Mental Health Practice Question

[dingdong28]

Please forgive my ignorance since I'm not a mental health therapist (maybe an aspiring one? - will discuss privately). Is there a model for therapy/psychology services similar to the direct primary care model for primary care physicians?

Direct Primary Care

Innovative primary care model being embraced by patients, physicians, employers, payers and policymakers across the United States

www.dpcare.org

Direct Primary Care

Read the AAFP's policy statement on direct primary care.

www.aafp.org

Direct Primary Care

Family physicians can learn about the direct primary care (DPC) model, which provides a meaningful alternative to fee-for-service insurance billing.

www.aafp.org

I'm unfamiliar how the business model works for therapy since I've only seen a therapist a handful of times in my life and have been through school or the military. Is this a similar practice for therapists already or is there something better in existence? As an example: You have 50 clients that pay you a monthly subscription of $50/month. You can provide them with 1 session every 2 weeks, in addition to whatever else they may need when not at your office. Hopefully this makes sense; of course you can move the numbers in either direction how you see fit.

I'm genuinely interested in your responses. Thank you.

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[foreverbull]

No, glancing at your document and what you're saying, my understanding is that this does not exist in mental health care.

Each therapist decides their own fees and whether to get paneled on insurances or not (unless they work in community mental health or have an employer who decides pay/fees for them). Many therapists take insurance and also charge full fee for those who can pay out of pocket without insurance. Some therapists charge a sliding scale for cash for folks who can't afford to pay full fee, but it's always per service, not per month.

This may occur with those therapy-texting services, though, but I don't know anyone who is involved with that (texting as a form of therapy is ethically questionable for many reasons).

There is no widespread model for concierge/direct care/subscriptions for therapy that I am aware of as a private practitioner.

 

[biomom]

I’m not sure. There are therapists who work in primary care clinics. We have a concierge clic with therapists.

 

[foreverbull]

I’m not sure. There are therapists who work in primary care clinics. We have a concierge clic with therapists.

I will clarify further. The person asked if there was a model that was widespread. I said no. Could there be a few fringe concierge clinics for medical care that include therapists? Yes, it is possible. In my 9 years of practice in multiple states/settings and interacting with many therapists, I’ve never met a single psychologist or therapist who has ever done this, though, so it is clearly not widespread or common at all.

 

[Lukewarm Counselor]

No, glancing at your document and what you're saying, my understanding is that this does not exist in mental health care.

Each therapist decides their own fees and whether to get paneled on insurances or not (unless they work in community mental health or have an employer who decides pay/fees for them). Many therapists take insurance and also charge full fee for those who can pay out of pocket without insurance. Some therapists charge a sliding scale for cash for folks who can't afford to pay full fee, but it's always per service, not per month.

This may occur with those therapy-texting services, though, but I don't know anyone who is involved with that (texting as a form of therapy is ethically questionable for many reasons).

There is no widespread model for concierge/direct care/subscriptions for therapy that I am aware of as a private practitioner.

texting as a form of therapy is ethically questionable for many reasons

Agreed X 1 Million!!!