Related Q&As:
- Finding low-cost counseling: This is a good related Q&A because it directly provides low-cost counseling on a national level. It addresses most available and accessible counseling/therapy clinics, etc.
- College students and counseling: This is a perfectly related Q&A because it talks about some of the barriers for why some college students don't seek counseling.
- Legit reasons to go to therapy/counseling? This question perfectly addresses that everything is an appropriate reason to seek out counseling if you feel the need to.
- Sick about going to counseling: This question is 100% directly related to the question being asked. This Q&A addresses the fear/uncomfort about going to counseling. Ultimately, mental health is just as vital as physical health when it comes to managing everyday life.
- Good quote from this response to include: If you have other concerns about using your counseling center's services, a call to the office, a quick visit to a drop in location, or a review of their website might also help ease your mind.
- Paranoid about counseling and privacy: This question is also directly related to this question because it directly talks about confidentiality and privacy in counseling.
- Ultimately, since everything is found in this Q&A about HIPAA regulations, I would directly link out.
- Number one cause of stress: Although not directly related, I think this question should be directly referenced for all college-related counseling services.
Definitions: NONE NEEDED
Source 1: Protecting your privacy: Understanding confidentiality
SUMMARY
Psychotherapy is most effective when you can be open and honest. If you've never seen a psychology before, you may have some questions about privacy:
- Confidentiality is a respected part of psychology's code of ethics. Psychologists understand that for people to feel comfortable talking about private and revealing info, they need a safe space to talk without fear. Psychologists take your privacy very seriously.
- Straight from the website: Laws are also in place to protect your privacy. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) contains a privacy rule that creates national standards to protect individuals' medical records and personal health info. The HIPAA Privacy Rule is designed to be a minimum level of protection. Some states have even stricter laws in place to protect your personal health information. You can contact your state's board of psychology to find out its laws and protections.
- Privacy is your right as a patient or client. If you choose to tell your friends or family that you're seeing a psychologist, you are free to do so. How much info you decide to share is up to you. Psychologists are ethically bound to protect your privacy regardless of what information you choose to share with others.
Source 2: HIPAA Privacy Rule and Sharing Information Related to Mental Health
SUMMARY
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule provides consumers with important privacy rights and protections with respect to their health information, including important controls over how their health information is used and disclosed by health plans and health care providers. Making sure there are strong privacy protections is crucial to maintaining individuals' trust in their health care and their willingness to obtain needed health care services. At the same time, the Privacy Rule recognizes circumstances arise where health information may need to be shared to ensure the patient receives the best treatment and for other important purposes, such as for the health and safety of the patient or others.
Generally, the privacy rule applies uniformly to all protected health information, without regard to the type of information. One exception to this general rule is for psychotherapy notes, which receive special protections. The privacy rule defines psychotherapy notes as notes recorded by a health care provider who is a mental health professional documenting or analyzing the contents of a conversation during a private counseling session. Psychotherapy notes also do not include any information that is maintained in a patient's medical record. Therefore, with few exceptions, the Privacy Rule requires a covered entity to obtain a patient’s authorization prior to a disclosure of psychotherapy notes for any reason, including a disclosure for treatment purposes to a health care provider other than the originator of the notes.
One important part of the rule: The rule permits a health care provider, when a patient is not present or is unable to agree or object to a disclosure due to incapacity or emergency circumstances, to determine whether disclosing a patient's information to the patient's family, friends, or other persons involved in the patient's care or payment for care, is in the best interests of the patient.
- So long as the patient does not object, HIPAA allows the provider to share or discuss a patient’s mental health information with the patient’s family members.
Source 3: Mental Health: Overcoming the stigma of mental illness
SUMMARY
Stigma is when someone views you in a negative way because you have a distinguishing characteristic or personal trait that's though to be, or actually is, a disadvantage (a negative stereotype). Unfortuantely, negative attitudes and beliefs toward people who have a mental health condition are common. Some of the harmful effects of stigma can include reluctance to seek help or treatment. Others' judgement almost always stem from a lack of understanding rather than information based on facts. "Learning to accept your condition and recognize what you need to do to treat it, seeking support, and helping educate others can make a big difference." Some ways to deal with stigma include: getting treatment, not letting stigma create self-doubt/shame, not isolating yourself, getting help, and also speaking out against stigma.
