| Welcome to Midwest Christian Counseling
Center. It is our sincere desire to give you the best possible help for the concerns
that bring you here. Please read this page before counseling begins.
Working Together
Counseling is most successful when the client and therapist
develop a good working relationship. If you have questions or are displeased about
something in the counseling process, please bring it up with your therapist. Your
questions and concerns will be taken seriously.
Networking
Our therapists often work with other professionals to provide you
with the best possible care. For example, if medication or hospitalization is
needed, we work closely with our medical director to facilitate this for you. It is
also standard procedure to discuss how best to meet the needs of clients in supervision or
in consultation sessions with other members of our staff. We usually send a note to
professional persons who make referrals to us, as a courtesy, to thank them. If
you are uncomfortable, for any reason, with any of these procedures, please let your
therapist know at the beginning of your work together.
Confidentiality
Information you share with your therapist will be kept
confidential. It will not be disclosed to anyone without your written
permission. However, in a small number of situations, your therapist might be
ethically or legally required to talk to someone else or provide records of your
counseling to another agency or person. Examples include: 1) when someone is
suicidal or is threatening harm to another person, 2) when a child, elderly or disabled
person is suspected of being uncared for or abused, or 3) if you become involved in a
court action and your records are requested (subpoena or court ordered) or your therapist
is asked to testify. To ensure privacy, we recommend that you not use a cordless or
cellular phone to call your therapist or the center. Although the Center maintains
an e-mail address for administrative purposes, we do not use e-mail for clinical
purposes. Please be aware also that faxing information may compromise
confidentiality.
Evaluation/Assessment
To further assist with counseling, additional information may be
gathered through diagnostic measures Please ask about the charges for psychological,
psychoeducational, gifted, vocational, premarital and neuropsychological testing and
assessments.
Appointments
Appointments are ordinarily made at the end of each counseling
sessions with your therapist. If you must cancel and appointment, please notify the
Center at 816-561-3726 at least 24 hours before your scheduled session (to avoid a
late cancellation charge).
Fees
Except for the initial diagnostic session, our fee for a
therapist with a doctoral degree is $125 for a 45-minute session. The charge for an
appointment with a therapist who holds a master's degree is $120 per 45-minute
session. There will be an additional $30 administration fee due at
the time of the first visit.
Payment of Fees
Each client is responsible for payment of all
charges. Your fee or co-pay is collected when you arrive for the
appointment. If you use insurance or if another party is helping to pay for your
counseling, we will gladly help with payment arrangements. We will, as a courtesy,
contact your health plan to determine your insurance coverage. If needed, we can
provide a medical referral. Your written permission is required to file claims,
since insurance companies must know the dates and charges for the services and a coded
diagnosis. Claims are filed on a monthly basis and are ordinarily sent directly to
the health plan and not to the employer. When you give authorization to MCCC to
release information about your counseling to the insurance company, please be aware that
we cannot be responsible for how the company uses the information. Regardless of
coverage, all clients are expected to pay their portion of the fee at each session,
including any co-pay or deductible.
Emergencies
In the event of a life-threatening emergency, call 911.
In other emergencies, you may call 816-561-3726 and tell our operator that your situation
is urgent and that you wish to speak to your therapist as soon as possible. If your
therapist is not available at the time, you may be connected with the on-call therapist,
who will be paged by the operator. Please do not call your therapist between
sessions to discuss concerns that are not urgent and can be dealt with in your next
counseling session.
Affiliations
The Center is nationally accredited by the Samaritan
Institute. Our staff members belong to the professional associations that are
appropriate to their areas of specialization. These include The American
Psychological Association, American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, American
Association for Counseling and Development, Christian Association for Psychological
Studies, American Association of Christian Counselors, American Association of Pastoral
Counselors, National Board of Certified Counselors and The National Academy of
Neuropsychologists. Our therapists abide by the highest ethical principles of
their profession. These include maintaining boundaries that are appropriate to a
professional relationship.
Office Hours
The office is open from 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Monday through
Thursday, 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Friday. Calls
made after office hours are taken by our 24 hour answering service.
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