TS Clinical Policies

Cancellation and no show policy

At Therapy Smarts Inc, our patients are number one priority. We value your time and do our best to schedule to your needs. We take pride in the fact that we try to schedule appointments that are most convenient for our patients. Various steps are taken to ensure that you are treated promptly and efficiently when you arrive for your appointment.

In return, we ask the same consideration be given for our time and schedules. In order to keep everyone’s schedule running smoothly, it is extremely important that you keep your appointment time. Tardiness or absence for your appointment has a negative impact on the day’s schedule, and most importantly, affects your child’s progress towards goals.

The following are our policies regarding cancellation and no-shows. We take this subject seriously, because it can make the difference between whether your child succeeds in treatment or not. Usually the referring doctor and/or the therapist have prescribed a set frequency of treatment. Showing up as scheduled for these visits is important to your child’s success.

We do not hold appointments open longer than 2 weeks at a time. By week 3 we will open that time to a different family on our wait list.
We require 24 hours notice in the event of a cancellation.There will be $50.00 charge for a cancellation without proper notice (24 hours). This charge will not be covered by insurance but will have to be paid by the patient personally. Office is closed on weekend, so messages left on weekend to cancel appointment scheduled for Monday will not be received by staff in time and cancellation charge will apply.
It is the patient’s responsibility, when he or she calls in, to have an alternative time in mind that will ensure they get in the full prescribed number of treatments that week whenever possible.
The staff may exercise discretion in certain circumstances on a first “no-show” or improper cancellation. If a patient who is normally punctual has some unforeseen problem, they may choose to overlook it the first time. However, a second such instance will be billed, and after a third and fourth such instance, we have to question the patient’s commitment to the program. Uncommitted patients will be returned to their referring physician with an explanation as to why we have not been able to obtain progress. The office reserves the right to cancel all pending appointment and/ or discharge the client due to frequent cancellations/ and 3 no shows.

Three Chance Policy

Families who regularly skip or cancel their appointments will be removed from advanced schedule so that another family has the opportunity to receive therapy services. Generally, families have the opportunity to miss 3 appointments during each period of the year (6-month period). If your child is on an intensive program and attends therapy multiple times a week, we ask that you maintain an attendance of 90%.
Consistency will be tracked during each of these periods of time. If your child’s attendance drops below 90% of the recommended and decided-upon therapy appointments during a given period, you will be notified that the child’s attendance has been inconsistent and you will be moved to our flexible schedule program.
A “chance” is a missed appointment that is not made up within 2 weeks of the missed appointment, regardless of the reason the appointment was missed in the first place.
1st missed appointments without makeup will be recorded in the patient record.
2nd missed appointment without makeup will result in a letter being sent to the family, the primary care doctor, and/or the payor to inform them that future appointments are at risk due to inconsistent attendance.
3rd missed appointment without makeup will result in the client being moved from advanced schedule to flexible schedule

Families who have been moved to flexible scheduling due to inconsistent attendance will have the opportunity to move back to advanced scheduling at the end of the period (January 1st or July 1st)

Session Length Policy

At Therapy Smarts Inc, we value both providing caregiver education and allowing our therapists the time to wind down a session, transition out, and prepare for the next client. For these reasons our sessions are:

25 minutes of direct treatment followed by 5 minutes of caregiver education and therapist transition time
40 minutes of direct treatment followed by 5 minutes of caregiver education and therapist transition time
55 minutes of direct treatment followed by 5 minutes of parent education and therapist transition time For example, if your child is receiving a 30 minute session, scheduled at 8:00am, you can expect the therapist to conclude treatment activities at 8:25am.

If your child is receiving a 60 minute session, scheduled at 8:00am, you can expect the therapist to conclude treatment activities at 8:55am.

Additional Meeting Policy

At Therapy Smarts, our primary objective is to consistently deliver comprehensive and personalized healthcare services to all our patients. We are committed to meeting the unique needs of each child and providing the highest standard of care. To achieve this, our therapists and staff dedicate themselves to spending quality time with every patient and family during their appointments.