OVERALL CONCLUSIONS:
Bolded: Delete
Underline: Keep but see comments below
Proposed Outline for the new response:
I. Addressing why some people do not want to seek counseling - I.e. stigmas and how to deal with them
II. Within counseling, the confidentiality and privacy that comes along with HIPAA regulations
III. Other resources aside from college counseling
IV. Encourage the user to seek help because that is most important
Dear Reader,
Going to see a counselor should help decrease your stress — not contribute to it. Fortunately, there are many ways that you can access the counseling service , whether it is scheduling an appointment by phone, or seeking out another resource. Remember, you’re not alone; mental and emotional stressors are some of the most common concerns that college students face. Don’t be afraid to reach out for help!
- I think more needs to be said about stigmas in the first paragraph. A good question to link out or directly take information from is: http://goaskalice.columbia.edu/answered-questions/college-students-and-…
- This related Q&A also can serve as an informative link since it talks about how self-stigma can cause reluctance to seek help or treatment.
- Essentially, I think we should include something along the lines of: "Though the term “college students” tends to be associated with young adults, it actually represents a wide range of age, race, gender, and socio-economic class. As such, college students come from different life experiences, identify with different cultures, and live by different sets of norms. So, it’s easy to see that they would have different beliefs and approaches to help-seeking behaviors (such as seeking counseling)." + "Overall stigma surrounding mental health and seeking help for it remains a major barrier to accessing and using mental health services."
- After addressing stigmas and how debilitating they can be, I would include this piece of information from source 3: "Others' judgement almost always stem from a lack of understanding rather than information based on facts."
- I would then add in a positive twist on it: "Learning to accept your condition and recognize what you need to do to treat it, seeking support, and helping educate others can make a big difference." (Source 3)
I would add in a new paragraph after the first paragraph about the confidentiality and privacy of counseling. Most of it is found in http://goaskalice.columbia.edu/answered-questions/paranoid-about-counse….
- Essentially this paragraph should address HIPAA rules: "Overall, the privacy and confidentiality of mental health or medical information is protected by state and federal laws and regulations. These laws are designed to protect how personal information is shared, maintain a person’s trust in their health care provider, and encourage them to seek care when necessary."
- I would directly link out to the question if they want to find out more about the specifics of HIPAA policies.
If the presence of this other student in the counseling office is a concern, you may want to call or email the counselors directly to schedule an appointment when the other student is not working in the office. Perhaps you can schedule a phone counseling session if that’s more comfortable for you. Columbia students can get in touch with a counselor at Counseling and Psychological Services by calling (212) 854-2878.
- I think we want to remove the assumption that this individual is a Columbia student. Other than that, I think this is a good thing to include since it directly answers the users' concerns. Although this is a good thing to include, I think it would better serve as reflective questions as a conclusion for this response.
Alternatively, you may be able to seek counseling through a different resource. Some colleges offer peer counseling services where you can call in anonymously or chat online with a peer counselor. Columbia students can access anonymous peer counseling by calling 212-854-7777. If your school doesn’t have its own peer counseling program, perhaps you can contact a similar program at another institution to see if they can help you.
There are also free clinics located in most major cities where they offer fairly comprehensive health services, usually including counseling as well. You may want to search online for free counseling in your area, or perhaps your school’s counseling office could provide you with more information on local resources.
- This can all be put in one paragraph about outside resources. See above.
Whether you decide to make the appointment at your school’s counseling center, or pursue other avenues of help, it is important to not deny yourself the opportunity to seek support. Remember, you’re definitely not alone in your desire to seek help.
- Good conclusion to wrap everything up. It emphasizes the importance of seeking out help. Perhaps, the final conclusion might benefit from reflective questions such as: Have you tried asking the counseling office to close the door? Have you tried to set up a meeting directly with a counselor?
Notes on research: For the most part we have answered this question spread out amongst a few other Q&As (all in related questions). Ultimately, I think the current response is perfect but more needs to be added about confidentiality and dealing with stigmas.