What are outpatient services?

[Mex]

I recently went to a psychologist of some sort to screen for depression. I'm 16 and he asked a bunch of questions getting to know me and such, and one of his questions was do you use drugs or alcohol?
Now since I had doctor patient confidentiality I told him I smoked twice a week (a slight fib, more like twice a day), and drank maybe once a month.
That was Monday, today is Saturday and I have recieved a letter in the mail from Health Integrated, that says my psychologist's name has requested outpatient services.

"Determination:
The Plan has determined that the propposed outpatient behavioral health or substance abuse service is medically necessary, and meets committee approved criteria, policy and/or procedure related to your medical condition. Authorization of additional visits will require submission of an Outpatient Treatment Review (OTR) form."

Does this mean that he wants me to get help for substance abuse and won't see me again until I submit a form to him that proves I went to get help for my "substance abuse?"
If so then this is a load of bullcrap and theres no way I'm going back to this moron.

Mex Reviewed by Mex on 07-28-2007. What are outpatient services? I recently went to a psychologist of some sort to screen for depression. I'm 16 and he asked a bunch of questions getting to know me and such, and one of his questions was do you use drugs or alcohol? Now since I had doctor patient confidentiality I told him I smoked twice a week (a slight fib, more like twice a day), and drank maybe once a month. That was Monday, today is Saturday and I have recieved a letter in the mail from Health Integrated, that says my psychologist's name has requested Rating: 5

[thcbongman]

Outpatient means any doctor visit that doesn't require you to be hospitalized.

Although I find that a bit weird. You usually have to be technically hospitalized in order to qualify for outpatient services.

[Mex]

But what does this mean then? It's so confusing.

[birdgirl73]

You usually have to be technically hospitalized in order to qualify for outpatient services.

Naw, hun, especially not for psych care. It just means he qualifies for outpatient care--no hospitalization, nothing requiring more than regular followup by a clinician of some kind and/or medications that can be administered that way. If he required surgery or some other medical treatment such as chemo and qualified for outpatient care, it'd simply mean his condition was simple enough that he didn't need that done while admitted to a facility. So in other words, he needs the least aggressive, most lightly monitored (and least-expensive) approach to care.

This is good news for you, Mex. It means they don't think you're in danger of suicide or crisis and that you can easily be followed and cared for while living outside a hospital or residential treatment facility and just going to appointments like a regular, free person. It means you've been approved for care in the area of behavioral health/substance abuse (those two are considered similar modes of care and so they nearly always travel together in the same insurance-related paragraph, even if you're just seeking behavioral health care). I don't think you have anything to worry about.

Prepare yourself to be prodded a bit further about your cannabis use, however. Not because they necessarily think it's evil or dangerous or that it means you need treatment for substance abuse specifically. But because they're looking at your mental state, self-medication, etc. If they're evaluating you for depression, it's a valid topic to ask about and see how it's affecting you. They're just doing that to see where you stand emotionally. That is, if you're there with a complaint of depression and you're using weed twice a day, that might be significant if it's helping alleviate depression for you or if you're using it to try to help lift yourself out of a depressive state. Try not to get all defensive if they delve into that. It's their job to do that. And if they suggest a break or suggest other medications, try to keep you mind open to those ideas just in case they might be beneficial for you.

[Matt the Funk]

Out patient for me was basically instead of living in the psychward, you go there for a few hours everyday, not actually live there. You are a patient, but you still get to go home and shit.