FAQSHow does the initial appointment work and how long are follow-up appointments?
The initial appointment is typically 60-90 minutes in length. To make the most of our time together, we ask you to complete the intake forms prior to our first appointment. Sometimes more than one session is required to complete a thorough assessment. As part of our initial assessment, we may also need to obtain collateral information (i.e. from schools, family, other providers, etc.). If this is the case, we will be sure to obtain written authorization from you to allow for communication with collateral sources. Our goal is to provide the best-personalized treatment plan for each of our clients. Thus, it is imperative that the entire evaluation is complete before treatment recommendations are discussed.
Follow up sessions can be from 30-60-minutes in length for our psychiatrists and 60-minutes in length for our therapists. Typically, 30-minute appointments are used for medication management, and 60-minute appointments are used to provide psychotherapy and/or manage medications. Please be aware that a 60-minute appointment consists of approximately 10-15 minutes of documentation time, and a 30-minute appointment consists of approximately 5-10 minutes of documentation time.
Do you take insurance?
Through our experience, we have found that insurance companies often place excessive restrictions on how physicians care for their clients including the amount of time spent with clients, the type of care to provide and which medications to prescribe. For these reasons we do not participate in any insurance panels at the present time.
If you choose to request reimbursement from your insurance company, you will be provided a receipt or “super bill” to submit to your health plan. Keep in mind that a request for reimbursement does not guarantee payment by insurance companies and insurance companies may choose to use the health data they have collected about you to decide future coverage eligibility and premiums.
What are your professional fees?
90 - 60 minute initial consultation: $500
50 minute therapy and/or medication management: $300
25 minute medication management: $150
Some evaluations require more than one session. Additional sessions are in 50-minute increments and will be billed at the 50-minute rate.
Payment is due at the time of service.
How do I contact the staff?
Our staff is available at 949-414-9495.
While we do our best to be accessible to all of our clients during our business hours of 9am-5pm Monday-Friday, we may not be readily available when we receive a phone call. We ask that you leave a message with a call back number and our staff will return the call as soon as possible, but no later than one business day. If there is an urgent clinical issue, please follow the prompts on our voicemail to have our covering psychiatrist paged. If there is a true medical or psychiatric emergency, we ask that you dial 911 or go to the nearest emergency room. During times of extended absence, you will be provided with contact information for a covering psychiatrist who will be available by phone, by email or in person for any clinical or urgent issues.
What are your cancellation and no-show policies?
Once an appointment is scheduled, clients are responsible for paying the full session fee unless they provide at least 2 business days of advance notice.
Do I need medications?
Emotional or thought symptoms can be a sign that the body and mind's natural homeostasis is disrupted. This can be related to a hereditary or biological vulnerability, AND / OR can be related to environmental conditions or stress. Many times the cause of the symptoms are multifactorial and therefore treatment may require a combination of approaches.
Medications can treat underlying chemical/biological changes and make it easier for a person to engage in making lifestyle changes and therapy.
If medication could be helpful for your symptoms, we will discuss various medication options for treatment. We will review what medications could be helpful, benefits, side effects, alternative therapies, drug interactions, expected length of treatment and other relevant information for any medication prescribed.
Clients are encouraged to ask questions about any medication(s) that may be prescribed to them in the course of treatment, and to look to well-validated sources for additional information, like https://www.webmd.com/
The information on this site is solely for purposes of general patient education, and may not be relied upon as a substitute for professional medical care. Consult your physician for evaluation and treatment of your specific condition.
What is a mental health emergency?
If you or someone you know is having:
Thoughts of self-harm
Thoughts of harming others
Unable to provide for basic needs (food, clothing, shelter)
This is considered a Mental Health Emergency and requires immediate evaluation.
Please call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room.
In the event of a psychiatric emergency:
Call 911
OR go to the nearest emergency room and ask to be evaluated by a physician. Local Hospitals with Emergency Psychiatric Services:
UCI: 101 The City Dr S, Orange, CA 92868 (714) 456-8008
CHOC (children and adolescents): 1201 W La Veta Ave, Orange, CA 92868 (714) 509-9095
Mission Hospital: 31872 Coast Highway, Laguna Beach (949) 499-7501
St. Joseph's Hospital: 110 West Stewart Drive, Orange (714) 771-8134
Newport Bay Hospital: 1501 East 16th Street, Newport Beach, (949) 650-9750
College Hospital: 301 Victoria St, Costa Mesa (949) 642-2734
West Anaheim Medical Center: 3033 West Orange Ave. Anaheim (714) 229-5750
Western Med Center Anaheim: 1025 South Anaheim Blvd, Anaheim, (714) 533-6220
Western Med Center Santa Ana: 1001 North Tustin Ave., Santa Ana, (714) 835-3555
CSU: 1030 West Warner Ave. Santa Ana (714) 834-6913
You can call a Crisis Hotline listed below:
OC Crisis Prevention Hotline: (877) 7-CRISIS, (877) 727-4747
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: (800) 273-TALK, (800) 273-8255
National Drug and Alcohol Abuse Hotline: (800) 662-HELP
To have a Psychiatric Emergency Response Team evaluate someone in the community, you can contact:
Psychiatric Field Crisis Team: (714) 517-6353
Orange County Centralized Assessment Team: (CAT) 866-830-6011
The information on this site is solely for purposes of general patient education, and may not be relied upon as a substitute for professional medical care. Consult your physician for evaluation and treatment of your specific condition.