Informed Consent for Telehealth

Informed Consent for Telehealth

While counseling services are typically provided onsite in the Health and Wellness Services office, telehealth appointments can be made available and will be conducted during normal business hours.

Due to licensure requirements established by the Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board, telehealth services are limited to clients located in the state of Kansas at the time of the counseling appointment. Consultations and referrals for FHSU Online students residing outside of the state of Kansas are available by contacting our office. Online students can also get support by taking advantage of our Mental Health Resources for FHSU Online Students.

If you are participating in telehealth services, please carefully read the information below which focuses on participating in counseling using the phone or the Internet.

Benefits and Risks of Telehealth
 
Telehealth refers to providing counseling services remotely using telecommunication technologies such as video conferencing or telephone. One of the benefits of telehealth is that the client and counselor can engage in services without being in the same physical location. This can be helpful in ensuring continuity of care. Telehealth, however, requires technical awareness on both parties to be helpful. Although there are benefits of telehealth, there are some differences between in-person counseling and telehealth as well as some risks. For example:

• Risks to confidentiality: Telehealth sessions take place outside of the counselor’s private office so there is potential for other people to overhear your conversations if you are not in a private place during the session. Our counselors will take reasonable steps to ensure your privacy. It is important for you to make sure you find a private place for the session where you will not be interrupted. It is also important for you to protect the privacy of the session on your cell phone or other device. You should participate in counseling only while in a room or area where other people are not present and cannot overhear the conversation.
• Issues related to technology: There are many ways that technology issues might impact telehealth. For example, technology may stop working during a session, other people might be able to get access to your private conversation, or stored data could be accessed by unauthorized people or companies.
• Crisis management and intervention: For immediate support outside of your scheduled appointment, we encourage you to call our office to speak with a counselor.
• Efficacy: Most research shows that telehealth is about as effective as in-person counseling. However, there is a risk of misunderstanding one another when communication lacks visual or auditory cues.

Electronic Communications

You will decide with your counselor which type of telehealth service to use—either phone or a HIPAA compliant video platform. You may need to have certain computer or cell phone systems to use telehealth services. You are solely responsible for any cost to you in obtaining necessary equipment, accessories, or software to take part in telehealth.
 
Confidentiality

Health and Wellness Services has the legal and ethical responsibility to make our best efforts to protect all communications that are a part of our telehealth. However, the nature of electronic communication technologies is such that we cannot guarantee that our communications will be kept confidential or that other people may not gain access to our communications. Health and Wellness Services uses updated encryption methods, firewalls, and back-up systems to help keep your information private, but there is a risk that our electronic communications may be compromised, unsecured, or accessed by others. You should also take reasonable steps to ensure the security of our communications (for example, only using secure networks for telehealth sessions and have passwords to protect the device you use for telehealth).
 
The extent of confidentiality and the exceptions to confidentiality that are outlined in the Health and Wellness Services Informed Consent still apply in telehealth. Please speak with your counselor about exceptions to confidentiality.
 
Emergencies and Technology

Assessing and evaluating threats and other emergencies can be more difficult when conducting telehealth than in traditional in-person counseling. To address some of these difficulties, your counselor may create an emergency plan before engaging in telehealth services. You will need to provide an emergency contact in case of a disruption or technological connection failure. Your counselor will try to reconnect with you, do not contact them.
 
If the session is interrupted and you are not having an emergency, disconnect from the session and your counselor will wait two (2) minutes and then re-contact you using the telehealth platform on which was agreed upon to conduct counseling. If you do not receive a call back within two (2) minutes, call our office at (785) 628-4401 and leave a message. Your counselor will then call you back.