in my office during regular business hours, I typically do not answer the phone when I am with a client. When I am unavailable, my telephone is answered by voicemail or an answering service (for emergency situations), which will then contact me. While I want to be able to respond to your emergency call when you need me, please understand that I may not always able to do so. In the event of a clinical emergency, if you are unable to reach me immediately and cannot wait for me to return your call, you should contact your primary care physician (or child’s pediatrician) and/or proceed to your nearest hospital emergency room.
CONTACTING ME. I use a telephone voice mail that will confidentially record your messages. If you need to contact me between sessions due to an emergency and would like me to call you back, please request that in your message. I check messages fairly regularly during the weekday and somewhat less often on weekends. Please talk to me if you have questions or concerns about these arrangements. I will make every effort to return your call the same day or early the following business day. If we have difficulty reaching each other, please leave times when I can reach you and alternative phone numbers. Lengthy phone conversations will be prorated (see Billing and Payments above). If you are experiencing a clinical emergency and cannot reach me or wait for me to return your call, you should call your family physician, psychiatrist, Crisis Clinic of the Peninsulas at (000) 000-0000. (a 24- hour crisis hot-line with counselors that can help insure your safety or talk to you about the crisis) or go to the nearest hospital. If I know that I will be out of town for an extended period of time, I will have another counselor designated to be on-call for me in crisis situations. If you feel that you might potentially utilize these crises options, please let me know during our session so that we can develop a comprehensive crisis plan. If you choose to contact me via email, text message or fax, be aware that these modalities are not appropriate in crisis situations, or are they to be used as a substitute for therapy. Also, be aware that although your confidentiality is of prime concern to me, I cannot guarantee confidentiality, when using electronic correspondence due to the nature of those types of communication. Email: Email communication is possible only after discussion with your counselor. Clients are cautioned that e- mail is not a confidential means of communication and is not the appropriate way to communicate confidential, urgent, or emergency information. A signed electronic communication informed consent must be on file. This is to ensure that you are aware of the risks to your confidentiality with the use of email, texting and other forms of electronic communication. Email replies greater than 8 lines will be prorated by the time spent reading and replying to your message. Professional Records Both law and the standards of my profession require that I keep Protected Health Information about you in your Clinical Record. Except in situations where you are a danger to yourself (...
CONTACTING ME. Because I provide services for a large number of clients, I cannot be available at all times. You can call me any time during normal business hours and if I am not available, leave a message and the best time ranges to reach you. I will respond as quickly as possible. If it is urgent, indicate this in your message with your phone number. Unless it is an emergency, phone calls received between 6:00 pm and 9:00 am and anytime during weekends and holidays, will be returned the next business day. I will only be able to make appointments during regular office hours but will respond to emergencies. You may text me regarding scheduling appointments and I will respond to you with your permission. Please do not include any information regarding therapeutic issues in a text or email as this method of communication is not secure. If you do send texts or emails with therapeutic information, I will not respond but will discuss with you during your next appointment, or you can call me to discuss on the phone.
CONTACTING ME. Due to the nature of the work, texting is the easiest method to contact. Every effort will be made to return your call within 12 hours, with the exception of weekends and holidays. If you are unable to reach me and feel that you cannot wait for me to return your call, contact your family physician or the nearest emergency room. If we will be unavailable for an extended time, we will let you know 2-12 months in advance unless it is an emergency. PROFESSIONAL FEES Sessions are between $240-$350 per session (and this fee goes up $20 for individual and $50 for couples each January) depending on the type of session. In addition to weekly appointments, I charge the cost of your session fee for other professional services, although I will break down the hourly cost if we worked for periods of less than one hour. Other services include report writing, telephone conversations lasting longer than 5 minutes, consulting with other professionals at your request, preparation of records or treatment summaries, and time spent performing any other service you may request. If you become involved in legal proceedings that require my participation in the form of paperwork my feel is $500 per hour. I do not participate in any court matters. BILLING AND PAYMENTS You will be expected to pay weekly or monthly for sessions depending on what is agreed. Payment schedules for other professional services will be agreed to when requested. If your account has not been paid for more than 60 days and arrangements for payment have not been agreed upon, I maintain the option of using legal means to secure the payment. This may involve hiring a collection agency, which will require the disclosure of otherwise confidential information. In most collection situations, the only information released regarding a patient’s treatment is his/her name, the nature of services provided, and the amount due. If such legal action is necessary, the costs will be included in the claim. INSURANCE REIMBURSEMENT If you have a health insurance policy, it will usually provide some coverage for mental health treatment. I will fill out forms and provide you with whatever assistance I can in helping you receive the benefits to which you are entitled; however, you (not your insurance company) are responsible for full payment of fees. It is important that you determine exactly what mental health services your insurance policy covers. You should carefully read the section in your insurance coverage booklet that describ...
