<p><b>Intake Assessment</b></p><p><span>The first meeting the clinician has with a client may start with the moment they answer the phone or respond to an email from the inquiring patient or client (if you are a licensed clinician, the term 'patient' is correct for the population you treat; if you are not a license clinician, 'client' is the more appropriate term). While this first meeting may seem inconsequential, it sets the stage for the future initial consultation, or intake session. It is important to gather all basic information at this stage, including the patients contact information (email and / or phone), their name, and whether they desire to use insurance or cash pay.&nbsp;</span></p><p>There are many online systems that make this type of management possible, and allows for a growing practice. A few systems are:&nbsp;<span style="font-size: 1rem;">Jane, Practice Fusion, Care Cloud, Centricity and Medisoft (2022). Before you start an independent practice, research which system best suits your needs.&nbsp;</span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;"><img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/patient%20and%20therapist.jpeg" alt="therapist" width="500" height="334" class="atto_image_button_middle"></span></p><p><span style="font-size: 1rem;">One of the most important pieces for any clinician or neurotherapist to keep at the forefront of their mind is their capacity to treat the patient </span><u style="font-size: 1rem;">according to their clinical license or lack thereof.&nbsp;</u><span style="font-size: 1rem;">&nbsp;If the neurotherapist does not have a clinical license, their role is limited to stress reduction and peak performance. They are not allowed to treat psychopathologies (like mood disorders, psychological disorders, or physical issues). If you do not have a clinical license (as an LMFT, LSCW, Chiropractor, RN, psychologist, MD, etc.) it is paramount that you refer out any patient presenting with a legitimate mental (or physical) health condition.&nbsp;</span><br></p><p><b>Initial Consultation</b></p><p><span>The initial consultation is the first&nbsp; in-person meeting between a neurotherapist and their patient. During this meeting, much about the patient should be covered, including their medical history, any medications they are taking, education to date, their family history, emergency contact info, drug and alcohol use (recreational and other), job, relationship (married, single, etc.), if they have&nbsp; children, significant life events their history of developmental trauma (i.e. was their any abuse or neglect or tumultuous home environment while under age 18) and most importantly, the reason they are seeking your help at the moment.&nbsp; All of this information ought to be written down (usually by the patient) in their intake forms, but also discussed in person with the clinician.&nbsp;</span></p><p><span><b>Forms</b></span></p><p><img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/Intake%20form.png" alt="INtake form" width="500" height="620" class="img-responsive atto_image_button_middle"></p><p>Of most important forms is that wherein the patient consents to HIPAA. This stands for The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, and is<span>&nbsp;<span style="">a federal law that required the creation of national standards to protect sensitive patient health information from being disclosed without the patient's consent or knowledge</span>. Some other important forms are: insurance consent forms, fee consent forms, QEEG consent forms, and an informed consent form for the types of neurotherapy done at the location.&nbsp;</span></p><p><span><b>Additional Forms</b></span></p><p><span><span>There are times when additional forms are necessary. Some other forms clinicians may want to consider incorporating into their practice (depending upon individual patient need) are:</span></span></p><p></p><ul><li><span><span><u>Assessment of progress</u> (where a patient ranks their assessment of their improvement throughout the course of treatment)</span></span></li><li><span><span><u>Release of information</u> form (in case the parents of the 18+ year old patient want information, or the patient wants you to share information with another physician / health care practitioner)</span></span></li><li><span><span><u>GAD 7</u> (depression assessment), good for ongoing assessment</span></span></li><li><span><span><u>PHQ - 9 </u>(anxiety assessment), good for ongoing assessment</span></span></li><li><span><span><u>Insurance forms </u>(if the patient is paying insurance, its wise to have them sign something acknowledging financial responsibility should their insurance fall through)</span></span></li><li><u style="font-size: 1rem;">Credit Card Information form</u><span style="font-size: 1rem;"> (in case you want to have their card on file to bill for ongoing sessions</span></li><li><u style="font-size: 1rem;">Suicide Prevention Contract</u><span style="font-size: 1rem;"> (this is to be used only if the patient is presenting with suicidal ideation or desirousness.&nbsp; These contracts usually cover steps to take in case suicide feels dangerously close, including hotlines to call, therapists number and other emergency plans)</span></li><li><u style="font-size: 1rem;">Protocol Progress Sheets</u><span style="font-size: 1rem;"> (this is an in-house form for the patient's folder, documenting their progress with each protocol used)</span></li><li><u style="font-size: 1rem;">Seizure Checklist</u></li><li><u style="font-size: 1rem;">Sleep Inventory</u></li></ul><p></p><p><b>Pre and Post Treatment Assessment</b></p><p><span>Most clinicians in the neurotherapy realm take assessments of their patients' brain data. This is usually in the form of EEG, which is quantified for ease of interpretation and analysis. Here are some before and after images--often the quantitative data can be quite compelling.&nbsp;</span></p><p><span><img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/bipolar%20befre%20and%20after.png" alt="bipola berofre and after" width="700" height="372" class="img-responsive atto_image_button_left"><br></span></p><p><span><img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/Acute%20Stress%20Disorder%20before%20and%20after.png" alt="acute stress disorder" width="700" height="495" class="img-responsive atto_image_button_left"><br></span></p><p><span><img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/Vascular%20Dementia.png" alt="Vascular Dementia" width="700" height="554" class="img-responsive atto_image_button_left"><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span>Some clinicians use Event Related Potentials (ERPs) to determine reaction times. This is a more advanced form of computational neuroanalysis and those who subscribe to is say they cannot imagine working without them.</span></p><p><span><img src="@@PLUGINFILE@@/ERP%20before%20and%20after%20%281%29.png" alt="ERP before and after" width="600" height="572" class="img-responsive atto_image_button_left"><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span><br></span></p><p><span>The final type of before and after assessments taken are of cognitive exams--some are the more well-known and formal examinations (like the MMPI, the&nbsp;WAIS-IV, and the WISC-IV, though these are administered less commonly and what is more popular in clinic are the automated tests, such as Cambridge Brain Sciences psychological exams and CNS Vital Signs.</span></p>