Policy
Psychotherapy is a serious process and to ensure safety for both client as well as therapist we follow strict protocols which are mandated by Government approved organizations in India. Before we can go ahead with therapy, we would like you to read this document carefully as it contains important information pertaining to our professional services and business policies. When you choose to use our services, it is imperative that you understand and agree to this document. This will represent a legal agreement between us. It will also give you an idea about how to go ahead with therapy. We understand the agreement is a bit long, so please choose a time when you have a few quiet minutes to read it carefully – your therapist will be happy to answer any questions you have about it before you agree to it. The word ‘therapist’ shall mean MindBodyAlly or any therapist assigned by MindBodyAlly. When you register for online counseling/therapy, you are asked to confirm that you want counseling/therapy and that you are not being pressured into doing so by someone else. All references to ‘we’ shall mean MindBodyAlly and/or their associates and ‘you’ shall mean the service user agreeing to these terms. The terms of this Policy Document may change from time to time, please reach out to your assigned therapist if you require THE latest copy.
1. Psychological Services
Psychotherapy varies depending on the personalities, comfort level, candidness of the service user as well as the therapist, as well as the particular difficulties/concerns you as a service user brings to therapy. It is important to note that the essence of therapy depends on the relationship and trust that is built between the service user and the therapist. Various methods, discussions and techniques may be used to work through the various themes of behavior and thought processes that you hope to address. It is important to note that Psychotherapy, unlike a medical doctor or dentist visit, requires a very active effort on your part. For therapy to be successful, you will have to work on things we talk about both, during our sessions and at home.
Psychotherapy can have both benefits and risks. Since therapy often involves discussing unpleasant aspects and experiences of your life, you may experience uncomfortable feelings such as sadness, guilt, anger, frustration, loneliness, and helplessness. On the other hand, psychotherapy has also been known to have benefits for people who go through it. Therapy often leads to better boundary setting in relationships, accountability, emotional regulation and awareness of self. Yet, due to the subjective factors that play a major role in it, there are no guarantees.
We acknowledge that therapy involves a large commitment of time, money and energy, therefore it is understandable to carefully consider the therapist you choose to go ahead with. We urge you to clarify any doubts and questions pertaining to your therapist, the process of therapy, other services and any clarifications with your therapist. The service user shall provide full disclosure of any mental issues or illnesses to the best of their knowledge. The therapist shall rely on such information provided by the service user. For your own benefit, you agree not to show up for an appointment under the influence of any drug or alcohol. If, as per the therapist, the service user seems to be under any such influence, the therapist has the right to cancel the appointment. Each service user shall provide an emergency contact number before starting with therapy. The service user shall update the contact details as and when required.
We would like to put it out that we are strongly committed to anti-discrimination. We value difference and diversity and do not discriminate on the grounds of age, gender and gender identity, sexual preference or orientation, marital/partnership status, religion, race, color, national origin, caste, disability, heritage or political belief. Service users must note that they cannot have any kind of dual relationship with the therapist prior, during and for at least five (5) years after the end of therapy.
2. Appointments
There is a significant demand for scheduling appointments, therefore in our endeavor to reduce confusions and provide you with the earliest therapy sessions available, the following policies have been enforced to respect your time as well as ours. Additionally, we may revise our fees and charges in our sole discretion, such revisions may be informed to you prior to your appointment scheduling.
2.1. Arranging your appointments
If you are new to therapy, you may choose the option of Discovery session. For this session only your contact information and intention to seek therapy will be required. No forms need to be filled. When you have made up your mind and choose to go ahead with therapy, you need to choose the kind of therapy you are opting for and during the booking process fill out the consent and intake form. If they are not filled, the very first session will be used to fulfill this requirement. You can go ahead and book multiple sessions in advance for the month, but keeping other service users in mind, please book a maximum of 4 therapy sessions at once for a month.
2.2. Punctuality
We value and respect your time as well as ours, therefore we put in a mindful effort to start and finish sessions on time, unless there is an emergency and you will be informed of the same. In order to get the most from your appointment, please arrive at the meeting on time as we would be unable to extend appointments if you join in late as we will be answerable to the next service user.
We will wait for a period of 15 minutes into your scheduled session, if you fail to join the meeting within the first half of your appointment, you will be marked as a No-show to your scheduled appointment and shall be liable to make the whole payment. Such a No-show by the service user shall not be refundable.
2.3. Payment for the appointments
Payments for appointments are to be made immediately after scheduling the appointment. No exceptions are allowed.
2.4. Cancellation Policy
Sometimes there are good reasons for canceling appointments. However, unlike brief medical appointments, it is impractic to fill a therapist’s appointment that runs for 50 minutes.
When you provide less than three (3) business day’s notice to cancel or change an appointment, you will be charged full fee for that appointment time. Such cancellation or change shall only be valid once acknowledged by us upon your communication via an email on contact@mindbodyally.com, within business hours. The business hours shall be within 9:00 am to 8:30 pm.
In case we decide to cancel any prior scheduled appointments, those will be as per the following:
Upon an advance notice of minimum two (2) days, the appointment shall be rescheduled upon mutual agreement;
In case of an emergency situation, the therapist may cancel by providing a two (2) days’ notice with an option of rescheduling. In case the therapist has to cancel any time after that, the service user shall be provided with an option of rescheduling at earliest or a complete refund.
