Client Guidelines

Dublin Therapy Centre, 15 Upper Baggot St, Dublin 4. Tel:086 608 42 92. Email dublintherapy@gmail.com 

Making an Appointment:

To book an appointment simply give me a call on 086 608 42 92 (International +353 86 608 42 92) and we can try find a time to suit you. Usually appointments can be made within a few weeks although emergency sessions are often possible.  If you get my voicemail please leave my your number and let me know when is a good time to call you back.  I tend not to do therapy via email or phone calls but these can be helpful to establish contact, explore what is happening for you and agree to work together.

Assessment Form:

Before booking an appointment I will ask you to complete a client intake form. Please fill in as much detail as possible.  This form is completely confidential and will not be seen by anybody else.  Generally, it is better to have the paperwork done before meeting as this frees up time to be used more effectively to find a suitable approach for you. I can email this form to you or if you prefer you can download it HERE and complete it. Please fill it out in your own handwriting. This tends to get you to focus more on what you would like to achieve from your therapy.  You can bring it with you to your first or subsequent sessions. This form helps me to plan and review your therapy with you.

Duration of Therapy:

The minimum time I work with clients is 6 (50 minute) weekly sessions. Your therapy is then reviewed with you to monitor progress.  Reviews of the work are a 2 way process between the therapist and client. See below for more info on Reviews. Just to mention that some clients come to therapy for 6 sessions and others stay for  longer. This really depends on what is happening for the client and duration is based on the individual client's needs.

 Confidentiality:

Therapy sessions are confidential which means I cannot discuss your specific personal details with anyone unless:

-          You are in danger of causing serious harm to yourself or others. (Wishing them harm is probably ok! – just don’t act on it).

-          You are in danger of being seriously harmed by others.

-          In any circumstances (e.g. court appearances) confidentiality will not be breached before discussion with you.

 

Ethically, I choose to work with a supervisor which involves discussion around how we work but your anonymity is never compromised.

  

Appointment Times:

Please ensure you arrive on time (not before or after the agreed time) for all appointments. This is to respect your conifidentiality and to save you bumping into other clients. Client appointments are for 50 minutes at an agreed time weekly.   If you are going to be late please call to let me know on 086 608 42 92. If you are running slightly late (up to 20 minutes) we can work until the end of your usual appointment time; if you are going to be later than 20 minutes it may be best to cancel the session - Please note - cancellation fee applies - so turning up might be a better solution.

If you can't find the centre please give me a call and I can direct you to the door. The following map should be of use to you.  If you need more directions to the centre please call me on 086 608 42 92

View Dublin Therapy Centre 086 608 42 92 in a larger map

If you need to cancel a session (by calling 086 608 42 92 only - cancellations can not be made by text or email - they dont always get through!) try to give as much notice as you can. Fees will be charged where less than 24 hours notice is given.

 

In the Therapy Room:

Going to a therapist is a brave step and it can be hard to speak openly to a total stranger.  Try to be open -minded and be yourself; I warmly welcome all of your behaviours, personality traits and experiences.  This includes but is not limited to: Being sad, frightened, depressed, verbal, angry, shouting, raging, crying, aggressive, manic, anxious, stressed, chilled out, using bad language, relaxed, happy, laughing etc.  I haven’t got a complete list but basically almost anything is ok here The only major 'show-stopping' rule I have about client behaviour is No physical violence towards the Nice Therapist (though this might be tempting at times!).

 

• Please arrive alone unless agreed in advance.
• Please arrive sober and not under the influence of drugs. What you do after the session is your own business.

If anything else strikes you that needs clarification send me a mail or call me.  Thanks.

 

Other Contact Outside of Therapy:

Please refrain from sending me SMS messages, emails or calling between sessions unless by prior agreement. It is ok to send text or call if you are running late. A call is needed if you need to cancel a session.  Please note that sessions cancelled giving 24 hours notice will be charged the full fee. Generally, if I see a client in a public or social setting I refrain from engaging in conversation. Ethically boundaries are important in therapy.

 

Magic Wand Therapy:

When you come to therapy you will need to get involved.  This really needs agreement and active participation, including doing some therapeutic things outside the session and following up with the work. I cannot ‘make’ you better without your involvement.  If you come to me for therapy please be aware that you will need to take responsibility to do the work. I don’t have a magic wand.  Experience suggests if you do the work you will feel better – that is what you want isn’t it?

 

Reviewing our work together:

I am interested in the effectiveness of your therapy. So from time-to-time,  we will review the work we have done to check progress. Typically, this involves a chat together about what changes have happened for you, what learning took place and what needs to be considered in the future. I am also keen to find out what clients liked and disliked about the therapy process. Reviewing helps to keep us both on track. I encourage clients to bring in both the positive and negative aspects of their journey.

 

Psychiatric Patients:

If you are currently under the care of a psychiatrist I will need you to provide a referral from your consultant indicating that in their view you are a suitable candidate for counselling and psychotherapy.  I am happy to take general calls from psychiatrists about the kind of services I offer but I will not discuss any specific client details. Consultants tend to prefer a CBT approach and I am happy to work with that.

If you have been prescribed psycho-active medications from your GP please let me know. You might also let your Doctor know you are attending for counselling with me.  It is a good idea to keep your Doctor informed of your progress.  Again, I am happy to discuss general aspects of my counselling and psychotherapy work with doctors while respecting client confidentiality.

 

Medical Legal Claims:

To protect your confidentiality, medical legal reports will not be provided by John O'Connor or any other counsellor from Dublin Therapy Centre.  Psychotherapists are not usually qualified to write medical reports.  Courts usually require medical reports to be written by a qualified medical doctor or psychiatrist.  No client details will ever be discussed with any third party, other than professional supervision.  No communication will be entered into with solicitors etc regarding specific clients.

Fees:

The agreed fee is payable at the end of each session. Receipts can be provided at the end of each session where required.  If you need a receipt please ask before the sessions start as writing receipts for previous therapy may involve further administration costs.  Unfortunately, none of the current health insurance providers offer a refund for counselling fees.

If you wish to pay for a number of sessions in advance by cash or cheque this is fine and again a receipt will be issued. Currently Dublin Therapy Centre does not accept credit cards.

Ending the Therapy:

It might sound strange but I am constantly working to an end in therapy. It is my job to eventually get you out the door!  Therapy ends for a variety of reasons. It could be that you feel better, that the issue has passed, that you have learned how to cope with a situation etc. I feel it is important to have an 'ending' session to close off the work done together.

Needless to say, some clients will finish after a time,  others ask if they can come less frequently and some simply check in every few months. Usually, it is fine if clients need to come back to do more work. On very rare occasions I will refer a client to another therapist.

If you find yourself short of money - COME TO YOUR SESSION anyway.  It's better to continue YOUR therapy and I tend to be able to negotiate around money.

If you need more information send me a mail or give me a call.

 






John O'Connor is a qualified, experienced Counsellor and Psychotherapist working from Dublin City Centre, Ireland.  He has a Master of Science degree in Integrative Counselling and Psychotherapy from Dublin City University. In addition he has a Masters in Business Studies, specialising in Human Resource Management from University College Dublin and a Bachelors degree in Business specialising in Psychology.
 John is a full member of the Irish Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy. (IACP)
He is also trained and licensed as an NLP and IEMT Practitioner.
Contact John on info@dublintherapycentre.com or 086 608 42 92