We firmly believe in the significance of collaboration and teamwork in promoting a child’s well-being. Our team is fully dedicated to working closely with all individuals involved in the child’s care. We highly value the contributions of parents, caregivers, and other professionals in the child’s life. By fostering collaboration, we can create a unified and effective approach to their healthcare journey.

While we prioritize collaboration, it is essential to maintain a balance and ensure that our therapists can focus on providing direct therapy to our patients. Therefore, any additional meetings requested outside of therapy time will be charged on a prorated basis at the hourly rate, if they exceed 10 minutes. Please note that these charges cannot be billed to insurance and will be the responsibility of the patient.

To ensure utmost efficiency and coordination, we kindly request that you provide us with at least three weeks’ advanced notice for any outside meetings or consultations. This advance notice allows our therapists to adequately prepare and coordinate meeting dates and times, ensuring that everyone involved can make the most of these interactions.

By adhering to these guidelines, we can continue to offer comprehensive, personalized, and effective healthcare services that align with our mission. We greatly appreciate your understanding and cooperation in maintaining the quality of care we provide to our patients. Together, we can make a positive impact on your child’s health and well-being.

PET Policy

Ensuring the safety of our staff during home therapy visits is of utmost importance to us. In order to maintain a secure and comfortable environment for both our therapists and your family, we kindly request that you take necessary precautions regarding your pets.

Prior to our therapists entering your home, we kindly ask that you securely lock and remove all pets from the designated treatment space. This measure helps us prevent any potential disruptions or accidents that may occur due to the presence of pets during therapy sessions.

By securing your pets away from the treatment space, we aim to create a focused and safe environment that allows our therapists to provide the highest quality care to your loved ones. This precaution not only promotes the well-being of our staff but also ensures that your family receives the undivided attention necessary for successful therapy sessions.

We appreciate your understanding and cooperation in implementing this request. Should you have any concerns or questions regarding this matter, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. We are committed to working together with you to ensure a positive and productive therapy experience.

Thank you for your attention to this matter and for entrusting us with the care of your family.

AGGRESSION & CLIENT BEHAVIOR POLICY

At Therapy Smarts Inc, we uphold the highest standards of professionalism and safety within our therapeutic environment. It is essential to understand that we operate under a strict ZERO tolerance policy regarding any form of aggressive behavior from families towards our staff. This policy is non-negotiable and is in place to protect the well-being of everyone involved in the therapeutic process.

We are sensitive to the fact that recent years have imposed extraordinary challenges on families, and we recognize that accessing necessary services can contribute to these pressures. Nonetheless, we expect all interactions with our staff—whether on the phone, during virtual sessions, or at our physical locations—to be conducted with respect and without the use of aggressive language or actions.

To foster a respectful atmosphere, we ask that you:

Speak calmly and avoid using profanity.
Engage with our staff without distractions from cell phones or other devices, ensuring they are silenced and put away during interactions.
Ensure that children are supervised when not in a therapy session.

The following behaviors are explicitly prohibited and will be met with a firm response:

Raising one’s voice or yelling.
Employing curse words, derogatory terms, or slurs of any kind.
Making threats, whether verbal, written, or implied.
Physical contact or suggesting physical harm.
Bullying tactics, such as intimidation or dismissing the expertise of our staff.
Any reference to or display of weapons.
Damaging property belonging to Therapy Smarts Inc.

Please note that this list is not exhaustive and that our staff has the discretion to determine what constitutes aggressive behavior.

Should any individual engage in aggressive conduct, Therapy Smarts Inc reserves the right to take appropriate actions. These may include

documenting the incident,
terminating a session prematurely,
asking the individual to vacate the premises,
requesting an alternative caregiver for future sessions, or
ultimately ceasing therapy services for the family involved.

We are committed to providing a secure and nurturing environment for all and appreciate your cooperation in adhering to these guidelines. Thank you for your understanding and for helping us maintain a positive and productive setting for everyone at Therapy Smarts Inc.

Stay tuned with Therapy Smarts updates and monthly Newsletters

At THERAPY SMARTS, we love what we do and we do it well!

Therapy Smarts, Inc is a pediatric clinic offering Speech therapy, Physical therapy, Occupational therapy, Psychological evaluations, Mental Health therapy, and ABA services to children of all ages and diagnoses.