Referral Information for Therapists

When this referral pathway may be relevant

Use the professional referral guide for care-planning questions alongside MVBH’s referral options for adults and professionals. This pathway may be relevant when an adult needs assessment for structured outpatient care, standard outpatient care, virtual treatment, or dual-diagnosis services. Referral does not establish admission, program fit, coverage, availability, or a start date.

Before initiating a referral, verify what the adult is seeking and whether MVBH’s basic service model could match that request. MVBH provides adult Full Day Treatment, also called PHP, Half Day Treatment, also called IOP, Outpatient care, Virtual IOP, and dual-diagnosis services.

• Confirm that the prospective participant is an adult.
• Clarify whether the person is seeking in-person or virtual care.
• Confirm where the person will physically attend treatment.
• Ask whether the person agrees to be contacted by MVBH.
• Identify the continuity question that prompted the referral.

In-person treatment is available only at 77 Elm St, Amesbury, MA 01913. Adults from New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, Rhode Island, or Connecticut may travel there for care. MVBH does not operate facilities in those states. Virtual IOP participants must be physically present in Massachusetts during every live session.

A website description cannot select a level of care. The appropriate program, if any, depends on screening or clinical assessment. Referrers should avoid presenting a particular service as predetermined.

How to protect privacy during a referral

Review the admissions process before transmitting clinical material and the adult program options that may prompt a referral. Privacy-safe coordination starts by confirming the purpose of communication, the recipient, the permitted information, and the communication method. A release may be needed, depending on the circumstances and applicable privacy requirements.

Obtain and document the adult’s authorization when required. The documentation should identify who may communicate, what information may be shared, why it may be shared, and any applicable limits. Confirm that the authorization is sufficient for the intended exchange before relying on it.

Use an appropriate secure channel for protected information. Verify the intended recipient before sending records. Avoid including sensitive clinical details in an ordinary contact form, voicemail, or email unless the channel and disclosure are appropriate for that information.

HIPAA permits some communications without authorization in limited circumstances, including certain treatment and safety situations. Those rules are fact-specific. This page does not provide legal advice or determine whether a disclosure is permitted in an individual case.

For continuity notes, record the date, purpose, parties involved, communication method, authorization status, information requested or shared, and unresolved follow-up items. Avoid documenting assumptions as decisions. Mark questions such as program fit, admission, and start date as pending until confirmed through the appropriate process.

Continuity and records questions to resolve

The overview of concerns treated in outpatient care can frame the clinical purpose of coordination, while the MVBH contact page for referral follow-up provides a practical next channel. Before sharing records, identify the exact continuity question. Examples include whether the referring therapist will remain involved, what updates are requested, and which authorization supports communication.

Continuity planning is clearer when each participant’s role is explicit. Ask whether the referring therapist expects to continue individual therapy, pause services, receive a limited update, participate in care coordination, or resume care later. These are questions for discussion, not assumptions created by making a referral.

Document requested communication rather than promising it. A useful note can state the requested recipient, purpose, preferred method, authorization status, and question awaiting confirmation. It should distinguish a request for an update from permission to disclose and from confirmation that an update will occur.

If records may help, ask MVBH what is needed and how it should be sent. Do not automatically transmit an entire chart. Consider the purpose of the request, relevant authorization, applicable privacy requirements, and whether a focused record set would answer the continuity question.

Questions about later access to records should be handled through the applicable records process. Privacy rules generally give individuals access to information in a designated record set, but psychotherapy notes are treated differently from ordinary medical records. A particular record’s availability cannot be determined on this page.