Purpose of Couples and Marriage Counseling
Couples and Marriage therapy works best when there is a constructive relationship between the couple and therapist. When working with you, it is expressly understood that my patient is both your relationship and each of you as individuals. The “couple” is the client. The purpose of couples and marriage counseling is to explore ways to improve the relationship as a unit. We will create a treatment plan that aligns with you and partner’s shared goals in the relationship and outcome of treatment.
In order to maintain fidelity to both of you and to your relationship, I ask for your consent on the following agreements:
Confidentiality: All information disclosed within sessions is confidential and may not be revealed to anyone without written permission except where disclosure is permitted or required by law. Those situations include but are not limited to: (a) when there is reasonable suspicion of abuse to a child or to a dependent or elder adult; (b) when the client communicates a threat of bodily injury to others; (c) when the client is suicidal; (d) when the client has been physically injured due to violence; (e) when disclosure is required pursuant to a legal proceeding. I receive occasional professional consultation. In such cases, neither your name nor any identifying information about you is revealed.
No Secrets Agreement: As providers entrusted with information from both partners of a relationship, we have a policy of “No Secrets”, which means that I cannot promise to protect secrets of either partner from the other person, especially if the secret is harmful or destructive to the process of the therapy itself or undermines the agreed upon intention of the therapy. There are times when your therapist may meet with one partner individually as part of the partner in treatment focus. What is shared individually is permitted to be shared to the other partner by the therapist.
Length of Therapy: Length of time depends on severity level of problems, history of past trauma/ infidelity/ or betrayals, and the presence of co-occurring emotional or psychological issues.
Billing and Cost: The cost of couples and marriage counseling is typically covered by most health plans when there is a mental health diagnosis being treated by one or both partners. If the couple is attending to therapy but do not meet medical necessity based on diagnosis of mental illness being treated then the cost may not be covered by your plan and will require you pay out of pocket. The cost is $150 for the initial session and $110 for follow up sessions. We will verify your insurance prior to your first visit happening.
Boundaries: Unless the session was scheduled separately, both partners must be present for the session as it would be unfair to distribute time unevenly. If one partner is late in arriving or does not show for the appointment, we reserve the right to delay the start of the session or to cancel the session if necessary.
Release of Records: One chart is used during couples and marriage counseling. What this means is that if either party requests records you agree by signing consent to treat for couples-marriage counseling that the records can contain either party name in the couple-marriage regardless if both parties are giving direct consent for the release. Either party as rights to the shared record during the course of couples and marriage counseling, without redactment of the file. This agreement signed is a signed release of information for the file to be requested by either party at any time in treatment or after treatment. Only the couples information and documentation will be shared with the other partner in treatment. If you are using your chart as the couples chart and individual chart we will ensure that only the documentation aligned with the couples work is released to the other party in the course of documentation release. An intake and treatment plan will begin the session following consent and treatment will follow a treatment plan throughout the treatment timeframe with updates periodic of which you will be apart of. At any time you can request to update your treatment plan to reflect new goals. You have a right to participate in treatment decisions and develop and review and revise of your treatment plan. You have a right to refuse any recommended treatment or withdraw consent to treatment at any time. No consequences will be afforded by Teris Health Services for refusal or withdrawal from treatment. If a third party interest such as a court is involved in your care of which you included then withdrawing and refusing treatment may have consequences in that other system of care. At any time if this is a concern of yours you may speak directly to your counselor and we will explain any of these concerns you have. However, at no time will Teri’s Health Services provide you with consequences of withdrawing from treatment. If you discharge from treatment, you may request to reestablish at another time. Couples and Marriage counseling is a method to develop and maintain healthy and functional relationships. The goal is to identify and address problems in the unit. These issues could be emotional, psychological, or behavioral. Many approaches to couples and marriage therapy stem from family systems theory. This suggests that families work in systems rather than groups of people who function independently of each other. According to family systems theory, changes in one family member will influence the other members of the family.
Course of Treatment: The continued participation by each partner is voluntary. Either participant may suspend or terminate the therapy at her or his individual request.
General Procedures
Couples therapy is a form of psychotherapy that can help you and your partner improve your relationship. If you are having relationship difficulties, you can seek couples therapy to help rebuild your relationship. It is helpful at any stage of your relationship, regardless of difficulties to and conflict to be involved in therapy to help your relationship flourish to its greatest ability. Types of couples and marriage therapy include: Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), Gottman method, Ellen Wachtel’s approach, Psychodynamic couples therapy, Behavior Therapy, and Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT). We will start with an intake and treatment plan to get to know you as the couple, identify your feelings, explore the past, focus on solutions, and create momentum to meet your goals.
