Health, Wellness & Fitness - San Diego, California, United States
Technology offers the opportunity to increase client access to psychological services. We provide service for recipients limited by geographic location, medical condition, psychiatric diagnosis, financial constraint, etc. Our objective is to connect professionals with clients, delivering access to high-quality psychological services through the use of technology. Initially, psychologists make reasonable efforts to identify and learn how to access relevant and appropriate emergency resources in the client's local area, such as emergency response contacts (e.g., emergency telephone numbers, hospital admissions, local referral resources, clinical champion at a partner clinic where services are delivered, persona; support contact, family or friend). Therefore, before psychologists engage in providing telepsychology services, they are urged to conduct an initial assessment to determine the appropriateness of the telepsychology service to be provided for the client. Such an assessment may include the examination of the potential risks and benefits of providing telepsychology services for the client's particular needs, the multicultural and ethical issues that may arise, and a review of the most appropriate medium (video teleconference, text, e-mail, etc.) or best options available for the service delivery. Prior to providing telepsychology services, psychologists are aware of the importance of obtaining and documenting written informed consent from their clients that specifically addresses the unique concerns relevant to services offered. Psychologists both understand and inform their clients of the limits to confidentiality and the risks of possible access to or disclosure of confidential data and information that may occur during service delivery, including the risks of others gaining access to electronic communications (e.g., telephone, e-mail) between the psychologist and client. In addition, providers are cognizant of relevant jurisdictional and federal laws and regulations that govern electronic storage and transmission of client data and information, and they develop appropriate policies and procedures to comply with such directives. Psychologists strive to ensure that policies and procedures are in place to secure and control access to client information and data within information systems. Along these lines, they may encrypt confidential client data for storage or transmission and utilize other secure methods as safe hardware and software and robust passwords to protect electronically stored or transmitted data and information.