APPOINTMENTS AND CANCELLATIONS

Please remember to cancel or reschedule 24 hours in advance. You will be responsible for the full appointment fee if you cancel less than 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.

The standard meeting time for psychotherapy is 53-60 minutes. However, it is up to you to determine the length of your sessions. Requests to change the length of your session must be discussed with the therapist to schedule time in advance.

THERAPIST ACCESSIBILITY

If you need to contact your therapist between sessions, please use the Secure Messaging feature in your client portal or email them. They are often not immediately available; however, they will attempt to return your message within 24 hours during business days.

If a true emergency or crisis arises, please call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room. For non-emergency needs, you may call or text 988 to reach the Colorado Mental Health Services.

SOCIAL MEDIA AND TELECOMMUNICATION

Given the importance of your confidentiality and the need to minimize dual relationships, our therapists do not accept friend or contact requests from current or former clients on any social networking site (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn). We believe adding clients as friends or contacts on these sites could compromise your confidentiality and our privacy. It may also blur the boundaries of your therapeutic relationship. If you have questions about this, please bring them up when you meet with your therapist.

ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION

We cannot ensure the confidentiality of any communication via electronic media, including email messages. If you prefer to email about scheduling or cancellations, we can do that. While we may try to respond to messages promptly, we cannot guarantee an immediate response, and we request that you do not use these methods of communication to discuss therapeutic content or to request assistance in emergencies.

Services by electronic means, including but not limited to telephone communication, the Internet, facsimile machines, and email, are considered telemedicine by the State of California. Under the California Telemedicine Act of 1996, telemedicine is broadly defined as the use of information technology to deliver medical services and information from one location to another. If you and your therapist 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 improved communication, easier access to up-to-date information and support, lower costs, higher quality, changes in practice conditions, better access to therapy, stronger continuity of care, and less lost work time and travel costs.

DISCHARGE

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

Should you fail to schedule an appointment for three consecutive weeks, unless other arrangements have been made in advance, we must, for legal and ethical reasons, consider the professional relationship discontinued.

MINOR CONSENT FOR PSYCHOTHERAPY SERVICES

​​In Colorado, minors who are 12 years of age or older can consent to outpatient psychotherapy services without requiring parental or legal guardian consent. ​This provision was established when the age of consent for such services was lowered from 15 to 12 years old on May 16, 2019, with the signing of HB 19-1120. ​This law intends to enable minors who may be hesitant to discuss mental health issues with their parents or guardians to access outpatient psychotherapy before their situation escalates to a crisis level.

CONDITIONS FOR MINOR CONSENT

For a mental health professional to provide psychotherapy services to a minor aged 12 or older without parental consent, specific conditions must be met:

1. Voluntary Seeking of Services: ​The minor must knowingly and voluntarily seek psychotherapy services.

2. Clinical Necessity: ​The mental health professional must determine that the provision of psychotherapy services is clinically indicated and necessary for the minor's well-being.

MINOR CONFIDENTIALITY AND PARENT NOTIFICATIONS UNDER HB 19-1120

​If you are a minor (17 years of age or younger), your parent or legal guardian may be legally entitled to some information about your therapy. Your therapist will discuss with you and your parent or legal guardian which information is appropriate for them to receive and which issues will be kept confidential.

Mental health professionals have a defined role in managing consent and parental notification under this law:

1. Discussion with Minor: ​The professional is required to engage the minor in a discussion about the importance of involving and notifying their parent or legal guardian to support their care and treatment.

2. Notification with Minor's Consent: ​The mental health professional may notify the minor's parent or legal guardian of the services given or needed, provided the minor consents, unless such notification would be inappropriate or detrimental to the minor's care and treatment.

3. Notification without Minor's Consent: ​If the mental health professional believes, in their professional opinion, that the minor is unable to manage their care or treatment, they may notify the minor's parent or legal guardian without the minor's consent.

4. Documentation: ​Comprehensive documentation is required for any attempt to contact or notify the minor's parent or legal guardian, including whether the attempt was successful or unsuccessful, and the reason notification was deemed inappropriate. ​The minor's clinical record must also include a written statement, signed by the minor, confirming that they are voluntarily seeking services.