Client Consent for Animal Assisted Sessions

Not every client will be interested in participating in animal assisted sessions. In these cases, you need to have a safe, quiet place for your animal to go where other people cannot access them unsupervised. Be sure to bring items to the office that are comforting to your animal and needed to maintain their emotional and physical wellness such as crates, beds, water and food dishes, toys, vaccine tags and records, treats, etc. Bringing an animal onsite also requires additional expenses as well as paperwork:

Bite/property destruction insurance for the animal
Disclose about the animal's involvement in services to clients
Disclosure about the animal's level of training if appropraite
Allowing clients to consent to animal assisted sessions
Animal health insurance if appropriate
Post a picture of your animal in the waiting room so clients know an animal is onsite

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Getting Your Name into the Community

It is never to soon to begin getting your name into the community as private practice practitioner. Think about who your ideal clients are and where they gather to shop, go for medial care, take their children for education, go for entertainment, etc. Think about professional offices that treat clients with unmet mental health care needs: doctors offices, laboratories, occupational therapists, counselors at schools and colleges etc. Then start calling and setting up short meetings with the staff to "pitch" your practice. Remember to illustrate what sets your practice apart from others. If a meeting with the staff is not possible, ask to leave information about your business at the front or hang a flyer on the wall. Follow up with the businesses several weeks later to check in. Also discuss the possibility about cross referrals with the businesses you visit. Be sure to take these items with you to the "pitch" meeting Business Cards Brochures Flyers Snacks ...

Continuing Education Credits (CEUs)

Continuing education credits are required to maintain your mental health license (LCSW, LPC, and LMFT). Consider using your mandated CEUs to specialize in the populations you want to serve. This approach will speed you along your path of specialization and allows you to complete your renewal requirements. In Wyoming, clinicians currently need 45 continuing education hours for every two years this typically renews on their birthday. There are many ways to earn the credits you need without breaking the bank. Local trainings offered by companies such as PESI Online training many offer unlimited CEUs for a fixed price Webinars National conferences Travel to trainings offered in other cities (tax deduction for private practices)

Offering Telehealth Services

Many private practitioners offer telehealth services to their clients. There are many benefits to offering this service including flexibility of scheduling, availability of therapist and client and portability. There are few things to remember when offering telehealth services: Be sure that the insurance policy will pay for telehealth sessions (as needed) Be sure that the carrier you chose for telehealth is encrypted and will offer a BAA (good options include VSee, and Zoom) Speak in a private area to assist with confidentialty Have clients sign a specific telehealth release

Mental Health Practice Support

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