New Patients

Mea ma’i

Planning Your Visit

How behavioral health professionals can help

We empower people to be more prepared, confident and hopeful when facing distressful life situations. We achieve this by clearing up the confusion involved in overwhelming situations while focusing on a process of creating tolerable, adaptive, and positive changes. In creating progress, efforts are made to modify thinking, behavior, emotion and physiological response. Coordinated behavioral health practices provide the basis of knowledge and skill necessary to create encouraging and meaningful health changes.

How do I choose a clinician and how do I make appointments?

Our California licensed clinicians are extensively trained and credentialed in specialized treatment modalities for adults, children, adolescents, families, and couples. Choosing the right clinician is key in successful treatment and relies on building a good relationship between the clinician and patient. In some cases, it may take time and effort to find and establish ‘the right’ clinician, however, once established the comfort and at ease the relationship can foster an experience of a healthier and more productive life.

A new patient may seek out a particular clinician based on a recommendation from a primary care physician, healthcare professional, family, friend or acquaintance. In other instances, a person may receive a more general referral to our clinic without reference to a specific clinician. In those cases, our Clinical Director can provide a recommendation to a specific clinician taking into account specific psychological issues, personality, temperament and other extenuating circumstances. You may also request a brief phone interview with the clinician of your choice after reviewing their background, credentials and expertise listed in the Our Specialists section of this website.

The easiest way to make an appointment is to call us at (619) 996-3195. If you’re calling for the first time, we’ll set up an introductory interview to assess your needs and recommend a course of action and available options.

Going to your 1st appointment

Try to arrive 30 minutes early for the first appointment to complete paperwork. You will be asked to complete some forms about yourself, your insurance coverage, informed consent, a service contract and about what you are coming in to get help with. Bring a list of all medicines you are taking for both physical and behavioral health reasons. Include name, dose, frequency, and any side effects you are experiencing. Bring along contact information for all doctors who are giving you medicine.

Bring copies of any documents you think might be helpful. These include previous psychological testing, hospital discharge summaries, or recent laboratory results. If you are bringing your child in for therapy, then bring copies of recent school progress reports and psychological testing results.

Appointments usually last 45 minutes. You and your clinician will use the first appointment to establish an initial connection and get an impression of how he/she can help you. Consider preparing notes to explain in your own words what you have been experiencing. Be as clear and thorough as you can be so that the clinician can better help you.

At the end of the first session talk with the clinician about a plan to help you. This may include continuing to meet with the clinician on a regular basis, or the clinician may refer you to another specialist who may be better able to help you. If your clinician recommends that you continue to come to appointments, you should have a clear idea of what to expect to happen during those appointments. Bring a list of any questions you have about how therapy works, including frequency, cost, and what you will need to do.

If you would like, ask if you can include your family or social support in some of the sessions.

Health Insurance Coverage

Most Insurances Accepted

Tricare
Blue Cross
Blue Shield
Coventry
United Healthcare
Pacificare
Optum Health
PPO’s

Aetna
Medicare
Magellan
Health Net (Medi-cal)
U.S. Behavioral Health Plan
United Behavioral Health (UBH)
Value Options
Multiplan

Let us verify your benefits

Financial Terms

Health Insurance

Upon verification of health plan/insurance coverage and policy limits, your insurance carrier will be billed for you and we will be paid directly by the carrier. You will be responsible for any applicable deductibles and co-payments. Co-payments must be paid at the time services are rendered; you are responsible for full payment.

Not all issues/conditions/problems, which are dealt with in the provision of psychological and behavioral medicine services, are covered by insurance companies. It is your responsibility to verify the specifics of your coverage. If your account is overdue (unpaid) and there is no written agreement on a payment plan, your clinician and alo·ha psych associates, inc. can use legal or other means (courts, collection agencies, etc.) to obtain payment.

Cash Pay

Patients are expected to pay the standard fee according to the schedule below at the beginning of each session unless other arrangements have been made. A standard fee of $75.00 will be charged for completing standard disability claim/progress forms. More complex forms and communication with insurance carriers may be subject to further charges, of which you will be notified prior to.

