CJH
C.J.
Hendry & Associates, Inc.
Individual, Marriage and Family Counseling
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CLIENT HANDBOOKTABLE OF CONTENTS (Just click on link to view handbook section) Release
of Information Child and Adolescent Counseling Client’s RightsAfter Hours Emergency Thank you for choosing C.J. Hendry & Associates to address your counseling needs. We aim to provide quality services customized to your particular situation. Please carefully read through the client information in this handbook. It is intended to clarify your understanding of the counseling process and provide information which is important for you to know. This handbook contains much of the information that is presented at the beginning of counseling and is designed as a handy reference for future questions. Please feel free to ask your counselor for further explanation of any of our policies and procedures that are unclear to you. Our staff are open to your feedback and appreciate you sharing with us any ways in which our policies and procedures the contents of the handbook can be improved to better serve our clients. OUR APPROACH TO COUNSELING Our team of licensed professional counselors believes in a collaborative approach to treatment. We ask you to define why you are here and what you hope to achieve through counseling. After an assessment, we will suggest a plan for your approval. Throughout our work together we will evaluate your progress periodically and jointly make modifications to the plan. You and your counselor will determine together the number and frequency of sessions to address your initial concerns. Our experience has demonstrated that meeting weekly at the beginning of counseling is the most effective approach. Some counselees need only a few sessions to make the changes they desire while others may require ongoing therapy over several months or even years. THE COUNSELING EXPERIENCE While counseling has been shown to have many benefits, uncomfortable feelings (e.g. sadness, guilt, anxiety, anger, frustration, loneliness and helplessness) may surface during the course of treatment. Your counselor is trained to help you work through this discomfort, improve your relationships, and resolve problems. While it is not possible to guarantee specific results regarding your counseling goals, we will work with you to achieve the best possible outcome. ASSESSMENT To ensure quality service, a thorough assessment of your concerns is necessary. Your initial appointment, scheduled for 90 minutes, allows time for you to read and complete the forms regarding our counseling and business practices and to provide the background data needed by your counselor. We hope you will note any questions or concerns and discuss these with your counselor during this initial session. A VARIETY OF ASSESSMENT TOOLS In additions to the background information which you will provide, the counselor will determine whether other interventions including a family genogram, psychological or personality testing, and other inventories or questionnaires are needed. The rationale for gathering such data will be explained to you. While this process may take from two to four sessions, successful treatment can hinge on a thorough assessment. THE BENEFITS OF A TEAM OF COUNSELORS During the assessment phase, the counselor you have been assigned may determine that he or she is not the best fit for your particular need. If so, you will be offered the option to meet with another counselor in the practice with the appropriate training and skills, or referred to a professional with relevant expertise outside the practice. Additional services also may be recommended for your spouse or other family members. You and the counselor will explore jointly the various combinations of services our team of professionals can provide. A PLANNED ENDING While you have the right to end your counseling at any time, we believe it is in your best interest for you and your counselor to decide together how your treatment will end and plan the timing to avoid an abrupt ending. An effective approach is to schedule sessions further apart to evaluate how well you maintain the gains achieved. Some clients like to schedule a three-month “check-up” session at termination. If counseling is successful, you will be better able to face life’s challenges. THE COUNSELING RELATIONSHIP We hope that relationships with counselors at C. J. Hendry & Associates will involve mutual respect and trust. These relationships will be professional and not personal. Counseling sessions will focus exclusively on your concerns. Although much will be learned about us as we work together, we will be experienced in our professional roles. Our services will be rendered in a professional manner consistent with accepted ethical standards. Therefore, we will not socialize with you outside the office, develop a personal friendship, or accept gifts. COUNSELOR CREDENTIALS All of our counselors and interns are credentialed by the Ohio Counselor and Social Worker Marriage and Family Therapist Board Board (OCSWMFTB) and abide by the OCSWMFTB professional Code of Ethics. Our counselors also have extensive expertise in related fields. If you would like to know more about the additional professional experience, please ask your counselor or request a copy of their Professional Disclosure Statement, which is displayed in the office hallway alongside their degree certificates and State License(s). You may also consult our website for more information. If your counselor is under the clinical supervision of an independently Licensed Clinical Counselor, or if your insurance provider requires Mental Health Work Supervision by a Clinical Psychologist, you will be informed of the supervisor’s name and may request to speak with the supervisor regarding your