Appointments: Medication management (pharmacotherapy) visits are scheduled for 15-30 minute appointments, depending upon your needs. Ongoing psychotherapy sessions are scheduled weekly and last 45 to 50 minutes. Typically, I begin with 30-minute pharmacotherapy appointments, then transition to shorter appointments when there are no significant active issues and the medication or dose has not been changed for some time. The appointment time is reserved for you so it is important that you are on time. If you are late, your appointment may still conclude at the end of your scheduled appointment time. If significantly late, you may have to reschedule your appointment and will be charged my usual fees.

Cancellations: 48-Hour Cancellation Policy. The scheduled appointment time is reserved specifically for you and this is your time. Therefore, if you are unable to keep an appointment, please be sure to cancel at least 48 hours in advance or you will be charged my usual fee for that session. Please be aware that insurance companies generally do not reimburse for a cancelled session. Appointments canceled with less than 48 hours notice will be billed at 50% of the session cost, cancellations with less than 24 hour notice will incur the full session cost.

Record Keeping

I maintain a clinical chart for each patient, as required by the standards of my profession. Information in the chart includes a description of your condition, diagnosis, treatment and progress. An entry is made for each appointment, as well as for phone communications. I keep records of any consent, information release, assessment, insurance documents, outside treatment/testing, and other records completed or collected during the course of treatment. Clinical records are kept in a locked cabinet and/or as password-protected files. Information contained in this record will not be released without your written consent except in the circumstances outlined below and as explained in the Notice of Privacy Practices.

Confidentiality

Information shared between patient and provider is strictly confidential, with certain exceptions required by law. You hold the privilege of deciding with whom I may disclose information about evaluation and treatment. If you would like for me to share information with other providers, therapists, school officials, or other persons, please fill out an Authorization for Release of Information for each person/entity with whom you would like me to communicate.

I will release information only with your written permission with the following exceptions:

1. suspected abuse or neglect of a minor, elder or dependent individual;
2. a patient is in imminent danger of harming him or herself or another person;
3. a patient communicates a serious threat of physical violence against another person;
4. a parent or guardian is unable to adequately provide for a child’s basic needs;
5. records are ordered to be released by a judge or court; or
6. as otherwise required by law.

Most insurance companies require information about your diagnosis, the type of service provided, the date of the session, and fees (Click the "Fees" tab above for more information about the cost of evaluation and treatment). I will include this information on your statement, at your request. In some cases, insurance companies require that the physician send information about the patient's diagnosis and treatment plan, progress reports, and other records. Almost all insurance companies state that they will keep this information confidential, but I cannot assure this. For example, some may share the information they receive with a national medical information data bank for the purposes of deciding eligibility for future life, disability, health, and other insurance. Before I send any information to an insurance company, I will talk with you first, discuss the information to be provided, and obtain your written permission to do so. You have a choice about whether to release medical information requested by an insurance carrier, but if you refuse to have information released, most insurance programs will not reimburse for services.

Prescriptions

It is my policy to only write and refill prescriptions for psychotropic medications when you are seen in person at a scheduled appointment. In emergency cases, I may authorize medication refills by phone or fax to your pharmacy, but generally I like to see my patients for regular appointments. If you need a prescription called in before your next regular appointment, please give me at least 48 hours to process your request. This will prevent any interruption in your medication use. It is best to contact your pharmacy directly when you need a medication refill, and they will fax me a refill request form.

Phone Calls

If you need to reach me between appointments, please call 310-744-5102 and leave a message with your telephone number, even if you think I have it, and some times when you may be reached. Phone consultations lasting over 5 minutes are subject to a fee. Please consider the need for a more immediate appointment if a longer conversation is necessary.

E-mail Correspondence

You are welcome to send non-urgent information to me by e-mail, but I cannot guarantee the confidentiality or security of e-mail correspondence (for example, from hackers) despite my use of password-protected electronic mail.

Text Messaging

"Texting" is not HIPPA compliant (1) Text messaging it is NOT encrypted, (2) Text messaging cannot show full audit trails of when the messages are received and read, and (3) Text messaging cannot ensure priority delivery; a message about a patient in critical condition could be in queue behind a teenager's "haha" text message. Therefore, text messaging is not appropriate for communications related to your clinical information, including, but not limited to your diagnosis, treatment plans, medications, lab results, side effects or symptoms, etc.

Urgent or Emergency Issues

I will do my best to respond to phone calls as soon as possible; however, I do not provide urgent, crisis or emergency services. In the event of an urgent need outside of an appointment, please contact the local emergency room, crisis intervention services, or call 911. On the occasions that I am away from my practice, the message on my voicemail will direct you to the doctor providing coverage for my practice.

Ending Treatment

You may withdraw from treatment at any time. I recommend that we discuss a plan to terminate care before doing so, so that we have the opportunity to discuss further treatment recommendations, any potential risks for ending treatment at that time, and referral options if they are needed.

If you have any questions about these policies or any of the information above, I would be happy to discuss them with you in further detail. Thank you.