Can you explain to me how I get started?
Simply call our office and you will be greeted with a friendly and caring voice. Our front office is staffed Monday through Friday from 9:00-5:15. If you call at another time or reach our voice mail, please leave a message and your call will be returned promptly. Our staff are trained to sensitively ask and record some basic information regarding your reasons for seeking services. From there, an appointment is scheduled with a highly trained therapist who is a match for your concerns. A 60-90 minute initial meeting is scheduled, called the intake/consultation session. During this appointment, the therapist obtains important information from you to understand your situation, provides you with their initial impressions and makes specific recommendations for treatment. It’s also an important opportunity to get to know the therapist, develop a comfort level, and make sure they are the right fit.
How do I know what my insurance covers?
This is one of our most asked questions. Insurance coverage can be confusing, especially in the area of mental health. Our team is happy to help you through this process so you can understand your coverage. Although we can check on your benefits, we encourage our patients to also call the number on the back of their card to obtain their in and out of network insurance coverage for outpatient mental health. You should obtain their deducible, copays, and co-insurance from the representative. With this information, our friendly and helpful office staff can help you understand what fees/charges you are likely to incur. If you are unsure of what to ask or how to make sense of the information that was given to you, call us and we will help you with the process.
Does my child come to the intake appointment?
In most cases, when the referred patient is thirteen or younger, we schedule the first visit as a parent only meeting. This allows for us to have an open dialogue with you and not have your child either in the waiting room or potentially listening to you talk about what they feel is wrong about them. A parent only appointment allows you to get to know the therapist and can help establish an important trust. The child comes to the following appointment.
With teenagers, we typically invite the parents and the teens together for the intake. Most often, the therapist will split the time up, spending a portion of time with the teen and other time with the parents before giving recommendations to all parties. However, if the referred therapist or parents feels a parent only meeting is advisable given the circumstances, this can be arranged.
I see you have several therapists in your practice, how do I know who is the best fit?
We invite you to visit our staff page to get to know more about our therapists. If you are not sure, just call and we will help. Additionally, our clinical director is directly involved in making certain we are referring you to somebody who has the right experience, training and personality for your situation. If we believe we are not the right practice to help, we will do our very best to provide you with outside referrals in the community.
How long are therapy sessions and how many sessions will I need?
Ongoing therapy sessions are typically between 45-55 minutes. The amount of sessions and duration of treatment is largely influenced by the goals you establish and follow through on treatment recommendations. Some courses of treatment can be 5-15 sessions while other goals can require additional sessions. At the conclusion of the initial intake/consultation appointment, your therapist can give you indication as to what the course of treatment may look like. In most cases, weekly sessions will be recommended to facilitate a positive and consistent working relationship. Being mindful of your resources, we work as efficiently as possible to achieve your goals.
Do I have to take my child out of school for appointments?
All of our providers offer many prime after school, evening and/or Saturday appointments. We do our very best to accommodate our families to avoid disruption to the child’s school day or your work day if at all possible. Each therapist maintains a cancellation list as well to help families obtain even more desirable times.