treatment. CONSULTING CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST Our Clinical Psychologist, James E. Kaplar, Ph.D., is an American Psychological Association (A.P.A.) Licensed Psychologist with over 30 years clinical experience. Your counselor may decide to seek his expertise to aid in providing you with quality treatment. Dr. Kaplar may also provide Mental Health Worker Supervision. CONSULTING PSYCHIATRIST During the course of counseling, specialized medications to treat depression, anxiety, or other disorders may be recommended. In this case we will discuss a variety of referral options with you. Our Consulting Psychiatrist is Said Haidar, M.D.. His office is located in Avon Lake. He may be contacted at 440-930-2002. If you choose to see him for psychiatric evaluation, he will send a written report of his assessment to your counselor to provide a continuum of care. OTHER CLINICAL ASSOCIATES We have developed a network of professional relationships to better serve our clients. Should we wish to confer with one of these specialists regarding your treatment, we will discuss our recommendation with you. HANNA PERKINS
– WEST THE HULL
INSTITUTE, LLC GENERAL PRINCIPLE We are ethically and legally bound to maintain the confidentiality of our counseling relationships and the content of our counseling sessions. We will not release any information to another person without your specific written authorization. LEGAL LIMITS TO CONFIDENTIALITY If you are an adult, anything you say or do in the context of counseling is confidentially privileged with the following exceptions: 1. If we are concerned that you might harm yourself physically, we are bound by Law to take appropriate action. This may mean contacting family members or other professionals, or taking steps for you to be hospitalized in order to protect you from harm. 2. If you behave in a manner that we believe poses a threat of a physical nature to another person we are bound by Law to contact that person to warn of possible danger. 3. If we believe a child or elderly or disabled person is being physically or sexually abused we are required by Law to contact the appropriate State agency even though this information is disclosed in the context of the confidential counseling relationship. 4. If you use confidentiality as a means of avoiding legal punishment privilege is waived. Counselors may not aid or abet the perpetration of crimes. JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS In most
judicial proceedings you have the right to prevent us from providing
any information about your treatment. However, should a judge
subpoena your counseling records we would discuss this with you,
seek legal advice, and explore the options open to us in the specific
situation. PROFESSIONAL RECORDS We are required by Law to keep accurate treatment records. Please consult our Notice of Privacy Practices for more information about your rights regarding access to your records. Counseling records are kept in locked filing cabinets at our offices. The OCSWMFTB requires files to be maintained for five years for adults, and for five years after a minor becomes 18 years old. We dispose of our files by shredding the contents in order to protect your privacy. REQUEST TO RELEASE RECORDS You may request the release of your records to another professional by signing our appropriate Release of Information form. We will agree to release only that information we believe the professional is qualified to interpret. When faxing information to another office, we use a cover sheet specifically identifying the name of the professional to whom the record is to be sent, asking that the material released be returned to us if it has reached the wrong place. Once the records leave our offices we cannot guarantee their confidentiality. A fee will be charged to cover our costs when we are asked to release records of length. We will also ask you to sign a Release of Information for us to talk with other professionals, including counselors, physicians, lawyers, clergy, referral sources, and family members. SUPERVISION AND CONFIDENTIALITY The supervision consultations of Licensed Professional Counselors, and Interns, as required by OCSWMFTB are subject to the normal rules of confidentiality, as are other professional consultations on your behalf.
CONFIDENTIALITY In marital and family therapy your counselor may sometimes meet with one of you for an individual session. In this circumstance the normal rules of confidentiality apply. If issues come up in the individual sessions, which importantly concern the marriage or family, the counselor will not communicate these issues to the spouse or other family members. However, the counselor will assist the individual to share their concerns directly with other members of the family. COUNSELING TEAM OPTIONS During the course of marriage or family counseling, individual issues may arise that one of the members decides they would like to explore in depth. In such a case your counselor will help you determine whether individual sessions with another counselor in the practice would be beneficial. RELEASE OF INFORMATION In marital and family counseling each individual is required to sign a Release of Information for the content of the joint sessions to be disclosed to a third party, including another counselor within the practice. PSYCHO-EDUCATIONAL CLASSES Periodically, we offer psycho-educational classes for couples or families on topics such as improving communication skills, setting boundaries, handling anger, confronting with care, enhanced parenting or forgiveness. These classes are taught by our counselors and draw on their professional backgrounds. The fee for the classes is based on the number and length of the sessions. If you are interested in a particular topic, please let your counselor know.
