Elena Pushin, LCSW
Licensed Clinical Social Worker
Outpatient Services Contract and Informed Consent
Welcome to my practice. This document contains important information about my professional services and business policies. Please read it carefully and jot down any questions you might have so that we can discuss them at our next meeting. When you sign this document, it will represent an agreement between us.
PSYCHOLOGICAL SERVICES
Psychotherapy is not easily described in general statements. It varies depending on the personalities of the therapist and patient, and the particular problems you bring forward. There are many different methods I may use to deal with the problems that you hope to address. Psychotherapy is not like a medical doctor visit. Instead, it calls for a very active effort on your part. In order for the therapy to be most successful, you will have to work on things we talk about both during our sessions and at home.
Psychotherapy can have benefits and risks. Since therapy often involves discussing unpleasant aspects of your life, you may experience uncomfortable feelings like sadness, guilt, anger, frustration, loneliness, and helplessness. On the other hand, psychotherapy has also been shown to have benefits for people who go through it. Therapy often leads to better relationships, solutions to specific problems, and significant reductions in feelings of distress. But there are no guarantees of what you will experience.
Our first few sessions will involve an evaluation of your needs. By the end of the evaluation, I will be able to offer you some first impressions of what our work will include and a treatment plan to follow, if you decide to continue with therapy. You should evaluate this information along with your own opinions of whether you feel comfortable working with me. Therapy involves a large commitment of time, money, and energy, so you should be very careful about the therapist you select. If you have questions about my procedures, we should discuss them whenever they arise. If your doubts persist, I will be happy to help you set up a meeting with another mental health professional for a second opinion.
MEETINGS
I normally conduct an evaluation that will last from 1 to 2 sessions. During this time, we can both decide if I am the best person to provide the services you need in order to meet your treatment goals. If psychotherapy is begun, I will usually schedule one 50-minute session (one appointment hour of 50 minutes duration) per week at a time we agree on, although some sessions may be longer or more frequent. Once an appointment hour is scheduled, you will be expected to pay for it unless you provide 24 hours advance notice of cancellation [unless we both agree that you were unable to attend due to circumstances beyond your control]. If it is possible, I will try to find another time to reschedule the appointment. If you are late for a session we will end on time and not run over into the next person's session. If you miss a session without canceling, or cancel with less than twenty-four hours notice, you must pay for that session at our next regularly scheduled meeting. The answering machine has a time and date stamp which will keep track of the time that you called me to cancel. I cannot bill these sessions to your insurance. The only exception to this rule is if you would endanger yourself by attempting to come.
APPOINTMENT CANCELLATIONS:
Appointment cancellations and reschedules must be made 24 hours in advance, otherwise the time reserved for the session will be billed at the regular, agreed upon fee for that service. If you fail to show for 2 consecutive scheduled appointments without notice or message to me, treatment will be deemed terminated. You will be financially responsible for the fees for any missed sessions. You are responsible for coming to your session on time and at the time we have scheduled.
PROFESSIONAL FEES
My fee is $140 for a 50 minute session. In addition to weekly appointments, I charge this amount for other professional services you may need, though I will break down the hourly cost if I work for periods of less than one hour. Other services include report writing, telephone conversations lasting longer than 10 minutes, attendance at meetings with other professionals you have authorized, preparation of records or treatment summaries, and the time spent performing any other service you may request of me. If you become involved in legal proceedings that require my participation, you will be expected to pay for my professional time even if I am called to testify by another party.
BILLING AND PAYMENTS
You will be expected to pay for each session at the time it is held, unless we agree otherwise or unless you have insurance coverage which requires another arrangement. Payment schedules for other professional services will be agreed to when they are requested. In circumstances of unusual financial hardship, I may be willing to negotiate a fee adjustment or payment installment plan.
If your account has not been paid for more than 60 days and arrangements for payment have not been agreed upon, I have the option of using legal means to secure the payment. This may involve hiring a collection agency or going through small claims court. [If such legal action is necessary, its costs will be included in the claim.] In most collection situations, the only information I release regarding a patient’s treatment is his/her name, the nature of services provided, and the amount due.
INSURANCE REIMBURSEMENT
In order for us to set realistic treatment goals and priorities, it is important to evaluate what resources you have available to pay for your treatment. 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 my fees. It is very important that you find out exactly what mental health services your insurance policy covers.
Due to the rising costs of health care, insurance benefits have increasingly become more complex. It is sometimes difficult to determine exactly how much mental health coverage is available. “Managed Health Care” plans such as HMOs and PPOs often require authorization before they provide reimbursement for mental health services. These plans are often limited to short-term treatment approaches designed to work out specific problems that interfere with a person’s usual level of functioning. It may be necessary to seek approval for more therapy after a certain number of sessions. While a lot can be accomplished in short-term therapy, some patients feel that they need more services after insurance benefits end. Some managed-care plans will not allow me to provide services to you once your benefits end. If this is the case, I will do my best to help you find another provider who will help you continue your psychotherapy.