2.5. Fees are payable at time of cancellation
If you don’t appear at the time of the appointment or decide to cancel within the 3-day notice from the time of appointment, 100% cancellation fees apply as the indemnification for the time reserved by the therapist. Given that the time has been set aside for you, if you do not use it, then it is unlikely at short notice it can be used by anyone else. We trust you will agree that this is a fair and reasonable policy and we thank you for your understanding.
A late canceled appointment is a loss to people:
Another service user who has been sitting on the waiting list to see the psychologist urgently
The psychologist who spent the time preparing for the session
Please, therefore, make sure you attend your appointments!
3. Professional Records
In line with global and Indian standards of care and professionalism, your therapist will keep session reports or notes. The sessions may be audio recorded or transcribed for documentation and supervision (only after your explicit permission). You may request to receive a summary of the same. As these are professional notes, they can be misinterpreted and/or be upsetting to untrained readers, therefore if you wish to see a summary of your therapy, it is recommended to do so in presence of your therapist. Service users will be charged an appropriate fee for any professional time spent in responding to information requests. If your therapist feels that you are not in an emotional state to receive these records, a request for them may be denied – however, this may happen only in out of ordinary circumstances as deemed fit by the therapist.
4. Minors
If you are under eighteen years of age, please be aware that the law may provide your parents the right to examine your therapy notes and summaries.
5. Confidentiality
In general, all communications between a service user and a psychologist is privileged and is protected by law, and information about our work to others may only be released with your explicit and written permission. But there are a few exceptions:
In some legal proceedings/ court orders – such as those involving a child or those in which your emotional condition is an important issue, a judge may order a therapist’s written or verbal if they determine that the issues demand it. In such a case, we will be forced to oblige with such legal requests.
There are some situations in which we are legally obligated to take action to protect you and/or others from harm, even if some information about a service user’s treatment has to be revealed in the process of doing so. For example, if your therapist believes that a child, elderly person, or disabled person is being abused, we may file a report with the appropriate state If we believe that a service user is threatening serious bodily harm to another or themselves, we are legally required to notify legal authorities. These actions may include notifying the potential victim, contacting the police, seeking hospitalization for the service.
Your therapist may occasionally find it helpful to consult other professionals and/or peers about a session or a particular case. Your personal information will not be shared or discussed during these supervision/consultation sessions.
Finally, it is important to acknowledge that therapy is not a quick-fix solution. We will try our best to provide you with tools (techniques, knowledge and suggestions) to enable you to be aware and accountable for the circumstances and make the decision you see fit. We cannot, however, guarantee that the difficulties that you come to us with, will be solved. The onus for those lies on you. Please discuss it with your therapist, if you feel that the therapy is not working for you even after 2-3 months, you and your therapist can come to a decision on how to take it forward.
It is also important to note that your therapist will be a trained psychotherapist and psychologist. They may not be a psychiatrist or surgeon. While a psychologist is a trained health care professional, they may not have a formal training in pharmacology and cannot prescribe medication.
6. Mode of therapy
The preferred mode of the therapy sessions shall be online, via Google Meet or Zoom. However, if mutually agreed between the therapist and the service user, offline sessions may be conducted and the service user agrees to abide by the policies of premises and Covid -19 protocols. In case of any issues/difficulties, the online session may be moved to another audio-video platform as mutually agreed between parties. Service user acknowledges and agrees that the therapist shall not be responsible for any kind of breach due to such third-party applications. Service users confirm that they shall not record any of the Google Meet/Zoom sessions.
In case of any internet breakdown or technical difficulty beyond the reasonable control of the therapist, if such difficulty is not resolved within 15 minutes, the session will be rescheduled upon mutual agreement. In case of any internet breakdown or technical difficulty beyond the reasonable control of the service user, the parties may mutually agree to reschedule the session to an alternate time.
7. Boundaries
It is important to make sure that you and your therapist maintain certain boundaries to ensure there is no bias that decreases the efficacy of your therapy. We kindly request you to remain in an empty room with closed doors for your therapy session and to minimize as much of the disturbance as possible.
Please do refrain from contacting your therapist outside the session time allocated to you, if you feel there is an urgent query or an emergency, you may contact your therapist via a message or an email, and please be cognizant that they may choose to reply based on their discretion, and their decision may be influenced by personal and professional factors.
Similarly, service users are requested not to add or communicate with their therapist on social media websites while therapy is ongoing. A strictly professional relationship must be maintained, and any outside communication may act as grounds for dismissal of the therapist or refusal of service. We are not a crisis service, if you need immediate medical help or are in an emergency, contact your local emergency services.
Your use of our services indicates that you have read the information in this document and agree to abide by its terms during our professional relationship. It also means that the information you have provided to us is accurate to the best of your knowledge, and that you have read and understood the Policy Document, Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy mentioned on our website.
8.Dispute Resolution and Jurisdiction
In case of any concerns or disputes, the service users shall need to bring these up with the assigned therapist, representative of MindBodyAlly. The service user and therapist shall use their best efforts to resolve the disputes amicably. The service being provided will be classified as counseling/psychotherapy.
