MCC Student Counseling Center
A McLennan Community College and Tarleton State University Partnership
Notice of Privacy Practice and Informed Consent
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THIS NOTICE DESCRIBES HOW PROTECTED HEALTH INFORMATION ABOUT YOU MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED AND HOW YOU CAN GET ACCESS TO THIS INFORMATION.
PLEASE READ IT CAREFULLY.
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Policies and Counseling Agreement
Welcome to the McLennan Community College Student Counseling Center (SCC). The following notice is an introduction to your rights and responsibilities as a client at the SCC. Counseling services are available to both MCC students and students enrolled at the University Center. This consent form explains some important information about our counseling procedures. Your counselor will review the following information during your first session. You will be asked to acknowledge that you understand the MCC Student Counseling Center’s policies and procedures by affixing your signature on the last page of this document.
This notice describes how your medical information may be used and disclosed and how you can get access to this information. This notice also serves to obtain your consent for clinical policies and procedures. Please review it carefully.
The SCC is required by law to maintain the privacy of your health information and to provide you with notice of its legal duties and privacy practices with respect to your health information. If you have questions about any part of this notice or if you want more information about the privacy practices at the SCC, please contact Lizett LaStrape, 254-299-8210 or Dr. Chris Wilder, 254-299-8321.
Purpose of the MCC Student Counseling Center
The SCC provides counseling services, free of charge, to students within the MCC community, including University Center students. Our mission is to provide psychological counseling and/or referral services to assist students in achieving academic success and personal development goals. The SCC follows a student-oriented philosophy, respectful of diversity, which is committed to the development of the student as a whole.
The counseling provided at this Center is generally short term in nature (between 6 to 8 sessions). Longer-term counseling may be provided at the discretion of a student’s counselor. We recognize that not all conditions presented by clients are appropriate for treatment by the SCC. For this reason, you and/or your counselor may believe that a referral to outside community resources is needed. In that case, your counselor will provide some alternative community resources including programs and/or people who may be available to assist you.
Emergencies
The SCC provides services in crisis situations involving urgent mental health issues or concerns during open business hours- Monday-Friday, 8:00am-5:00pm. A mental health emergency may include, but is not limited to, feeling emotionally overwhelmed or out of control, having psychotic symptoms, having thoughts of harming yourself or another person, or fearing for your own health or safety in any way. In case of a mental health emergency/crisis during business hours, you may be seen by another counselor within the SCC if your regularly assigned counselor is unavailable.
If you experience a mental health emergency after business hours, please do one of the following:
- Dial 911 for Police and EMS
- Call MCC Campus Police Department: 254-299-8911
- Dial 988 or call 1-800-273-8255 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
- Visit a local emergency room
- Call the Heart of Texas Behavioral Health Network Crisis Hotline: 254-752-3451 or 866-752-3451
- Call or visit the DePaul Center: 254-776-5979
After you contact emergency services and are in a safe location, please contact your counselor at the SCC or ask medical staff to contact your counselor.
If you experience a mental health emergency during a session, your counselor may contact your emergency contact person or medical or law enforcement personnel if your counselor believes there is risk of imminent harm to yourself or another person, needs assistance to assess your safety or health, or believes you are experiencing a mental health emergency as described above.
Counselors
Your counselor will be either a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) or Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) employed by MCC, or a graduate student in the clinical mental health-counseling program at Tarleton State University. These graduate students are under supervision by Tarleton State University Counseling Faculty member and Licensed Professional Counselor-Supervisor (LPC-S), Chris Wilder, PhD. Counseling sessions provided by Tarleton State University graduate student interns at the SCC are supervised and video recorded.
Should you, at any time, have questions or concerns about your counseling services, you have the right to speak with either Director of the Student Counseling Center, Lizett LaStrape or Dr. Chris Wilder. They can each be reached as follows:
Lizett LaStrape – 254-299-8181 or llastrape@mclennan.edu
Dr. Chris Wilder – 254-299-8321or wilder@tarleton.edu
Counseling Sessions
Counseling sessions may be scheduled on a weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, or as-needed basis depending on individual client needs and counselor availability. Sessions typically last 45-50 minutes. Counselors do not discriminate on the basis of race, gender identity, religion or spirituality, national origin, disability, or sexual orientation. If significant differences, such as in culture, values, or belief systems, exist between you and your counselor, then your counselor will work to understand those differences.
