Fees
A therapy session is typically 50 minutes long, once a week or every two weeks, and then at increasing intervals as you near your therapy goals.
Your first visit is an intake interview, expect that this will take about an hour. This first meeting involves collecting information about your health, general attitudes, state of mind, and goals that you hope to achieve in coming to counselling.
The fee is $90 for a 50 minute session payable at the end of each session by cash or cheque. I also offer a sliding scale depending on your financial situation. If you have any questions concerning financial accessibility please feel free to call me.
Distance counselling sessions via Skype are also available with prepayment by PayPal.
You can cancel your session provided you’ve given a minimum 24-hour notice. Otherwise, you will be charged a full fee for the canceled session.
If you miss a session without notice, you will also be charged a full fee.
CONFIDENTIALITY AND RELEASE OF INFORMATION
With the exception of certain specific instances described below, you have the absolute right to the confidentiality of your therapy. I cannot and will not tell anyone else what you have told me, or even that you are in therapy with me without your prior written permission. I will always act so as to protect your privacy even if you do release me in writing to share information about you. You may direct me to share information with whomever you choose, and you can change your mind and revoke that permission at any time.
One exception to this confidentiality is that my responsibility as a therapist requires that I consult professionally with other therapists about my work. This is done in a way that protects the anonymity of my clients and they remain unidentifiable. If you inform me that there is a particular person with whom you would not want even this anonymous consultation to occur, I will respect your wishes.
The following are legal exceptions to your right to confidentiality. I would inform you should I at any time think I will have to put these into effect:
- If I have good reason to believe that you will harm another person, I must attempt to inform that person and warn them of your intentions. I must also contact the police and ask them to protect your intended victim.
- If I have good reason to believe that you are abusing or neglecting a child or vulnerable adult, or if you give me information about someone else who is doing this, I must inform the appropriate authorities.
- If I believe that you are in imminent danger of harming yourself, I may legally break confidentiality and call the police or the mental health crisis team. I would explore all other options with you before I took this step.
- If you are filing a complaint or are a plaintiff in a lawsuit, it is possible that I or my notes may be subpoenaed. Please let me know if you are in this kind of situation so that I can take the utmost care possible to protect your privacy in my records.
