Section 3: Administrative & General Workplace Policies
3.0 Office Space
In order to provide the most flexibility in delivering services to clients, office space is shared. Clinicians do not “own” an office space. However, all efforts are made to give clinicians the same office throughout the week. Priority for in-office scheduling is given first to full-time clinicians and is then based on seniority. At River Rock’s current location, clinicians will be primarily scheduled within one office, which will switch at the beginning of each trimester in an effort to be as equitable as possible due to varied office size and access to windows. Because space is shared, clinicians should make an effort to tidy their office once they conclude their work each day with the understanding that another clinician may be the next to utilize that space. Storage for work-related items is provided in each office. Please respect other clinicians who may be using that space when you are not in the office by keeping your space clean.
3.1 Updates to Personal Information
Keeping personal information current with the Company is critical for a variety of reasons, such as mailing and correspondence that is sent to employees’ personal addresses, and in case of emergencies.
Employees are responsible for contacting Dr. Jessica Harvath to update personal information in a timely manner. Personal status changes that may affect benefits enrollment must be reported as soon as possible, and always within 30-days.
Relevant changes in personal information include but are not limited to:
Legal name changes
Change in address (home or campus)
Change in marital status
Change in emergency contact
Change in dependents
Change in tax withholding
Change in employment status
Employees must submit the prescribed form along with any associated documentation, to update their employee records.
3.2 Personnel Files
The Company maintains a personnel file on each employee. Employees have the right to access certain information in their file upon request.
3.3 Attendance & Punctuality
General Information
In order to meet the needs of our team members, patients and the public, The Company asks that all employees reliably appear for work for their scheduled appointments. Arriving 10 minutes prior to your first scheduled appointment is recommended, and arriving at least 5 minutes prior to your first in-office appointment is required.
No-Call / No-Show
Not reporting to work and not calling to report the absence is a no-call/no-show and is a serious matter, creating increased administrative burdens and service interference. Any no-call/no-show lasting more than one day is considered job abandonment and will result in immediate termination of employment.
If the employee is unable to contact the Company for any absence, they should ask a representative (such as a family member or friend) to do so on the employee's behalf. If the employee or a representative is unable to contact the Company due to extreme circumstances (such as a medical emergency or natural disaster that prohibits the employee or their representative from contacting the Company within three days), the employee or their representative must contact the Company as soon as practical to explain the situation. In extreme circumstances, the Company will consider the explanation and its timing before determining if the voluntary resignation will be upheld.
3.4 Scheduling and Work Hours
Generally, practice hours for River Rock Behavioral Health locations are 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Evening and weekend hours are also available.
Clinicians
Each clinician agrees to a set number of available hours per week, provided such sessions are available and referred/scheduled by the Company, as well as specific days per week to work and time frames to work within. It is expected that each employee follows through on working during their agreed upon times. If at any time an employee would like to make changes to their schedule, changes can be made by speaking with their supervisor or the owner. It is recommended that these changes be submitted in writing, as well. Many times, a permanent schedule change will need to be made over the course of several weeks in order to notify clients and reschedule any recurring appointments.
Clinicians are not required to be on-call. The process for time-off includes completing the time off form as well as noting in your TherapyNotes calendar which days you will be unavailable. If you are taking off for more than one day, please be sure to make an email autoresponder stating you are unavailable from start date to end date, and for emergencies to contact 911 or go to the nearest emergency room, and if they would like to connect with someone to contact our administration at info@riverrockbehavioralhealth.com. You will also need to update your voicemail greeting with this information.
Unexcused absences and lateness are not tolerated and chronic lateness or absenteeism may be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination. Therapists are expected to arrive on time and ready to work. Best practice is to arrive 10 minutes before the first scheduled appointment to ensure clients are not locked out of the office and to allow therapist time to prepare for work. Your supervisor should be informed of any extended time off (e.g., more than two days).
3.5 Work Performance & Evaluations
Regular, ongoing communication regarding employee job performance, challenges, achievements, and goals is essential to a successful working relationship. Therefore, supervisors are strongly encouraged to discuss performance directly with their employees on a day-to-day basis. Employees should expect to regularly discuss performance, growth, and development in their role.
Satisfactory performance of job duties is expected of all employees of River Rock Behavioral Health. Poor performance may be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination. The Company may periodically review an employee’s performance in order to understand that employee’s strengths and areas for growth. Review includes, but is not limited to: performance, quality of work, attendance, skills, attitude, compliance with company policies/procedures, and teamwork/cooperation.
3.6 Performance Improvement Plans
When an employee is not consistently meeting expectations, a performance improvement plan may be put into place. A copy of the form can be found here. This plan is designed to be supportive and provide the employee with clear goals and strategies for achieving those goals. A Plan for Improvement may be designed when a supervisor believes an employee could benefit from clearer direction, including when an employee is not meeting goals for client retention, number of sessions, or is making mistakes on the job. A performance improvement plan will be written by Dr. Harvath, and will outline several steps towards improving performance or ultimately leading to termination of employment.
Please note: a performance improvement plan is not required prior to termination. Your employment remains at-will, and this policy is not intended to and does not negate your at-will employment status.
3.7 Division of Responsibilities: Therapists and Administrators
As part of a team with interconnected responsibilities, it is important to be both aware and respectful of responsibilities expected of therapists, those expected of administrators, and the occasional overlap between the two. The duties listed below are not exhaustive, but rather are meant to clarify expectations and delineate who has ultimate responsibility for specific shared duties.
