Welcome to Insight Psychotherapy Group (“IPG”). Below is essential information about our policies that are designated to facilitate and optimize your treatment. Please read it carefully and ask your therapist any questions you might have so that you can be fully informed and prepared as you begin your treatment. When you sign this document, it will represent an agreement between you and IPG.
Psychological Services
Psychotherapy varies depending on the needs and personality of the client, the psychotherapist, and the problems you are experiencing. There are many different techniques that may be helpful in dealing with the problems that you hope to address.
Psychotherapy calls for an active effort on your part both during and in between sessions. Psychotherapy can have benefits and risks since therapy often involves discussing difficult aspects of your life. As a result, you may experience uncomfortable feelings like sadness, guilt, anger, frustration, loneliness, and helplessness. On the other hand, psychotherapy has also been shown to have many benefits. Therapy often leads to better relationships, resolutions to specific problems, and reductions in feelings of distress. However, there are no guarantees of what you will experience.
Initial Visit
Your first, and possibly second session, will involve an evaluation of your needs, at which time your therapist will discuss his/her treatment recommendations. During this time, you will have an opportunity to decide if your therapist is the best person to provide the services you need to meet your treatment goals. If psychotherapy is initiated, your therapist will usually schedule one 45-minute session per week. If you decide to discontinue your work with your therapist, he/she can help you secure an appropriate consultation with another qualified mental health professional at IPG.
Confidentiality
In general, the law protects the privacy of all communications between a patient and a therapist, and your therapist can only release information with your permission. However, there are a few exceptions in which your therapist is legally obligated to act to protect others from harm, even if it requires that your therapist reveal information about a client’s treatment.
These exceptions include: 1) If you reveal information related to the abuse or neglect of a child, dependent adult, or elderly person, then the appropriate authorities may be contacted. 2) If you threaten bodily harm or death to yourself, your therapist may notify the appropriate authorities and appropriate others (e.g., family member, inpatient hospital staff). 3) If you threaten bodily harm or death to others, your therapist may notify the appropriate authorities and/or the intended victim. 4) If there is clear and imminent danger to you or the public, or there is probable cause to believe that a potential victim is likely to be in danger, your therapist may notify the appropriate authorities and/or the intended victim(s). In most legal proceedings, you have the right to prevent your therapist from providing any information about your treatment. In some proceedings involving child custody and those in which your emotional condition is an important issue, a judge may subpoena the testimony of your therapist if he/she determines that the issues demand it. Your therapist may occasionally find it helpful to consult with other healthcare professionals about a case. During the consultation your therapist will make every effort to avoid revealing the identity of any patient details. The consultant is also legally bound to keep the information confidential.
Confidentiality Issues with Children & Adolescents
If you are a parent or guardian of a child or adolescent receiving psychotherapy, your therapist will involve you in helping your child to the fullest extent possible. However, the content of your child’s sessions must be confidential to enable your child to confide in your therapist and for therapy to be effective. In the treatment of adolescents, there are many issues that therapists have no opportunity to address unless the adolescents trust that communication in therapy will not be shared with parents or guardians. These issues may include the use of cigarettes, alcohol, drugs, sexual concerns or behavior, gang involvement, cutting classes or truancy, school failure, unauthorized time with peers, and/or criminal activity. As your adolescent’s therapist, he/she will work to help him or her behave in ways that are not self-destructive, and that do not limit his or her options for the future. If any of these issues rise to the level of serious, imminent danger to self or others, parents and/or the authorities will be notified.
Professional Records
The laws and standards of the mental health profession require that IPG maintain treatment records. Your records are stored on an offsite server that is HIPPA compliant. You are entitled to request a copy of your records unless your therapist believes that seeing them would be emotionally damaging, in which case your therapist will review them with you or send them to another mental health professional of your choice to allow you to review and discuss the contents.
Fees & Insurance
Your fee for psychotherapy will be agreed-upon prior to your first session. IPG is in-network with insurance companies. If you are utilizing your insurance, please be aware that all insurance companies require IPG to provide a clinical diagnosis. In some cases, we are required to provide additional clinical information such as treatment plans or summaries, or copies of the entire record (in rare cases), and said information will be on file with the insurance company. Although all insurance companies claim to keep such information confidential, IPG has no control over what they do with the information once the information has been released. Your therapist will inform you if any information beyond a diagnosis code is required.
IPG will check your benefits and notify you of any co-pays, co-insurance or deductibles. Please be aware that insurance companies often state "estimation of benefits is not a guarantee of payment", therefore, we will collect payment based upon the initial benefits check information but may need to readjust your payment after the Explanation of Benefits is received by IPG.
Other services may include report writing, telephone conversations lasting longer than 15 minutes, attendance at meetings with other professionals you have authorized, 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 your therapist’s participation, you will be expected to pay for your therapist’s time including preparation, transportation, and attendance costs.
Sessions are payable by cash, check or credit card. If a check is returned unpaid you will be responsible for the returned check fee of $25.00, and any bills that are 90 days past due may be turned over to a collection agency. Your therapist will inform you before IPG takes this measure so that you will have the opportunity to resolve your outstanding balance.
Inasmuch as IPG offers an affordable sliding scale fee, there is the possibility that psychotherapy session fees will be raised to keep up with rising inflation and other administrative costs of doing business. If and when this does occur, you will be provided with 30 days notice.