Telehealth

Telehealth (formerly called Telemedicine) allows therapists to provide health care services using telephones and live videoconferencing.

What you should know
In California, a therapist can provide services only to clients who are physically located in California.

Your therapist must obtain your consent (verbal or written) and must disclose the risks, limitations, and consequences of telehealth.

To ensure you receive the best care possible, at the beginning of each session, your therapist will verify your physical location (both to ensure compliance with CA law and to be able to provide appropriate information should an emergency situation arise), will ensure that telehealth is appropriate (for example, are you in a quiet and safe space?), and will utilize industry best practices for telehealth to ensure both client confidentiality and the security of the communication medium (such as ensuring the video conferencing software is HIPAA compliant).

Why you should use Telehealth
One of the many advantages of Telehealth is the time and energy you save by not driving to your therapist’s office.  No one wants to deal with traffic and unruly drivers.

Telehealth is convenient and less disruptive of your day.  If your session is 50 minutes, then you need only 50 minutes. Your pets can be in session with you.

With Telehealth, you are not limited to finding a therapist close to home.  Perhaps you wish to protect your privacy by talking to a therapist who lives 100s of miles away.  Perhaps you have a unique circumstance but there are no therapists near you who specialize in your situation.  You now have therapists in the whole state of California at your disposal.

Telehealth may seem uncomfortable at first.  However, the therapists at Affirming Therapy Center have been trained in communicating via telephone and video conferencing.

Technology has allowed us to grow and our world to shrink.  We can see our children even when they live on the other side of the globe.  We can use our phone to share a sunset with our partner who is away on a business trip.  We can look in on our pets when we are at the office.

Telehealth is another step in this universal connection with humanity.