CLINICAL

How long will I work with each member?

This varies a lot from one member to another. In some cases, a member may stop using the service and then
later come back for more help when there is a need. If we detect that many of your clients are dissatisfied and
decide to leave your service, this may affect the number of members who are matched to you.

Documentation

BetterHelp does not require you to submit documentation. While we can’t advise you on your therapy
procedures, you will want to follow your respective licensing board’s guidelines and expectations for
documentation for your clients. Just like in offline practice, you'll want to be mindful that your documentation is
your evidence of your work.

If you would like to save notes using our platform, you can do so by composing your note in the Notes
section, which is on the left side of the screen on any respective client's page. These notes are not visible to
the client and are for your reference only.

Informed Consent

Your new clients have already agreed to BetterHelp's Terms and Conditions and can access the
company's Privacy Policy at any time.

You can find the initial form given to your client when they are matched with you under Account Settings >
Set Templates > Member information form. This is a great place to include any of your own Informed Consent
documents.

If you have a client who accidentally denied the information form, we unfortunately cannot have it sent again.
However, you can instead copy and paste the text from this form and send the text to them in a message.
Then, they can reply that they understand and agree to the form.

What about information, safety and reporting protocols?

You should always follow any applicable procedure and protocol based on regulatory requirements, ethics
code, and your professional judgment.

From your account settings panel, you can edit the "Member Information Form" which any new client will be
asked to agree and confirm before starting to work with you. You will be able to see whether the client
confirmed or declined this form as this information will show as the first message in the sessions page.

If your client declines this for any reason, you can access the template from your settings to copy/paste the
content for you to review with your client, if you would like.

When a new member starts working with a therapist, we ask them to enter their emergency contact
information including their full name, address, and phone number. If you need this information, you can ask
for it by choosing the "Member Contact Details" option from the "Help" menu. Please note that we are unable
to verify the quality and accuracy of this information.

Members are also informed that their therapist may request additional specific information about them as
required by their licensing board guidelines. It can be helpful still to provide rationale when you are asking
clients for any identifying information.
What about security?
We have taken extreme measures to make the platform safe and secure to both the therapist and the
member. We use banking-grade SSL encryption, utilize "Grade A" server protection, and we apply security
requirements consistent with HIPAA.

What about professional liability insurance?

You should always keep your own professional liability insurance as indicated by the Provider Terms and
Conditions. Additionally, therapists’ services provided through BetterHelp in accordance with the Provider
Terms and Conditions are insured under BetterHelp’s professional liability insurance with limits of $1,000,000
per occurrence and $3,000,000 annual aggregate. BetterHelp's insurance is in excess policy, meaning, it will
only kick in if the applicable claim exceeds your coverage.

Online practice
Translating your clinical skills to the fairly new world of remote therapy can prove to be challenging at times.
Here are some tips that we have learned to be helpful:

Building rapport online can look very different. Something to keep in mind is that many clients are ready to
start working on issues straight away and don’t necessarily need time to warm up to open up while behind a
screen.

 Many consumers of online therapy are searching for quick solutions, symptom relief, specific
strategies/interventions to address immediate concerns
 While some clients may benefit from a psychodynamic/analytic approach, you may want to consider
gathering some information early on from your clients about their main areas of concern and what
they want to accomplish (utilizing the Goals feature is a great way to focus in on these areas!)

Self-care

 We encourage you to be extra mindful of boundaries and establishing them gently with your clients.
The communication dynamic here is quite different from offline practice, thus you may need to take
some time to figure out what works best for you!
 Caseload size considerations: we want to remind you that a good caseload size is one where you can
feel comfortable managing your time and the tasks/due dates associated with your responsibilities on
the platform
 Managing time: If you find yourself feeling like you don’t have enough time to take care of your tasks
in addition to keeping up with your live sessions, you might want to reflect on caseload size!

Boundaries

 The importance of informing your clients of approximately when and how often to expect responses
from you will help establish your boundaries and alleviate some anxiety for your clients
 Balance: Please keep in mind that the initial phase (introduction) is generally when new clients have
the most concerns, longer messages, and may demand a bit more of your time and attention. Once
 you and your client get into a consistent swing of things, you’ll be better able to calibrate
frequency/duration of contact.

Professional Standards

 Please keep in mind that your clients can see and hear you and your surroundings during virtual
visits, and the same standard of professional behavior that would apply in any clinical/agency/office
setting are also applicable to your virtual practice.
 For example, please refrain from drinking/smoking/eating during sessions, conducting sessions from
a car, conducting sessions from a public place like a cafe, having sessions when other people (this
absolutely includes kids, and please consider that not all clients will be comfortable with pets) are
present in the same room.


Phases of Online Therapy

Assessment:
Remember! BetterHelp does not require you to submit formal evaluations or assessments to us. You are
more than welcome to conduct your own assessment in terms of gathering information that you feel you need
for your process.

Treatment Planning / Treatment:

Again, we have no formal processes here for you to submit treatment plans, but we do encourage you to
discuss and collaborate with your clients on their overall goals for online therapy. We encourage you to utilize
our Goals feature with your clients. You can read more about setting Goals in “Getting Started.”

Termination:
This is to be determined between you and your clients! When and if your client wishes to cancel their
subscription and discontinue, you can provide them with these instructions:

You can cancel future subscription payments with BetterHelp online by following these steps: login to your
account, click on the icon in the top right corner of the page, then choose "Billing Settings" from the drop-
down menu, then click "Quit therapy." You’ll know that your account has been closed when you see a
message box stating "Your subscription will not be renewed"

If your clients ask any additional questions about billing, subscription plans, or payments, please instruct them
to reach out to Member Success at contact@betterhelp.com

How does BetterHelp learn about the member experience?

There are many quantitative and qualitative ways in which we gather information about the member
experience so we can provide the best service possible. We review every member testimonial, reach out to
every new member asking for comments, keep detailed records of member feedback, and conduct many
types of research and data analysis to learn how to create the best experience for our members. Many of
these metrics are what are used for your Ratings tab on your Dashboard.