Benefits
The benefits of couples and marriage counseling include defining your roles in the relationship and examine roles, beliefs and values being discussed, financial stressors to be discussed, exploring ways to increase time together, how to parent and create shared parenting style, work out family relationship issues in nuclear family and extended family, work on sex and intimacy goals, deal with hurts from infidelity and trust mishaps, help with stress management regarding health issues and external stressors. Further benefits: learn to understand each other better, identify relationship issues, improve communication, resolve conflicts, strengthen your friendship, terminate dysfunctional behavior, learn skills, and improve relationship satisfaction.
Potential Risks
Some risk of couples and marriage counseling include: making conflicts worse before better as emotions surface and disagreements may intensify, emotional challenges coming up due to the history of avoidance of the issues being discussed, abuse of one couple or another can happen if domestic violence situation is present of which couples and marriage counseling should not be attempted when active abuse is happening in the couple as a unit as this can increase the abuse or risk level to increase, and starting counseling too late. At times a couple waiting years before getting help can reduce the chances success will happen. Starting early can help improve the course of therapy being successful.
Limitations to couple therapy: Success of couple and marriage counseling is entirely dependent on the couple participation. It is the responsibility of the couple to put in the time and effort to improve the relationship and not the therapist. It is the therapist responsibility to provide the couple with the tools needed to resolve their concerns.
Right to Participate, Review, and Update Treatment Plan
As a client you have a right to participate in your treatment. This means that you have a right to say what goals and objectives you want to engage in during treatment. Your treatment plans will be created with you and with you as the focus of treatment. At any time you can request to review your plan of care and update with therapist. We generally update treatment plans every 90 days at minimum.
Emergency
If an emergency, please call 911 or EMPACT-SPC crisis line at 480-784-1500. This crisis line is available 24-hours a day, 7 days a week.
Client Records
All of your information is stored within a HIPAA compliant electronic medical records forum. Teri’s Health Services will save your chart for up to 7 years following the closure of chart for services. At any time, you have a right to your records. If you are requesting your records, please allow up to 14 days from the medical records department. You may complete a record request by contacting our office and requesting one be sent to you to complete.
Records Sharing
Your record is only shared with those you provide a release of information for. In some cases, there are court orders that require sharing of records. If one or both of these scenarios are not present then your records are not shared with anyone outside of Teri’s Health Services practice. You are also authorizing the release of information about your care to your insurance company. The information often required by insurance companies may include, but is not limited to, diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment goals. It is important for you to understand that your insurance company has the right to your records for the purpose of verifying the billed services. As a treatment team, all of Teri’s Health Services employees have access to your record. We also will frequently speak specifically about the care of clients in a treatment team setting. You have a right to ask what if anything was shared about you in these settings. We only share that information that is pertinent to client care.
Confidentiality
By law, a clinician is considered and titled a "Mandated Reporter." In the state of Arizona mandated reporters include doctors, teachers, nurses, social workers, and counselors. What this means is that if you report to a clinician or healthcare worker at Teri’s Health Services anything that suggests serious and foreseeable harm to yourself or someone else we are required to break confidentiality and get you help and/or warn someone about your plans to harm them. If we are court ordered to release records, we are also required to break confidentiality. If you are court ordered to treatment the courts have a right to your record. If you are a minor (17 or younger) your parents or guardian have a right to your record and this consent will go to them to sign as well. Also, guardians will be provided treatment plans to sign as they are updated at minimum every 90 days.
Billing: Only one insurance will be billed. Only one chart will be created for the couple. Treatment planning is completed together with the therapist and all parties will sign the treatment plan to agree to treatment for treatment to occur. Treatment plans are updated every 90 days or less depending on changes or updates needed.
Consent
I agree to adhere to the norms and expectations for couples/marriage therapy as indicated above. I acknowledge that I have had the opportunity to ask questions and such questions were answered clearly and to my satisfaction. I consent to treatment with Teri's Health Services for couples/family counseling services.
Right to Treatment
At any time, you have the right to end counseling or to refuse any treatment modality that a clinician uses at Teri’s Health Services. No penalties regarding your care will be provided for refusing counseling.
Consent to Treatment
Your signature below indicates that you have had an opportunity to read and review this information and that pertinent questions regarding you have been satisfactorily answered. Furthermore, it indicates your willingness and agreement to participate in treatment. You can withdraw from treatment at any time without consequences by Teri’s Health Services.
Both partners will complete this form. One per partner.