Expectations of Client Attendance
The SCC offers both face-to-face and Zoom counseling sessions. Appointments are required for either type of session. If face-to-face is preferred, appointments will take place in the MCC Student Counseling Center on the first floor of the Wellness and Fitness Building. In order to accommodate other individuals in need of
counseling, we require a 24-hour notice when cancelling or rescheduling an appointment. It is important that individuals receiving counseling arrive for an appointment on time; appointments will be identified as a no show after 10 minutes from the appointment start time. In the event of two “no show” or short notice cancellations (i.e., less than 24-hour notice), your counselor may decide to terminate services. Exceptions may be made by your counselor for emergency situations involving circumstances beyond your control. Your counselor will not terminate services without attempting to discuss the situation with you. If services are terminated, you may re-initiate services at any time as long as you are registered in MCC or University Center classes. Anytime you initiate counseling services, you will begin with a Triage appointment to evaluate your needs, concerns, and goals. If a waitlist for services at the SCC exists at the time of your Triage appointment, you may be placed on the waitlist, and/or be given a list of qualified referrals for services in the community.
Recording and Review of Counseling Sessions
If your counselor is a graduate student in the clinical mental health-counseling program at Tarleton State University, your counseling session may be recorded or watched live, including audio and video, for review by the counselor, supervisors, and other clinicians. Every effort is made to protect client confidentiality in accordance with professional ethics. Face-to-face recordings saved on the device in the intern room are automatically deleted every three weeks. Zoom sessions, if saved to a local computer or encrypted flash drive, are deleted at the end of the semester. The interns sign a document attesting to deleting recordings.
Risks/Benefits of Professional Counseling
Potential Benefits: Counseling is an active process that may have many positive benefits to you including improving interpersonal relationships and resolution of specific concerns that led you to seek counseling.
Potential Risks: During counseling, remembering and/or talking about unpleasant events, feelings, thoughts, or relationships can at times result in you experiencing uncomfortable feelings. Your counselor will help you explore these feelings and experiences at your pace in order to help you understand and manage them in a meaningful way. Attempting to resolve issues or concerns that brought you into counseling may result in changes that you did not originally intend.
No Guarantees: We cannot guarantee that counseling will meet your needs. Therefore, exploration of alternative management or referral to additional resources may be necessary. Moreover, we cannot guarantee that counseling will yield intended or expected results.
Ending the Counseling Relationship: Ending the therapeutic relationship can be difficult, and it is important to have a termination process to help you reach closure. You and your counselor may decide together to terminate services when you have reached your goals. Your counselor may decide to terminate services if the treatment is ineffective, or if you do not show for two consecutive appointments. Your provider will not terminate services without attempting to discuss the situation with you. If/when services are terminated, you may re-initiate services at any time as long as you are registered in MCC or University Center classes.
Voluntary Participation
Participation in counseling is voluntary and you may terminate treatment at any time without penalty. We render counseling services in a professional manner consistent with accepted ethical standards of the American Counseling Association and the Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors.
Disclosure Regarding Third-Party Access to Communications
Please know that when we use electronic communications methods, such as email or texting, there are various technicians and administrators who maintain these services and may have access to the content of those communications. In some cases, these accesses are more likely than in others.
Email and texting are not an appropriate medium for individual questions regarding personal counseling. These mediums are most appropriate for requesting general information regarding services, resources, or other campus information. Our staff does not respond to inquiries from our clients regarding specific counseling issues via these mediums. Of special consideration: If you use your work or school email to communicate with the SCC, your employer or your college/university may access our email communications. Additionally, people with access to your computer, mobile phone, and/or other devices may also have access to your email or text messages. Please take a moment to contemplate the risks involved if any of these persons were to access the messages we exchange with each other.
Conditions of Ongoing Counseling
Access to counseling services at the SCC is available to you while you are registered for classes at MCC or one of our University Center partner schools. Upon completion or withdrawal from courses, you will no longer be eligible to receive counseling services at the SCC. Your counselor or the SCC office is happy to provide a list of qualified referrals for services in the community.
While you are in counseling with your counselor, you agree not to maintain or establish a professional relationship with another mental health professional unless you first discuss it with your counselor and sign a release that enables your counselor to communicate with the other mental health professional(s). If you decide to maintain or establish a professional relationship with another mental health professional against your counselor’s advice, the SCC may consider this your decision to change counselors, and we reserve the right to terminate your counseling.
How We Protect Your Health Information
We protect your health information by:
- Treating all of your health information that we collect as confidential.
- Stating confidentiality policies and practices in our clinic staff handbooks, as well as disciplinary measures for privacy violations.
- Restricting access to your health information only to those clinical staff that need to know your health information in order to provide our services to you.
- Maintaining physical, electronic, and procedural safeguards to comply with federal and state regulations guarding your health information.
- The SCC is required by law to maintain the privacy of your health information and to provide you with notice of its legal duties and privacy practices with respect to your health information. If you want more information about the privacy practices at the SCC, please contact the MCC Student Counseling Center 254-299-8210.