You should also be aware that most insurance companies require you to authorize me to provide them with a clinical diagnosis. Sometimes I have to provide additional clinical information such as treatment plans or summaries, or copies of the entire record (in rare cases). This information will become part of the insurance company files and will probably be stored in a computer. Though all insurance companies claim to keep such information confidential, I have no control over what they do with it once it is in their hands. I will provide you with a copy of any report I submit, if you request it.
Once we have all of the information about your insurance coverage, we will discuss what we can expect to accomplish with the benefits that are available and what will happen if they run out before you feel ready to end our sessions. It is important to remember that you always have the right to pay for my services yourself to avoid the problems described above unless prohibited by contract.
CONTACTING ME
I am often not immediately available by telephone. When I am unavailable, my telephone is answered by an answering machine that I monitor frequently. Telephone calls are offered as a professional courtesy and will be answered by me when possible, but this service does not constitute an emergency psychological service. Client emergency calls should be directed to the appropriate public hot-lines or 911 services. 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 on call.
PROFESSIONAL RECORDS
The laws and standards of my profession require that I keep treatment records. I keep brief records noting only that you have been here, what interventions happened in session, and the topics we discussed. You are entitled to receive a copy of the records unless I believe that seeing them would be emotionally damaging, in which case I will be happy to send them to a mental health professional of your choice. Because these are professional records, they can be misinterpreted and/or upsetting to untrained readers. If you wish to see your records, I recommend that you review them in my presence so that we can discuss the contents. Patients will be charged an appropriate fee for any professional time spent in responding to information requests.
MINORS
If you are under eighteen years of age, please be aware that the law may provide your parents the right to examine your treatment records. It is my policy to request an agreement from parents that they agree to give up access to your records. If they agree, I will provide them only with general information about our work together, unless I feel there is a high risk that you will seriously harm yourself or someone else. In this case, I will notify them of my concern. I will also provide them with a summary of your treatment when it is complete. Before giving them any information, I will discuss the matter with you, if possible, and do my best to handle any objections you may have with what I am prepared to discuss. At the end of your treatment, I will prepare a summary of our work together for your parents, and we will discuss it before I send it to them.
CONFIDENTIALITY
In general, the privacy of all communications between a patient and a psychologist is protected by law, and I can only release information about our work to others with your written permission. But there are a few exceptions. In most legal proceedings, you have the right to prevent me 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 order my testimony if he/she determines that the issues demand it. When psychological services are sought by third parties, such as employers or the courts, the disclosure of information is required by law.
There are some situations in which I am legally obligated to take action to protect others from harm, even if I have to reveal some information about a patient’s treatment. For example, if I believe that a child [elderly person, or disabled person] is being abused, I may be required to file a report with the appropriate state agency. If I believe that a patient is threatening serious bodily harm to another, I am required to take protective actions. These actions may include notifying the potential victim, contacting the police, or seeking hospitalization for the patient. If the patient threatens to harm himself/herself, I may be obligated to seek hospitalization for him/her or to contact family members or others who can help provide protection. If such a situation occurs, I will make every effort to fully discuss it with you before taking any action.
While this written summary of exceptions to confidentiality should prove helpful in informing you about potential problems, it is important that we discuss any questions or concerns that you may have at our next meeting. I will be happy to discuss these issues with you if you need specific advice, but formal legal advice may be needed because the laws governing confidentiality are quite complex, and I am not an attorney.
CONSULTS:
I may occasionally find it helpful to consult other professionals about a case. During a consultation, I make every effort to avoid revealing the identity of my patient. The consultant is also legally bound to keep the information confidential. If you don’t object, I will not tell you about these consultations unless I feel that it is important to our work together.
TREATMENT:
The psychological services provided may vary in length and intensity depending on the presenting problems. Services can range from a one-time consultation to several years. Under certain circumstances as determined by the sole discretion of therapist, a psychiatric consultation; conjoint marital/ couple, or conjoint parent/ child sessions may be advisable, or participation in group psychotherapy may be recommended.
You, the client, have the right to ask and receive answers to questions regarding the course of psychological treatment. You have the right to withdraw from psychological treatment without adversity at any time. It is however advisable that when termination is considered, proper termination procedures will be established by therapist to minimize the negative effects of termination.
Please be advised that that not all persons benefit from psychological services and that some persons require psychological services to prevent further deterioration in their mental/emotional status (maintenance treatment). You also understand that psychological services carry the potential for disruption to client’s life when change occurs, and that psychological services may be emotionally painful at times.
I ACKNOWLEDGE THAT I HAVE READ, UNDERSTOOD, AND RECEIVED
ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS REGARDING THE ABOVE INFORMATION AND
AGREE TO BE BOUND BY IT.
I FURTHER UNDERSTAND I HAVE THE RIGHT TO RECEIVE A COPY OF THE
AUTHORIZATION UPON MY REQUEST. I the undersigned, give my consent for psychotherapeutic treatment with Elena Pushin, who is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker.
