Privacy Policy and HIPAA Information

Scope of Practice I, Dr. J Marshall Jenkins, am a licensed psychologist in Georgia with a doctorate in Counseling Psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Based on my training and experience, I provide diagnosis and psychotherapy to adults and late adolescents in individual, group, couples, and family therapy. At this time, I limit my practice to psychotherapy; thus, I elect not to administer extensive psychological testing and reports, including documentation to support disabilities and accommodations (e. g. , emotional support animals). Please feel free to ask any questions about my skills, values, or spiritual perspective.

Goal and Process – My goal is to listen to you with empathy and help you to develop the perspective and skills you need to deal with your concerns. I am your resource, but your success is your responsibility and achievement. Ultimately, psychotherapy helps most people feel significantly better, but many clients must face difficult realities and feelings in the process. Some people do not benefit. If either of us decides that you need additional or alternative resources, I will assist as best I can.

Confidentiality and Privacy – The information you share with me is confidential. However, if we agree that it would be in your best interest to share information from our sessions with another resource person, I will do so only with your written permission. If I seek consultation from another mental health professional, your identity will be withheld. By law, mental health professionals must report information from patient records to the appropriate persons or agencies under the following rare conditions:

  1. The patient presents a clear and imminent threat to physically harm himself/herself or someone else.
  2. The patient reports the abuse of a minor (under age 18), elder, or disabled adult.
  3. A court-ordered subpoena requires release of records or testimony in court.
  4. The Georgia Board of Psychological Examiners makes an inquiry regarding services to you.
  5. If you file a worker’s compensation claim, and your therapy is related to the claim, your therapist must, upon appropriate request, furnish requested information.

As required by federal law, I will provide you with a detailed written notice of my policies and practices to protect the privacy of your health information.

Fees – You are expected to pay for services rendered at the conclusion of each session. If you use insurance, your company will set the allowable rate, which is typically well below my standard fee, at rates depending on the company and plan. Standard fee for counseling services is $165. 00 per 45-50 minute sessions, $220 for 60 minute sessions and $220 per initial intake (first meeting). Brief professional services are billed to you (not insurance) at $50 for 15 minutes, or any part thereof, including telephone conversations and correspondence on your behalf in excess of 10 minutes.

For any services related to litigation, defense or other court-related or case-related activities, fees will be assessed at $500 per hour, or any part thereof; a $1500 deposit is required before commencement of such services which include interviews, evaluations, research, reports, correspondence, testimony, communication with attorneys, travel and on-site time.

Fees for other services will be presented as needed. All fees are subject to change. If a third-party payer requires that I file claims, I will, if it can be done with reasonable efficiency. Upon your payer’s request, I will provide the minimum information necessary for appropriate accountability.

Cancellations – Cancellations must be made at least 24 hours in advance. One late cancellation or no show may be waived if we both agree that you were unable to attend due to circumstances beyond your control. Otherwise, you will be charged $110. Insurance companies do not provide reimbursement for cancelled or missed sessions. Please bear in mind that your appointment hour is reserved solely for you; meanwhile, others may have been served sooner if it were known that you would not attend.

Making Appointments – All appointments are arranged directly with me. If I am not available to come to the phone when you call to make an appointment or reschedule one, please leave your name, phone number, date and time that you called. I will call you back as soon as possible. For confidentiality purposes, you need not indicate the reason you called. If I leave a message with you regarding scheduling, I may make other arrangements if you do not respond in a timely manner.

Emergency – In the event of an extremely urgent need over the weekend or after 5:00 p. m. on weekdays, call 706-766-1937. I will respond as quickly as possible. Emergency services will be billed as a brief professional service (see Fees). However, I cannot guarantee an immediate response. If I cannot respond within a satisfactory timeframe or if I am away, you may call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline (800-783-2433) or the Emergency Room at Floyd Medical Center (706-802-2040). If you need emergency assistance between 8:00 a. m. and 5 p. m. on a weekday when I am on vacation, out of town, or ill, you may call Floyd Behavioral Health (706-509-3500) or Highland Rivers Behavioral Health Services (706-802-5151).

Teletherapy Services – Teletherapy can enable many patients to continue effective services when presence on-site is not feasible or safe, like during a pandemic. Teletherapy is available except to the following:

  • Persons located out-of-state. A Psychologist can only practice within the geographical jurisdiction of their license (Georgia).
  • Persons who cannot ensure a private, confidential and reasonably distraction-free environment during the conversation.
  • Persons under 18 or whose parents do not consent to teletherapy.
  • Persons whose needs or circumstances I deem inappropriate for teletherapy. I will recommend alternative services to them.

If you are in a life-threatening emergency, call 911 or the National Suicide Prevention Hotline (800-783-2433). Since risk may not be clear until a teletherapy session is underway, you must provide phone numbers of at least one trusted person and the closest hospital Emergency Room with psychiatric screening services on the front page under “Emergency Contact Info.”  You must promptly inform me of updated information.

Except in extreme circumstances (below), a HIPAA-compliant video-conferencing platform will ensure privacy and confidentiality. I will explain how to use it. Webcams or smartphones will be used via secure Internet connections, not public/free Wi-Fi. You will need to provide a phone number in case of a lost connection.

Less secure media may be utilized under emergency authorization by appropriate authorities (e. g. , OCR, DHHS), crisis, or brief calls for checking in or for routine business, like scheduling or billing. Communications will not be recorded without both therapist and patient permission, and I will work in a private, reasonably distraction-free space.