EPH Counseling Services

Therapy is a relationship between people that works in part because of clearly defined rights and responsibilities held by each person. As a client in psychotherapy, you have certain rights and responsibilities that are important for you to understand. There are also legal limitations to those rights that you should be aware of.  Your therapist also has  corresponding responsibilities to you. These rights and responsibilities are described in the following sections.

Psychotherapy has both benefits and risks. Risks may include experiencing uncomfortable feelings, such as sadness, guilt, anxiety, anger, frustration, loneliness, and helplessness because the process of psychotherapy often requires discussing the unpleasant aspects of your life.  However, psychotherapy has been shown to have benefits for individuals who undertake it.  

Therapy often leads to a significant reduction in feelings of distress, increased satisfaction in interpersonal relationships, greater personal awareness, and insight, increased skills for managing stress and resolutions to specific problems.  But, there are no guarantees about what will happen.  Psychotherapy requires a very active effort on your part. To be most successful, you will have to work on things discussed outside of sessions.

The first 2-4 sessions will involve a comprehensive evaluation of your needs. By the end of the evaluation, We will be able to offer you some initial impressions of what our work might include. At that point, we will discuss your treatment goals and create an initial treatment plan. You should evaluate this information and make your assessment about whether you feel comfortable working with EPH Services. If you have questions about  procedures, discuss them with your therapist whenever they arise. If your doubts persist,  EPH Services will be happy to help you set up a meeting with another mental health professional for a second opinion.

Appointments will ordinarily be 45-50 minutes in duration, once per week at a time, as agreed on, although some sessions may be more or less frequent as needed. The time scheduled for your appointment is assigned to you and you alone. If you need to cancel or reschedule a session, We ask that you provide me with 24 hours notice. If you miss a session without canceling or cancel with less than 24-hour notice, the policy is to collect the amount of your co-payment unless  both agree that you were unable to attend due to circumstances beyond your control. It is important to note that insurance companies do not provide reimbursement for canceled sessions; thus, you will be responsible for the portion of the fee as described above. If it is possible, we will  try to find another time to reschedule the appointment. In addition, you are responsible for coming to your session on time; if you are late, your appointment will still need to end on time. 

We are in-network with most insurances. However, call the office at 804-616-4378 for the standard fee for the initial intake and each subsequent session. You are responsible for paying at the time of your session unless prior arrangements have been made. Payment must be made by cash or credit card.

In addition to weekly appointments, prorated charges for other professional services that you may require such as report writing, telephone conversations that last longer than 15 minutes, attendance at meetings or consultations which you have requested, or the time required to perform any other service which you may request of me. 

We are in-network with most insurances.  However, 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. We obtain information about your coverage and bill, but you are responsible for knowing your coverage and for letting the office know. 

Once we have all of the information about your insurance coverage, we will discuss what we can reasonably expect to accomplish with the benefits that are available and what will happen if coverage ends before you feel ready to end your 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 the provider contract.

If we are not a participating provider for your insurance plan, we will supply you with a receipt of payment for services, which you can submit to your insurance company for reimbursement. Please note that not all insurance companies reimburse for out-of-network providers.  If you prefer to use a participating provider, We will refer you to a colleague.

Practice policies about confidentiality, as well as other information about your privacy rights, are fully described in a separate document entitled Notice of Privacy Practices. Please remember that you may reopen the conversation at any time during your sessions.

While privacy in therapy is crucial to successful progress, parental involvement can also be essential. For children 14 and older,  an agreement between the client and the parents allowing the provider to share general information about treatment progress and attendance, as well as a treatment summary upon completion of therapy is requested.

Because this is a limited private practice, immediate availability may not be feasible at all times.  When the behavioral health provider is unavailable, all patients have been instructed to leave a message on the 24-hour  voice message system. The practice voice mail is monitored frequently throughout the day, weekends, and holidays. Every effort is made to return all calls within 24 hours.  In the event of a psychiatric emergency, and an inability to reach a provider immediately, all patients are instructed to contact the local Mental Health Hotline at 804-819-4100 or CALL 911 or go to the nearest Emergency Room of your nearest hospital and ask to be evaluated by the psychologist or psychiatrist on call. Mental Health Hotline numbers are also provided to each patient

The goal is to provide a quality service in the shortest period of time that is necessary for you to derive benefit from the therapy. You have the right to withdraw from treatment for any reason at any time.