Initial Phone Consultation

Before you schedule your first appointment, I invite you to call me for a free 30 minute phone consultation. During the consultation, you will have the opportunity to get to know me and I can assess whether or not I believe that I can be of service to you and your family. In the event that we are not a good fit, then I will be happy to provide you with referrals to other family therapists in the area.

Appointments

I offer appointments in the late morning, afternoon and in the evening as late as 8:00PM. In addition, I offer appointments on Saturdays.  Appointments can vary in length between 55 and 110 minutes depending on the arrangements that we make. I will offer you the same appointment time each week whenever possible. In the case of a crisis, I will attempt to schedule an appointment for you as soon as possible.

First Appointment

There is a short New Client Information Form and that you and your teenager must complete together prior to our first session, so please arrive 15 minutes early for your appointment. (If time permits, I will mail, fax or e-mail a copy of the form to you so that you can and your partner can complete it at home). It is common to be nervous at your first appointment and I will do everything that I can to help you and your son or daughter feel comfortable. We will spend a few minutes discussing my office policies, as well as confidentiality. After that we can begin to explore the areas of concern in your family.

The initial session is considered an assessment and there is no special preparation required. In addition, you are not under any commitment to begin a series of sessions. We will spend the first session discussing your concerns, goals and expectations. This will also be an opportunity to see if we are a good fit and I will also answer any questions that you may have. We will also determine how often we should meet and who should attend each session.  At the end of the session you can choose to schedule another session or take some time to think it over.

Measuring Results

At various points during the course of therapy we will review our progress toward the mutually agreed upon goals. I may adjust our focus or treatment approach depending on the situation. In addition, each week I will ask that those who are present to complete a four question rating scale to monitor how well each of you are doing. This will give you the opportunity to give me consistent feedback and will allow us to track changes over time.

This information is also used so that I can systematically track the outcomes of each of my clients and families and allows me to be a more effective therapist.  Most teens/families will see positive changes early in therapy and if after the 6th or 7th session we have not made any progress, we will consider shifting the therapy in some way. Finally, once you are satisfied and your goals have been met, we can share in the joy of your success.

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Jim Viccaro, M.S., M.F.T.
Life Pathways Therapy Solutions
Phone:(562) 286-9152 E-mail: jim@life-pathways.com