AGREEMENT FOR COUNSELING Parents and guardians of minors are entitled to information regarding their child’s or adolescent’s counseling. However, ethics requires us to communicate such information only in ways that we believe are helpful. Before counseling begins, the counselor will review our “Child/Adolescent Agreement for Counseling” form with parents or guardians and the minor client and ask each person to sign it to ensure that there is no confusion about this process. When meeting with a minor we also need to determine that both parents are in agreement with the decision for counseling. In divorce, separation, or custody situations we may require both parents to sign the counseling consent forms. CONFIDENTIALITY The legal limits of confidentiality, as previously discussed, apply to the counseling of children and adolescents. DIVORCE AND CUSTODY DISPUTES Our counselors do not provide evaluations or expert testimony in court for divorce or custody disputes. Should you require such evaluations or testimony, please engage the services of a professional outside this practice. This is our policy for the following reasons: any statements made by your counselor are likely to be construed as biased in your favor, and testimony by your counselor may harm your relationship with him or her. As previously indicated, we regard the counseling relationship of primary importance. THE THERAPY GROUP Group counseling may complement individual counseling. After you have been in individual therapy your counselor may recommend group therapy as a next step. The members of a group provide support and challenges for one another. Counseling groups are different from community support groups as they have therapeutic goals. The group may be general or focused on a topic, such as eating disorders, anxieties, addictions, spiritual issues, etc.. MEMBERSHIP AND LEADERSHIP Professional counselors lead our groups. Sometimes two counselors act as co-therapists. Groups may be composed solely of women or of men or may be mixed. As the need arises we also offer specialized groups for adolescents, couples, or families. MEMBER COMMITMENT Members of counseling groups contract to attend a determined number of sessions on a weekly basis. They are responsible to pay for the block sessions whether or not they are present. Regular attendance and participation by all the group members is necessary for the group process to be effective. CONFIDENTIALITY Group members also agree to maintain confidentiality about what is shared in the group and to abide by the ground rules that the group sets at the beginning of its time together. OPEN OR CLOSED GROUP If the group decides to continue after the initial contracted sessions it may choose to be open, accepting new members, or closed, not accepting new members, throughout the life of the group. Please discuss your interest in a group with your counselor. SESSIONS When your counselor schedules a session with you, that time is reserved in their schedule to meet with you. You are therefore expected to pay for that time unless your counselor receives notice at least 24 hours in advance of the scheduled time. For a Monday session we request notification of cancellation by Friday evening. Regular attendance at sessions enhances treatment outcomes. If your times of availability change please inform your counselor so a mutually convenient time can be arranged. MISSED APPOINTMENTS When unexpected circumstances occur that make it difficult for you to come to our offices, including inclement weather, a telephone session will be offered to maintain continuity of treatment. If long distance phone charges are incurred, please call the office so that we do not have to bill you at our business phone rate. Note that as your insurance company is unlikely to pay for missed or broken appointments they will be billed directly to you. Missed sessions are understandable from time to time, and your counselor will make every effort to respond to difficult circumstances. However, we will discontinue the counseling relationship if three appointments in a row are missed or broken and not fully discussed with your counselor. EXTENDED SESSIONS In certain circumstances you may wish to continue a counseling session rather than postpone work on a particular issue. Please discuss your need with your counselor as an extended session may be possible. A pro-rated fee will be charged for the amount of time the session is extended. You may also wish to check with your insurance company to determine whether or not they will pay for longer sessions. FEE SCHEDULE The current fee schedule for our services is indicated on the Counseling Agreement you sign at your initial appointment. We reserve the right to change these fees without prior notice. PAYMENT POLICY Payment
is expected at the time of service, including insurance deductibles
and co-pays. THIRD PARTY
PAYMENT
If you become involved in litigation that requires our participation, you will be responsible to pay for our professional time, even if we are compelled to testify by another party. Due to the complexity and difficulty of legal involvement, we charge our current hourly fee for preparation, attendance, and travel for any legal proceeding, with a minimum of 4 hours. ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE Our office hours are 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday. We are privileged to have Toni Barnhart as our Office Adminstrator and Cristina Belany as an Administrative Assistant. Toni oversees our office, schedules rooms, prepares client materials, maintains our facility and generally supports our counselors as they work with you. She is happy to respond to your questions and concerns. We have counselors available weekdays, evenings, and Saturdays. Each counselor sets his or her own schedule. Counselors regularly check mailboxes and make every effort to return phone calls on the day they are received with the exception of weekends, holidays and vacations. If your counselor will be unavailable for an extended period, you will be given the name and phone extension of the counselor to contact as needed. CLIENT PRIVACY TELEPHONE EXTENSION NUMBERS Please see the Phone Directory on the back cover of this booklet for the administrative staff and counselor’s phone extension numbers. At C. J. Hendry & Associates, Inc. you have the right to: • Receive
respectful treatment. In a genuine
emergency situation you may call Dr. Kaplar’s Answering
Service at 440-248-5454 The answering service receptionist will attempt to contact your counselor and ask them to return your call. While we cannot guarantee your counselor will be available, we will make every effort for one of our counselors to reach you. Alternatively,
if you are under the care of a psychiatrist, please call your
doctor’s emergency number or go directly to the Emergency
Room of the nearest hospital. Answering
Service & Emergency Number: 440-248-5454 Website: http://www.cjhendry.com Practice
Management Consultants, LLC: 440-871-6702 Top of Page25000 Center Ridge Road, Suite 6 Westlake, Ohio
44145 |