All employees of River Rock Behavioral Health are expected to be professional, courteous, and helpful to all clients. If you notice someone needs help or you’re concerned that someone may not be seen or attended to, please step in, gather information, and attempt to assist with the knowledge that if it were your client, another therapist would be doing the same in your absence.
In general, administrators are responsible for:
Initial contact with potential clients, including initial collection of client information, adding clients to TherapyNotes patient portal, assigning clients to a clinician, setting up the intake session and potentially establishing initial recurring appointments based upon preferences of the clinician and client at the time of the intake consultation.
Submitting completed claims to payers for reimbursement and following up with payers with regard to submitted claims, challenging denied claims, and working with insurance companies directly.
Responding to requests for schedule changes when said requests are sent to administrators directly (e.g., phone, info@riverrockbehavioralhealth.com, in person, etc.).
Clinicians are typically responsible for:
Providing therapy services, completing any relevant clinical notes in a timely fashion, scheduling any appointments to be made after the initial intake, rescheduling clients if need be, contacting clients to reschedule in the event that the therapist will be absent or unavailable (whether planned or unplanned).
Collecting copays and late cancellation fees as well as establishing payment plans when appropriate.
Notifying clients about planned absences well in advance of absence in order to reschedule, and notifying clients as soon as is feasible in the event of an unplanned absence due to unforeseen circumstances.
3.8 Separation of Employment
We hope to enjoy a mutually successful working relationship with all team members, and understand that separation from employment may be necessary for a variety of personal and business-related reasons.
Different types of separation from employment include:
Resignation:
Due to the nature of the provision of clinical services and the need to provide a positive therapeutic transition for existing clients, therapists and clinical staff are asked to provide a minimum of 90 days notice in writing. Resigning administrative staff are asked to provide a minimum two (2) weeks advance notice, in writing, to facilitate a smooth transition out of the organization. If an employee provides less notice than requested, the employer may deem the individual to be ineligible for rehire depending on the circumstances regarding the notice given.
Employees, who are rehired following a break in service in excess of 90-days, other than an approved leave of absence, must serve a new initial introductory period, whether or not such a period was previously completed. Such employees are considered new employees from the effective date of their reemployment for all purposes, including the purposes of measuring benefits.
Job Abandonment:
Employees who fail to report to work or contact their supervisor for three (3) consecutive workdays shall be considered to have voluntarily abandoned the job without notice, effective at the end of their normal shift on the third day. The supervisor shall notify leadership at the expiration of the third workday and complete the paperwork to terminate the employee. Employees who are separated due to job abandonment are ineligible to receive accrued benefits and are ineligible for rehire.
If the employee or a representative is unable to contact the Company due to extreme circumstances (such as a medical emergency or natural disaster that prohibits the employee or their representative from contacting the company within three (3) days), the employee or their representative must contact the company as soon as practicable to explain the situation. In extreme circumstances, the employer will consider the explanation and its timing before determining if it will be upheld.
Termination:
As outlined previously in this Employee Manual, employees of the Company are employed on an at-will basis, and the Company retains the right to terminate an employee at any time.
Keeping the Company Informed After Separation:
After separating from the Company, employees should notify their supervisor if their address changes during the calendar year in which discharge occurs so that tax and other important information will be sent to the proper address.
Important Information for Therapists:
Upon separation from employment, the Company will inform clients who received services from separating clinician that they may receive services from another River Rock Behavioral Health clinician or can be given referrals to another provider in the community.
Additionally, separating clinicians will inform their patients that they may receive services from another Company clinician, follow the clinician if they are able to, or go elsewhere for such services. Clinicians must provide all three options for continuing services upon their separation so the client can make an informed choice whether they decide to remain a patient of the Company. Therapists will coordinate with their supervisor and report each of their patient’s decisions for continued care upon separation.
3.9 Return of Company Property
When employment with the Company ends, employees are expected to return all Company property clean and in good repair. This includes, but is not limited to: Company documents, phones, computers, job-related equipment, supplies, keys, and tools. In the event of missing or damaged property, the Company reserves the right to take any other lawful action necessary to recover or protect the Company’s property.
Intellectual Property
The Company retains ownership rights related to all Intellectual Property that employees create for the Company during their time of employment. This may include (this is not an all-inclusive list): blog writings, methods, ideas, concepts, research; and any/all other work created prepared, produced, authored, edited, amended, conceived, or reduced to practice by the employee individually or jointly with others during their employment with the Company. Employees who have questions about this policy should speak with Dr. Jessica Harvath.
3.10 Meal Breaks and Rest Periods
The Company strives to provide a safe and healthy work environment for every employee and understand the physical demands placed on employees in our line of work. We also aim to comply with all federal and state regulations regarding rest and meal periods.
3.12 Break Time for Nursing Mothers
The Company is committed to supporting new mothers, and will provide a reasonable amount of paid break time to accommodate an employee's need to nurse their infant or express breast milk for the employee's child up to two years of age unless state law requires additional time. The Company will make every reasonable effort to provide nursing mothers with a room or location in close proximity to their work area where the employee can be comfortable and have privacy. In order to arrange for accommodation, employees must notify their supervisor to request time to express breast milk or nurse their child under this policy.