Conditions That Require Release of Health Information
The SCC maintains records of client health information in a confidential file system. The client files remain the property of the SCC but the information belongs to you. The SCC protects the privacy of your health information.
Uses and Disclosures Requiring Authorization
The SCC may use or disclose mental health information outside treatment or healthcare operations when your appropriate authorization is obtained. An authorization is written permission above and beyond the general consent that permits only specific disclosures. In those instances when the SCC is asked for your private information, we will obtain a written authorization from you before releasing this information. You may revoke such authorizations at any time provided each revocation is in writing.
There are some circumstances that only require your advance written consent for disclosure of your protected health information. Your signature on this document provides advance written consent for the following disclosures:
- Professional Consultation: Your counselor may consult with other health care professionals about your care for the purposes of quality assurance or continuity of care. During consultation, your provider makes every effort to avoid disclosing any identifying information about you and only discloses information that is needed for the consultation. The consulting professional is legally required to maintain the confidentiality of your protected health information. Your provider may not inform you about these consultations unless it is deemed important to your work together.
- Counseling Center Operations: We may disclose protected health information for activities that relate to performance and operations of our center. This includes quality assessment and improvement activities, audits and administrative services, case management and care coordination with necessary departments across campus to maintain your safety and care (i.e. CARE Team). All parties involved with center operations have been trained in protecting your confidentiality and will only disclose protected health information as required for the purpose of the disclosure.
If such situations arise, your counselor will make every effort to fully discuss the situation with you in advance and will limit any disclosure as much as possible as required for the purpose of the disclosure.
Uses and Disclosures with neither Consent nor Authorization
The SCC may use or disclose your mental health information without your consent or authorization in the following circumstances:
- Abuse – If we have reason to believe that a minor child, elderly person, or person with a disability has been abused, abandoned, or neglected, the SCC must report this concern or observations related to these conditions or circumstances to the appropriate authorities.
- Health Oversight Activities – If the Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors is investigating a clinician that you have filed a formal complaint against, the SCC may be required to disclose protected health information regarding your case.
- Judicial and Administrative Proceedings as Required – If you are involved in a court proceeding and a court subpoenas information about the professional services provided you and/or the records thereof, we may be compelled to provide the information. Although courts have recognized a clinician-client privilege, there may be circumstances in which a court would order the clinic to disclose personal health or treatment information. The SCC will not release your information without attempting to notify you or your legally appointed representative.
- Professional Harm – If you disclose sexual contact with another mental health professional with whom you have had a professional relationship, we are required to report this violation to the licensing board. You have the right to anonymity in the filing of the report.
- Serious Threat to Health or Safety – If you communicate to an SCC counselor an explicit threat of imminent serious physical harm to yourself or others and we believe you may act on that threat, we have a legal duty to take the appropriate measures, including disclosing information to the police and a representative of the MCC C.A.R.E. Team. Any member of the MCC campus community can also refer students or employees to the MCC C.A.R.E. Team when there is concern of threats to self or others. In any of these cases, SCC counselors will disclose only what we feel is the minimal amount of information necessary to ensure your safety and care. If this is the case, a member of the C.A.R.E. Team may contact you to offer additional support services to assist you.
- National Security – We may be required to disclose to military authorities the health information of armed forces personnel under certain circumstances. We may be required to disclose to authorized federal officials, health information required for lawful intelligence, counterintelligence, and other national security activities. We may be required to disclose mental health information to a correctional institution or law enforcement official having lawful custody of protected mental health information of an inmate or client under certain circumstances.
- Research and Training – Because the SCC serves to train counselors, you agree that your assessment and therapy sessions will be video recorded and may be observed for the purpose of student training, supervision, and research. Recorded sessions may be used in class and/or conference presentations for educational purposes. In this case, personal identifying information is protected. Data contained in your file are available for archival research (i.e., reviews of records to describe clinical referrals, outcomes, and trends) as long as your identity cannot be linked to the data used. Any research conducted at the SCC is subject to a University Institutional Review Board that serves to safeguard your privacy and health.
Consent for Disclosure of Clinical Records and Information
As a provision, a clinical record is created and maintained according to State of Texas law. This information includes but may not be limited to demographic data, mental health history, symptoms, assessment and test results, diagnoses, treatment plans and progress, and any plans for future care or treatment. Records are maintained for 5 years from the date of initial intake, or if you are a minor, for 5 years after you turn 18 years old.
Electronic Records Disclosure
SCC keeps and stores records for each client in a record-keeping system produced and maintained by Titanium Software. This system is networked internally, meaning the records are stored on servers that are local to MCC only. Here are the ways in which the security of these records is maintained:
SCC has entered into a HIPAA Business Associate Agreement with Titanium Software. Because of this agreement, Titanium Software is obligated by federal law to protect these records from unauthorized use or disclosure.