Telephone conversations, site visits, writing and reading of reports, consultation with other professionals, release of information, reading records, longer sessions, travel time, etc. will be charged at the rates listed below, unless indicated and agreed upon otherwise. Please notify your clinician if any problems arise during the course of therapy regarding your ability to make timely payments.

Fee Schedule*

Service Provided (Time Allotted)
Initial Individual Evaluation & Consultation (60 Minutes) — $300.00
Individual Psychotherapy (45-50 Minutes) — $200.00
Family or Conjoint Family Psychotherapy (45-50 Minutes) — $275.00
Psychological Testing (per 60 Minutes) — $200.00
Preparation of Written Psychological Report (per 60 Minutes) — $200.00
Consultation by phone (per 10 Minutes) — $50.00
Hospital/Skill Nursing Consultation (per 30 Minutes) — $200.00
Late Cancelation/No Show — $85.00
Medical disability forms/notes — $75.00

*Sliding Scale Available

Policies

Cancelled/Missed Appointments

A scheduled appointment means that a time is reserved only for you. If an appointment is missed or cancelled with less than twenty-four-hour’s notice, you will be billed $85.00. Your health plan does not cover payment for missed appointments; therefore, you are responsible for payment in full.

Treatment Process

Our services use goal directed treatment. This means that treatment goals are established after thorough assessment. All treatment is then planned with the goal(s) in mind and progress toward that goal is done in a time efficient and strategic manner. If you ever have questions about the nature of the treatment, please ask.

Confidentiality

All information disclosed within sessions and the written records pertaining to those sessions are confidential and may not be revealed to anyone by alo·ha psych associates, inc. or your clinician without your written permission except where disclosure is required by law. These exceptions are:

The patient authorizes release of information.
As necessary for continuity of care
A judge issues a court order.
There is a medical emergency.
The patient presents a physical danger to self.
The patient presents a danger to others.
Child, elder or dependent adult abuse/neglect is suspected.

It is understood that in cases 6 and 7 that your clinician is required by law to inform potential victims and legal authorities so that protective measures can be taken. If you participate in group therapy it is understood that you are not to discuss any details of the group outside of the group therapy sessions. alo·ha psych associates, inc. and your clinician follows the “minimum necessary” rule for release of information.

If you place your mental status at issue in litigation initiated by you, the defendant may have the right to obtain the psychotherapy records and/or testimony by alo·ha psych associates, inc. and/or your clinician. In couple and family therapy, or when different family members are seen individually, even over a period of time, confidentiality and privilege do not apply between the couple or among family members, unless otherwise agreed upon. alo·ha psych associates, inc. and/or your clinician will use clinical judgment when revealing such information.

alo·ha psych associates, inc. and/or your clinician will not release records to any outside party unless authorized to do so by all adult parties who were part of the family therapy, couple therapy or other treatment that involved more than one adult patient.

Minors

If you are under 18 years old, please be aware that the law may provide your parents the right to examine your treatment records. It is our policy to request that parent honor privacy between myself and the child when individual treatment is established.

Urgent/Emergency Telephone Procedures

If you need to contact us with an urgent matter, leave a message according to the instructions on the phone service and your call will be returned. There may be a charge for lengthy telephone consultations. If you need to contact your clinician between sessions, please leave a message with the clerical staff at (619) 996-3195 and your call will be returned as soon as possible. alo·ha psych associates, inc. staff checks messages a few times during the daytime only, unless your clinician is out of town.

If an emergency situation arises, indicate it clearly in your message and if you need to talk to someone right away call the 24-hour Access and Crisis Line for San Diego County: 1-888-724-7240, or the Psychiatric Emergency Response Team (PERT): 911. Please do not use e-mail or faxes for emergencies. Your clinician does not always check e-mail or faxes daily.

Patient Forms

Please print out and complete all of the required forms based on the identified adult or child patient