Get Counseling Record

How long do you keep my counseling records? The State of California requires that we keep your records for a minimum of 7 (seven) years after the end of counseling services and for minors (17 years and under), we must keep records for 7 (seven) years after the minor turns 18 (eighteen).

Records include information such as the nature, delivery, progress, and results of psychological services, and related fees. Rationale: The Ethics Code (Standard 6.01) sets forth reasons why psychologists create and maintain records.

All licensed psychologists in California must retain a patient's health service records for a minimum of seven (7) years from the patient's discharge date or seven years after a minor patient reaches the age of eighteen.

Documents:Any written, digital, audio, visual, or artistic recording of the work within the counseling relationship between counselor and client. Ethical conduct: The professional's actions, which must conform to the code of ethics developed and agreed to by other profes- sionals in the field.

Counselors provide reasonable access to records and copies of records when requested by competent clients. Counselors limit the access of clients to their records, or portions of their records, only when there is compelling evidence that such access would cause harm to the client.

Therapy notes are information recorded by a mental health professional used to aid in documenting and evaluating conversations that take place during therapy. These are the notes that a therapist writes down as you talk during your therapy session.

Documents:Any written, digital, audio, visual, or artistic recording of the work within the counseling relationship between counselor and client. Ethical conduct: The professional's actions, which must conform to the code of ethics developed and agreed to by other profes- sionals in the field.

Confidentiality includes not just the contents of therapy, but often the fact that a client is in therapy. For example, it is common that therapists will not acknowledge their clients if they run into them outside of therapy in an effort to protect client confidentiality.