CONTACTING ME. Due to my work schedule, I am often not immediately available by telephone. When I am unavailable, my telephone goes to voice mail that I monitor frequently. I will make every effort to return your call with 24 hours, with the exception of weekends and holidays. If you are unable to reach me and feel that you cannot wait for me to return your call, contact your family physician or the nearest emergency room.
CONTACTING ME. You may telephone me at 000-000-0000 or 000-000-0000. Due to my work schedule, however, I am often not available to receive calls, but my phone will be answered by confidential voice mail. I will make every effort to return your call on the same day you make it, with the exception of weekends and holidays. If you are difficult to reach, please leave me some times when you might be more readily available. If there is an emergency, and you cannot reach me, contact your family physician or the nearest emergency room for crises treatment. In the event that I must be unavailable for an extended period of time, I will provide you with the name of a colleague to contact, if necessary.
CONTACTING ME. Due to my work schedule, I am often not immediately available by telephone. When I am unavailable, my telephone is answered by an answering service (machine, voice mail, or by my secretary) that I monitor frequently, or who knows where to reach me. I will make every effort to return your call on the same day you make it, with the exception of weekends and holidays. If you are difficult to reach, please inform me of some times when you will be available. If you are unable to reach me and feel that you can’t wait for me to return your call, contact your family physician or the nearest emergency room and ask for the psychologist or psychiatrist on call. In addition, Crisis Services is available 24 hours per day to immediately address your needs. Crisis Services can be reached at 814/456-2014. If I will be unavailable for an extended time, I will provide you with the name of a colleague to contact, if necessary.
CONTACTING ME. The office contact number is 000-000-0000. Your therapist is not always immediately available by telephone, especially when they are in a session with another patient. For non-emergencies, we will make every effort to return your call on the same day you make it, including calls we receive after office hours. Otherwise, it may be the next day before we can respond to a non-emergency call. If you are difficult to reach, please leave some times when you will be available. If it is an emergency and you feel that you cannot wait for me to return your call, you should call your family physician or the emergency room at the nearest hospital and ask for the psychologist or psychiatrist on call OR CALL 911. It is important for you to understand that we cannot guarantee confidentiality of communication by email and text. While our electronic online files are encrypted, our emails and texts are not. We certainly do our best to keep any type of communication with you private and confidential, but while you are welcome to make use of these communication tools, you do so at your own risk.
CONTACTING ME. Due to the nature of my work and my part-time schedule, I am often not immediately available. Please leave a message for me if you get my voicemail and I will make every effort to respond within 24 hours (with the exception of weekends and holidays). Should you decide to contact me via email, please note that this is not a secure means of communication and you are accepting the risk associated with transmitting personal information over the internet. Emails should be limited to scheduling, as they are not a means by which I can provide appropriate clinical care; please note that I offer a client portal for scheduling convenience. If you cannot reach me and feel that you have an emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room and ask for the psychiatrist on call.
CONTACTING ME. I am often not immediately available by telephone and email. You may leave a message on my confidential voicemail at any time and your call will be returned as soon as possible or by the next business day under normal circumstances. But, for any number of unseen reasons, if you do not hear from me or I am unable to reach you, it remains your responsibility to take care of yourself until such time as we can talk. If you feel unable to keep yourself safe, call 911 or go to your nearest emergency room and ask to speak to the psychiatrist or psychologist on call. I will make every attempt to inform you in advance of any planned absences, and provide you with a name and phone number of the therapist covering my practice.
