Appointments
You must make an appointment to be seen. Most sessions run between 45-55 minutes.
Emergencies
In the event of an emergency, the best practice is to go to your local hospital emergency room where you can get immediate attention and medical assistance. You should also call your clinician and indicate that there is an emergency. Your clinician will get back to you as soon as possible but cannot guarantee an immediate response. Please be advised that notifications for calls, text messages, and emails are turned off between the hours of 9:00pm and 8:00am or on the weekends. Your message will be returned during normal business hours.
Cancellations
Your session time is reserved for you. Please contact your clinician at least 24 hours in advance if you need to change or cancel a scheduled appointment. Except in instances of illness or emergency, appointments that are not canceled in a timely manner will be billed directly to you in their entirety (not just the co-pay) as your insurance company will not cover them.
Fees
The fee for an initial one-hour interview and assessment is $180. Additional sessions thereafter are forty-five minutes at a rate of $150, unless otherwise arranged via your insurance company or directly with your clinician. If you are using your insurance, you are responsible for payments or insurance co-pay at the time of each appointment.
Confidentiality
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 requires that our private health information is kept confidential at all times. Without your written permission, we cannot release any information about you. We will request permission in the event that someone else needs such information. You can revoke this authorization at any time.
You should also note that there are certain exceptions to the privacy rules. By law, we are required to report the following situations: (1) suspected abuse of a child or vulnerable adults; (2) suicidal and/or homicidal threats; (3) certain law enforcement situations; (4) emergencies that involve legal investigations. Please note that according to state statutes governing psychologists, adolescents over the age of 14 have a right to privacy with respect to sexual activity, pregnancy issues, and substance use. In the event these are issues in the treatment of a given adolescent, we will make every effort to encourage a teen to share information with family members, especially if such sharing is not felt to be harmful to the child.
Use of Social Media
We do not accept any friend requests on any social media platform (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.) from any current or future client. We believe that adding clients as friends on these sites would compromise clients’ confidentiality as well as impact our respective privacy. We also believe that contact on social media blurs the lines and impacts the therapeutic relationship negatively.
Use of Email & Text Message
Please note that email and text messages are not considered HIPAA compliant forms of communication. You may contact us through these platforms; however, please be aware that if you choose to do so, you may compromise your confidentiality. If you communicate confidential or private information via text or email, we will assume that you have made an informed decision, will view it as your agreement to take the risk that such communication may be intercepted. Please do not use e-mail or texts for emergencies. Due to computer or network problems, emails may not be deliverable, and we may not check our emails daily.