Practice Policies 

APPOINTMENTS AND CANCELLATIONS

Please make any changes to your appointment at least 24 hours in advance. You will be responsible for a late cancellation fee if notice of cancellation is given less than 24 hours before the scheduled appointment or you fail to arrive for your appointment.

Standard appointments are 50 minutes. Requests to change the 50-minute session shall be discussed and agreed upon together in order for time to be scheduled in advance.

Cancellations and rescheduled sessions will be subject to a charge if not received at least 24 hours in advance. This is necessary because a time commitment is made to you and is held exclusively for you. If you are late for a session, you may lose some of that session time. I have the right to refuse to honor an appointment if you arrive more than 15 minutes after the scheduled time. As a courtesy to you, I offer a “free pass” for the first violation of the cancellation policy. A second violation will be assessed a $50 fee, and any further violations of the policy will be assessed the full fee for a session ($125). Multiple violations of the cancellation policy may result in termination of the counseling relationship.

I request that you commit to meeting once per week for the first four weeks of our work together, at a minimum. This will allow us to foster a therapeutic alliance conducive to effective treatment. After this time, we may re-evaluate the frequency of our appointments based on your therapeutic goals.

SCHOLARSHIPS AND PRO BONO SERVICES

I offer a limited number of scholarships for individuals whose financial situations require special consideration with regard to my fees. Scholarships are granted based upon financial need, intersectional identity, and appropriateness for the type of counseling I offer. Scholarship amounts vary based upon the individual’s situation and are valid for up to one year from the date of approval. While there is no limit to the amount of scholarships an individual can receive, a new application must be submitted each time.

TELEPHONE ACCESSIBILITY

If you need to contact me between sessions, please send me an email, text message, or voicemail message. I am often not immediately available; however, I will attempt to respond to existing clients within one business day. I do not offer crisis counseling services. If a true emergency situation arises, please go to a local emergency room or call 2-1-1 for crisis services.

SOCIAL MEDIA AND TELECOMMUNICATION

Due to the importance of your confidentiality and the importance of minimizing dual relationships, I do not accept friend or contact requests on any social networking site (Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.) from people I am working with in a counseling relationship or with whom I have worked in the past. I believe that connecting on these sites can compromise your confidentiality and our respective privacy. It may also blur the boundaries of our therapeutic relationship. If you have questions about this, please bring them up when we meet and we can talk more about it.

ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION

While I have taken the utmost precautions available to comply with HIPAA’s requirements, I cannot ensure the confidentiality of any form of communication through electronic media, including text messages. If you prefer to communicate via email or text messaging for issues regarding scheduling or cancellations, I will do so; all other matters are considered clinical and confidential, and only appropriate for discussion in the context of a formal counseling session. While I try to return messages in a timely manner, I cannot guarantee immediate response and request that you do not use these methods of communication to discuss therapeutic content and/or request assistance for emergencies.

Services by electronic means, including but not limited to telephone communication, the Internet, facsimile machines, and e-mail is considered telemedicine. If you and I choose to use information technology for some or all of your treatment, you need to understand that:
(1) You retain the option to withhold or withdraw consent at any time without affecting the right to future care or treatment or risking the loss or withdrawal of any program benefits to which you would otherwise be entitled.
(2) All existing confidentiality protections are equally applicable.
(3) Your access to all medical information transmitted during a telemedicine consultation is guaranteed, and copies of this information are available for a reasonable fee.
(4) Dissemination of any of your identifiable images or information from the telemedicine interaction to researchers or other entities shall not occur without your consent.
(5) There are potential risks, consequences, and benefits of telemedicine. Potential benefits include, but are not limited to improved communication capabilities, providing convenient access to up-to-date information, consultations, support, reduced costs, improved quality, change in the conditions of practice, improved access to therapy, better continuity of care, and reduction of lost work time and travel costs.

Effective therapy is often facilitated when the therapist gathers, within a session or a series of sessions, a multitude of observations, information, and experiences relating to the person receiving counseling services. Therapists may make clinical assessments, diagnosis, and interventions based not only on direct verbal or auditory communications, written reports, and third person consultations, but also from direct visual and olfactory observations, information, and experiences. When using information technology in therapy services, potential risks include but are not limited to the therapist’s inability to make visual and olfactory observations of clinically or therapeutically potentially relevant issues such as: your physical condition including deformities, apparent height and weight, body type, attractiveness relative to social and cultural norms or standards, gait and motor coordination, posture, work speed, any noteworthy mannerism or gestures, physical or medical conditions including bruises or injuries, basic grooming and hygiene including appropriateness of dress, eye contact (including any changes in the previously listed issues), gender expression, chronological and apparent age, ethnicity, facial and body language, and congruence of language and facial or bodily expression. Potential consequences thus include the therapist not being aware of what she would consider important information, that you may not recognize as significant in order to present verbally to the therapist.

ELIGIBILITY FOR COUNSELING

I work with adults (age 18+) who are currently located within the state of Louisiana.

TRANSITIONING OUT OF THE COUNSELING RELATIONSHIP

Ending relationships can be difficult. Therefore, it is important to have a transitional process in order to achieve some closure. The appropriate length of the termination depends on the length and intensity of the treatment. I may terminate treatment after appropriate discussion with you and a termination process if I determine that the psychotherapy is not being effectively used, if you are in default on payment, or if a significant conflict of interest arises. I will not terminate the therapeutic relationship without first discussing and exploring the reasons and purpose for termination. If you transition out of therapy for any reason or you request another therapist, I will provide you with a list of qualified psychotherapists. You may also choose someone on your own or from another referral source.

Should you choose not to schedule or honor an appointment for four consecutive weeks, or should you fail to honor three or more appointments without providing at least 24 hours notice, unless other arrangements have been made in advance, for legal and ethical reasons I may consider the professional relationship discontinued. This does not necessarily make you ineligible to resume a counseling relationship with me, but please expect that I may not have appointments immediately available in my schedule.