Policies and Practices
Conscious Living Counseling Center
Dr. Christine Cearfoss, LCSW
Introduction to therapy
Psychotherapy is not easily described in a few sentences. Although therapy has been shown to be helpful for many issues, there are no guarantees about treatment outcomes or what you will experience. Therapy is not similar to a visit to a medical doctor. Instead, it requires effort on your part- you will need to work on things we talk about not just during our sessions, but at home. When exploring issues in treatment you may feel discomfort, anger, sadness, anxiety, as well as joy and relief. Attempting to relieve issues between family members can also lead to discomfort and may result in changes that were not originally intended. I encourage you to discuss any uncomfortable thoughts and feelings with your therapist as they arise during the course of treatment. If you have any questions about treatment methods, or business procedures, please discuss them with your therapist in a timely manner.
Policies of Conscious Living Counseling Center (CLCC)
Appointments: It is extremely important during treatment that you keep your regular appointments in order to increase the likelihood of therapeutic gains. While you are in treatment your time is reserved solely for you. As is customary with most professionals, if you cancel your appointment, a 24 notice is required. If an appointment is missed or cancelled with less than 24 hours notice you will be charged $75. Please note that insurance will not pay for missed sessions. If you repeatedly forget to attend your sessions or cancel often, you may be referred back to your insurance company and be assigned to a different therapist. If you are a private pay client and you continue to miss scheduled appointments you will receive referrals to other therapists and your services with CLCC will be terminated.
Fees: Session fees are discussed prior to commencing with treatment. Fees for the agency range between $100 and $140 depending on the service received. Fees for CLCC licensed therapists and Associates are lower than the fees of Dr. Cearfoss.
Financial Policies and Insurance Reimbursement: If you are using insurance, CLCC will complete insurance forms on your behalf and bill your insurance company directly. If you have a co-payment, we will ask you to pay it at each session. Please note that your insurance policy is a contract between you and your insurance company. It is important that you understand its provisions. Although your insurance company will be billed for fees, you are responsible for that portion of the fee that is not reimbursed by your insurance carrier (i.e. deductibles, copays, cancelled sessions, etc). If your insurance company pays only a portion of the bill or rejects it entirely, the insurance company will send an explanation of benefits to you. Reduction or rejection of your claim does not relieve you of your financial responsibility for your therapy sessions. If unusual circumstances of financial hardship develop please let CLCC know so that we may discuss possible payment options. If your check “bounces” and is returned for insufficient funds, you are responsible for making payment in full and for any bank fees.
Telephone and other professional consultations: Phone calls that are less than 10 minutes in length will not be charged. However, for those calls that are more than 10 minutes they will be charged at half-hour segments. Please note, insurance does not reimburse for phone calls. You will be responsible to provide payment for any phone calls longer than 10 minutes in length. For professional consultations with people with whom you have asked or allowed us to speak (physicians, attorneys, teachers, other therapist, etc), we charge in quarter hour segments for calls more than 15 minutes in length. CLCC also charges for time writing letters, and or reports you have requested, regarding your treatment. I will notify you again about these charges before performing these services. These are charges that insurance companies do not cover. If you become involved in legal proceedings that may require the participation of a CLCC employee, you will be expected to pay for professional time (even if we are called to testify by another party). If we are called to testify our time will be charged door to door. If any CLCC staff member is called to attend court on your behalf, a retainer of $2000 will be required. We will charge $150 an hour from that retainer for the time we are required to attend court, including door to door travel. Any balance remaining after the end of court proceedings will be returned to you.
Confidentiality: In general, all communication between a therapist and a client is confidential and protected by law and may not be revealed without your written permission. Confidentiality also protects children and adolescent clients. But there are a few exceptions in which we are legally and/or ethically obligated to break confidentiality. Please review the following exceptions carefully and ask your therapist any questions at your first session, or as soon as they arise during treatment.
- In most, but not all, legal proceedings you have the legal right to prevent me from giving information about your therapy. In certain legal situations, such as in a child custody case, or when your emotional condition is an issue (such as a personal injury case) the judge may order me to testify.
- Disclosure is required when there is reasonable suspicion of child abuse or neglect and/or dependent adult or elder abuse.
- If a client is a danger to himself or others, I am required to take protective measures. This may include notifying a potential victim, contacting the police, or hospitalizing my client. If my client threatens to harm him/herself I may need to seek hospitalization or contact family members or others who can provide protection.
If any of these situations occur, your therapist will make every reasonable effort to discuss my course of action with you prior to implementing it. If you are participating in group therapy, details of the group are to be kept strictly confidential.
On occasion, it may be beneficial to your situation to consult with other professionals about your case. During such a consultation your therapist will make every effort to protect your identity. The consultant is also legally obligated to keep the information confidential.
Insurance companies and confidentiality: Your insurance contract with your provider states that if you use your insurance to pay for any portion of therapeutic services you authorize your insurance company to speak with your therapist and/or review your chart at any time. CLCC will do everything we can to withhold your private information from your insurance company, but if we refuse to cooperate they will refuse payment for services. The only way to avoid this possible disclosure is to opt out of using your insurance for your counseling services.
Confidentiality with family and couple’s therapy: When working with family members and couples, the therapist will ask all parties to sign releases of information so that CLCC may share relevant information and give important feedback to all those participating in treatment. In situations where one family member or one partner requests that the therapist release information about the family or couple’s session, it is the agency policy not to release information unless all family members (or both members of the couple) sign an authorization allowing us to do so.
Telephone and Emergency Coverage: CLCC has a telephone voicemail that is available at all times for routine messages. The agency collects messages daily and will make every attempt to return calls within 24 to 48 hours.
In the rare instance that you have a life threatening emergency, call 911 or go the nearest emergency room for immediate assistance. Do not rely on email or texting. Once you are at the hospital please have a hospital staff member call CLCC and we will give them any helpful information about your case (if you grant permission to us to do so).
Vacation coverage: Your therapist will notify all of their clients in the event that they have a planned or unplanned absence from the practice. When necessary, alternate care arrangements will be formulated.
Termination of Treatment: You have the right to terminate treatment at any time. However, if you are dissatisfied with services or have questions about treatment methods, we invite you to discuss them with your therapist or the agency owner, Dr. Christine Cearfoss, as soon as possible. If you decide to stop treatment the therapist will be happy to give you the names and telephone numbers of other therapists in order to ensure a smooth transition of your care.
Therapists also have the right to terminate therapy under certain circumstances- for example, if a client is not benefiting from treatment after a reasonable length of time, or if a client could benefit more from receiving treatment elsewhere. At times, during the course of treatment, additional issues come to light which would best be addressed by another therapist or treatment agency which specializes in that particular area. In the event that it becomes apparent that it is in your best interest to terminate with us, referrals will be given and reviewed carefully with you. In addition, we will conduct termination sessions with you prior to your transfer to another therapist or treatment facility. If you are dissatisfied with the therapist’s services, fees or any other legal issues, we encourage you to discuss them with your therapist.