The computers on which these records are stored are kept in a secure data center, where various physical security measures are used to maintain the protection of the computers from physical access by unauthorized persons.
SCC employs various technical security measures to maintain the protection of these records from unauthorized use or disclosure. On computers, SCC employs firewalls, antivirus software, passwords, and disk encryption to protect the computer from unauthorized access and thus to protect the records from unauthorized access.
Here are things to keep in mind about our record-keeping system:
- Although SCC and MCC both use security measures to protect these records, their security cannot be guaranteed.
- Some workforce members at MCC and Titanium Software, such as engineers or IT support staff, may have the ability to access these records for the purpose of maintaining the system itself. As a HIPAA Business Associate, Titanium Software is obligated by law to train their staff on the proper maintenance of confidential records and to prevent misuse or unauthorized disclosure of these records. This protection cannot be guaranteed, however.
- Titanium Software keeps a log of my transactions with the system for various purposes, including maintaining the integrity of the records and allowing for security audits. These transactions are kept indefinitely by Titanium Software.
Ownership of Clinical Records
McLennan Community College owns and houses, in a secure setting, all of the SCC’s clinical records. You have the right to obtain a copy of your clinical records. In order to release records to you or to any person or entity that you designate, we will need a signed consent form to do so. Please check with the Counseling office if you have this request.
On-Line Counseling Consent
The MCC Student Counseling Center may provide students counseling online using ZOOM. MCC has entered into a HIPAA Business Associate Agreement with Zoom Video Communications, Inc. Because of this agreement, Zoom Video Communications, Inc. is obligated by federal law to protect these records from unauthorized use or disclosure.
Virtual counseling session will usually be 45 minutes in duration. If you are more than 10 minutes late for your appointment time on ZOOM, you will need to contact the SCC to reschedule.
It is expected that you will take all precautions to protect your own confidentiality. This includes having your session in a quiet, secure, and safe environment. DO NOT attempt to have a counseling session while driving, in the same vicinity as an unsafe person, around other people like friends or family, or in a public place where confidentiality may be compromised.
Please note the following:
- If you are a first time client you will be asked to verify your identity with a photo ID.
- You will be asked to verify your location at the start of every online session, to include the full address of your location.
- You must provide contact information for an emergency contact IN YOUR LOCATION during sessions.
- If a mental health emergency/crisis occurs during an online counseling session, you or your counselor should call 911 and remain on the video connection until help arrives. Additionally, your counselor may choose to contact your emergency contact if you are in crisis and cannot be reached, or in any case of emergency during a session.
- You must reside and be physically present in the State of Texas to receive counseling from the MCC Student Counseling Center. Our counselors are not licensed to conduct counseling session with individuals who reside outside the State of Texas.
- Virtual counseling sessions may not be appropriate or the best choice of service for everyone. As such, your counselor may determine that virtual sessions are not an appropriate treatment option and discuss alternative treatment options if at any time your condition changes or virtual sessions present barriers to treatment.
- All confidentiality protections required by law or regulations will apply to your sessions.
- You will have access to all information resulting from the Zoom counseling session as provided by law. Expressed permission from you, in writing, is required before any counseling information can be shared with a third party unless otherwise allowed by law.
- There are potential risks associated with the use of online (Zoom) systems. These risks include, but are not limited to:
▪ Interruption of the audio/visual link.
▪ Disconnection of the audio/visual link.
o If interruption or disconnection happens, your counselor will leave the video running to allow you to reconnect. If unable to reconnect, your counselor will call you to continue the session via phone call.
▪ A video picture not clear enough in quality to meet the needs of the Provider during the session.
▪ Electronic tampering.
▪ In rare instances security protocols could fail causing a breach of confidentiality which may result in the online session being discontinued.
Licensing Board Complaints and Contact Information
The Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council (TBHEC) receives and responds to complaints regarding services provided within the scope of practice of marriage and family therapists, professional counselors, psychologists, psychological associates, social workers, and licensed specialist in school psychology. For information on how to file a complaint please call 1-800-821-3205.
Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council
George H.W. Bush State Office Bldg.
1801 Congress Ave. Ste. 7.300
Austin, TX. 78701
(512) 305-7700
800-821-3205 – 24-hour, toll-free complaint system
If you are actively considering harming yourself or others, please call 911, the Heart of Texas Behavioral Health Network Crisis Center 866-752-3451, or dial 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. If you are on the MCC campus you may also contact the MCC Police Dept. at 299-8911.
By my signature below, I certify I have read and completely understand the content of this document and agree to its terms. I will be given the opportunity to discuss these policies/procedures and ask any questions I may have with my counselor.