People involved in care

At Joon, we believe in fully informing our clients about their privacy and what information can be shared with others.

Therapists, doctors, and psychiatrists are bound by laws like HIPAA that protect clients' medical information. That means we cannot and will not discuss care with anyone else without permission.

Whose permission we need depends on your state and the client's age. The parent or legal guardian owns that permission until the child reaches the age of consent in their state. In some states, that is 18, but in other states, minors as young as 12 can consent to their mental health care.

Through our ‘People involved in care’ process, we help create and sign any necessary Release of Information (ROI) forms. An ROI is a legal document that specifies which parts of a client’s medical records can be shared with other healthcare providers, insurance companies, or other authorized parties. It permits the client's therapist to disclose specific information about treatment.

Teens and young adults old enough to consent to their care may still want or need others involved. That may be for simple scheduling logistics, to pay the bills, or because their parent is the insurance subscriber.

There are many ways to involve others in care, so let’s review the options and their meanings.

1. Schedule—Know about and change Joon therapy schedule

Many teens and young adults like to have their parents or guardians involved in scheduling. This makes it easier to coordinate vacations, school holidays, and other schedule exceptions.When you give someone scheduling permission, they may receive appointment reminders and can cancel or reschedule appointments on your behalf.

2. Discuss—Hear about how therapy is going overall, but not in detail

Conversations with another person would be an overview of the client’s therapy. The therapist would not share every detail of what was said. It’s typically more like a monthly summary.

In many cases, you might like the Joon therapist to talk to another person about therapy.

• Keep a parent or guardian informed about how therapy is going
• Coordinate with a psychiatrist, doctor, or other care team
• Coordinate with a counselor at school where the client is getting other kinds of support

3. Records—Get a copy of Joon therapy records

It’s common for a care provider, like a psychiatrist, doctor, or another therapist, to want a copy of your Joon therapy records. This is most often done when you’re switching from one provider to another, but it can also be a way to help coordinate care you’re receiving from multiple professionals at the same time.

Some clients also choose to give their parent or guardian access to their therapy records to coordinate care on their behalf. If the client is below the age of mental health care consent in their state, then the parent automatically has this access.

4. Discuss care given by someone outside of Joon

When a client has received mental health support from others, including a school or family doctor, they may want the Joon therapist to talk with those providers.

This permission allows an outside care provider to give the Joon therapist an overview of the care provided but not to provide detailed records.

5. Get records of care given by someone outside of Joon

Like the above, this is a way for the Joon therapist to understand past or ongoing care provided by people outside Joon. In this case, it allows complete written treatment records to be shared.

Still feeling unsure?

It’s always okay to ask your Joon therapist if you have questions about who it makes sense to involve in care. You can also text our care coordinators your ‘how-to’ questions at (415) 231-5877.

Clients should be sure to check out the Privacy section of the Joon app, too!