After careful deliberation, I may reveal to someone else information you have given me if I believe you could do harm to yourself or someone else. I have a responsibility to protect you from doing something in a moment of desperation that you would regret for the rest of your life. If you reveal that you have been a victim of child abuse, the State of Maryland requires that I make a report to Social Services. If you tell me about child abuse while parenting your child, I will also make a report to Social Services. Having counseled adults who were abused as children, I believe this requirement makes good sense. If my report can prevent child abuse, I feel it is a value just as important as maintaining confidentiality.

There are also some legal issues that affect confidentiality. For example, if you file suit against me because of dereliction of duty, I will divulge what you have told me.

Periodically, I do consult with my colleagues for a different point of view about my counseling approach. I believe this greatly helps provide my patients with a high quality of care. However, I do not mention names of my patients or any specific identifying information.

Each patient is asked to sign a Therapist-Patient Agreement Form. The form contains information about confidentiality, fees, cancellation policy and managed care procedures. This 2-page form can be viewed on this web site; just click on Patient Forms under the Patient Information button. If you have any questions about the confidentiality of your sessions, please discuss them with me before you sign the form.

Privacy Policy: The office is HIPAA-Compliant. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ensures that a consumer's personal health information is protected from unauthorized invasions of privacy. This law adds to confidentiality of your sessions, which has always been on the books in the Maryland Code of Regulations for Psychologists. HIPAA is a federal effort to ensure that consumers have rights when it comes to health information that is being used to file insurance claims and in the conducting of business with managed care companies.

In general, my policy is to disclose only the minimum information necessary for the insurance company to process a claim and for the managed care company to review the need for continuing care. Claim forms only include face sheet information, dates of service and your psychological diagnosis. Forms that are sent to the managed care company give information about symptoms and problems functioning that justify a psychological diagnosis. A statement about the treatment plan and your goals, as well as prognosis for a positive response to treatment is also provided. My policy is to give to the managed care company only the information they need to know for reviewing the necessity of on-going care. They do not need to know sensitive information and this kind of information is not given to them under any circumstance.

You can read the 3-page Summary of your Privacy Rights Under HIPAA on this web site. Click on the Notice Form, which is contained in Patient Forms The form gives you information about your rights and my duties under HIPAA.