Confidentiality
Overview
The information you provide in therapy is confidential and will not be shared with anyone without your written consent as prescribed by law. You may review our Notice of Privacy Practices for more details about authorizing such information. There are a few limitations to confidentiality where we are mandated by laws and licensing boards to break your confidentiality. These limits are listed in our Notice of Privacy Practices and in our intake paperwork. The one most relevant to our practice is the mandate to report “imminent risk of suicide.” In an effort to offer full transparency, our explanation of this mandate and how we view this in the context of our work together is listed below. We will go over this more carefully in your first session and you will have the opportunity to ask as many questions as you need.
Imminent Risk
- We are mandated to report if we have concern that you are at imminent risk of harm to yourself (suicide) or others (homicide or assault). “Imminent risk” is the key statement here. The Semicolon Group PLLC is a safe space to talk about your thoughts of suicide without fear of immediate involuntary repercussions of disclosing these thoughts and behaviors. We want to work with you to establish your safety in the present, for your immediate future, and for your long-term future. We will work with you, collaboratively, to plan for your safety without involving involuntary hospitalization. However, your safety is our utmost concern. If we believe that you are at imminent risk of suicide and we cannot collaboratively plan for your safety, we are mandated to report to the appropriate entities so they can help keep you safe until you can return to stability; only in extreme situations will we make this call without you knowing and without your permission.
Minors
In Texas, minors can consent to their own counseling for (1) suicide prevention; (2) chemical addiction or dependency; or (3) sexual, physical, or emotional abuse.
If we have reasonable grounds to believe that a child has been sexually, physically, or emotionally abused, is contemplating suicide, or is suffering from chemical drug addiction or dependency, we may counsel the child without the consent of the child’s parents (or managing conservator or legal guardian). We may rely on the written statement of the child containing the grounds on which the child has the capacity to consent to their own treatment.
See Texas Family Code § 32.004 for the full statutes.
