Policies

Fees:

Emory sets her fees to be affordable to most and commensurate with professional fees for psychotherapy and parent consulting in the Washington, D.C. area.
Most sessions are one hour in length.
Initial parent consultations are usually 90 minutes in length.
Session fees include follow-up letters and phone calls.
Emory has always reserved 20% of her practice for clients who cannot afford to pay her full fee. There is currently a several month waiting list to see her for a reduced or no-fee.

Payment:

Payment is due at the time of the appointment, unless other arrangements have been made.
Emory accepts cash, checks and credit or debit cards (Visa, Mastercard, or American Express).
She suggests that checks be written before the session begins, so that the session is not cut short at the end to give you time to write your check.
Every client receives a receipt for their payment at the end of the week by e-mail. Receipts can be submitted for insurance reimbursement. Please let Emory know if you need a diagnosis code for insurance reimbursement.
Emory recognizes that therapy is costly in terms of both your time and your money. She respects her clients commitment to improving their families and their lives, and is committed to providing quality service that will benefit you now and in the years to come.

Phone Consultations:

Emory offers phone and Skype consultations to her clients, when they are unable to visit her in person.

Home Visits:

Emory can come to talk with you and your family in your home when that would be helpful. There is an additional charge for travel time.

Late Cancellation:

Twenty-four hours notice is required to cancel an appointment. Late cancellations can be rescheduled later that week for an in-person or phone consultation at no additional charge. Otherwise, you are asked to pay for your late cancellation.

Emory holds herself to the same standard, and if she has to cancel a session for personal reasons with less than 24 hours notice, your next session will be free of charge.

Severe Weather Cancellation:

Emory follows federal government cancellation announcements. If the federal government is closed, then her sessions are also cancelled. Otherwise, you are asked to either keep your appointment, reschedule for later in the week or pay for the missed session.

Confidentiality:

All information disclosed within your therapy session, including case notes and records, is treated as confidential. No information will be revealed to anyone not present in therapy without the permission of the client or a legally authorized representative unless an applicable legal or ethical exception exists.

When seeing couples and families, it is an important part of Emory’s work to promote honesty and openness. Therefore, she does not keep secrets between family members. If someone tells her something important that is not known by other family members, she will work with that individual to assist them in sharing their secret.

Confidentiality with Adolescents

Sometimes, a teen wants to talk to a trustworthy and helpful person outside of usual family and friendship circles. I offer under-age adolescents conversations that are private, but not secret. I always have the duty to report when my client or someone else is in danger. Otherwise, when I have a concern, I work with the adolescent to help him share these concerns with his parents in a timely fashion.

Along the way, I keep parents posted on our progress and I am available to talk whenever they have questions or concerns.

Duty to Warn/Report:

Emory is required by law to report to the appropriate law enforcement agency any suspected abuse and any situation where the client threatens violence to an identifiable victim. If feasible, this means that she is also legally required to inform the specified victim or victims of the nature of the threat, the identity of the person making the threat, and the identity of the specified victim or victims. All actual or suspected acts of such abuse will need to be reported to the appropriate agency. Emory is also legally permitted to break confidentiality if you present a danger to yourself or others.

Ending Therapy:

It is Emory’s goal to support each of her clients when they are ready to end therapy, for any reason. It has been her experience that every client would like to end their therapy experience in a positive way. When you feel ready to end therapy, she will happily work together to finish your sessions well.

Family Information Questionnaire:

Parents who are consulting Emory about child behavior concerns should fill out her Family Questionnaire and send it to her at least 24 hours before your scheduled meeting. The questionnaire will take approximately two hours to fill out. The easiest way to send Emory your completed questionnaire is to send it as an e-mail attachment.

The questionnaire can be downloaded here: