Register for Online Counselling

Registering for online counselling is quick and easy. Just follow these three steps and we're ready: 
  1. Sign up for your free Hushmail.com email address, which will ensure that all of our interactions will be secure, encrypted, and confidential.
  2. Complete and submit the Client Registration Form below.
  3. Pay for your session(s) via PayPal or email transfer.

  • Client Registration Form


  • General Client Information

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  • Emergency Contact Information

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  • Informed Consent


  • IMPORTANT!  The following document contains information about the professional services I provide, my business policies, and your rights as a client. Please review it carefully before proceeding

    ABOUT YOUR THERAPIST

    My name is Karen Lemke, and I am a Registered Psychologist in the province of Alberta (Registration #3652). I am registered with the College of Alberta Psychologists (www.cap.ab.ca). I am also a member in good standing of the Psychologists’ Association of Alberta (www.psychologistsassociation.ab.ca). 

    I completed an Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Psychology at the University of Alberta in 2006, and a Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology (M.A.C.P.) at Yorkville University in 2008. I have gained experience in a variety of mental health settings over the course of my career, including private practice, provincial and federal corrections, and forensic psychiatry.

    I completed the Certificate Program in Cybercounselling, Level 1: A 12-week web-based continuing education program sponsored by the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, the University of Toronto, and Worldwide Therapy Online Inc. in December, 2011. I completed the Certificate Program in Cybercounselling, Level 2 in December, 2012.

    THERAPY APPROACH

    I often incorporate elements of cognitive-behavioural and experiential therapies into my work, but generally, my approach to counselling is very person-centered and largely based on your individual needs as a client. I believe that you are the expert of your own experience and are capable of identifying the solutions that are going to work best for you. I see my role in the therapy relationship as that of a supporter and collaborator, walking beside you on your journey toward emotional health and well-being.

    CONFIDENTIALITY

    Confidentiality is the foundation of any client-therapist relationship, and I am ethically and legally obligated to safeguard your information and the manner in which I collect, use, and share it with others. Your information is protected by the Health Information Act of Alberta.

    It is important for you to know that there are some specific situations in which your confidential information may be disclosed to others without your informed, written consent. These include:

    1) Where there are reasonable and probable grounds to believe that your safety or the safety of another person is at risk,

    2) Where there are reasonable and probable grounds to believe that a child or vulnerable adult is in need of protection, or

    3) When information is subpoenaed by a court of law for the purposes of legal proceedings.

    In the case that your information has been or must be shared without your consent, you will be notified of this disclosure at the earliest possible opportunity. Disclosure will be limited only to what is necessary to be shared, and only to those who reasonably need to know.

    Additionally, there are some circumstances under which I may seek professional supervision or consultation in order to provide the most effective and appropriate service. Some of your personal information may be shared in this case.

    Your client records will be maintained for a minimum of 10 years, as per standards outlined by the College of Alberta Psychologists. They will be stored on a secure, encrypted server -- the same platform on which all of our secure online sessions will take place. In the event that the server becomes unavailable, hard copies will be securely stored.

    POTENTIAL RISKS AND BENEFITS

    There are benefits and risks to engaging in any form of counselling or psychotherapy. The potential risks are considered to be relatively few, but may include the following:

    - You may experience uncomfortable feelings, such as sadness, guilt, fear, anxiety, frustration, anger, or loneliness, because the process of therapy often explores some of the more difficult aspects of your life.

    - You may find yourself recalling unpleasant memories either during or in between sessions, which is a normal part of the therapy process.

    - Your relationships with the people closest to you may begin to change, as you begin to learn more about yourself and find new ways of coping and problem solving.

    - Finally, there is the risk that you may find therapy is simply not a good fit for you. 

    Despite these risks, therapy has generally been shown to benefit those who choose to engage in it. While some uncomfortable feelings may emerge in the short term, therapy often leads to a significant long-term reduction in feelings of distress, increased satisfaction in relationships, greater personal awareness and insight, and development of more effective coping skills. Therapy will require hard work and active effort on your part, both within and outside of sessions, to be maximally beneficial.

    Please feel free to bring up questions or concerns you may have at any time during the therapy process so that we can discuss them. In the case that we decide it would be best not to continue working together, I will be glad to explore other options with you, such as a referral to another mental health professional who might be more suitable to address your individual needs.

    SECURITY AND ENCRYPTION

    All therapeutic interactions will occur using the Hushmail.com email account you have been asked to create, ensuring full encryption and security. You can read more about Hushmail.com's encryption technology at: https://www.hushmail.com/about/technology/ 

    Please take care to protect your email password in order to ensure that your account will not be accessed by anyone else but you.

    The use of technology for therapeutic purposes presents some unique challenges and risks to client confidentiality. Some of these risks may include:

    - The possibility that messages may not be received,
    - The possibility that messages sent via email may be permanently recorded on certain servers, and
    - The possibility that confidentiality may be breached by unauthorized monitoring or interception of messages sent.

    These risks are greatly reduced with the use of secure encryption software. 

    ONLINE THERAPY SESSIONS

    I have been trained in delivering a particular type of online counselling, called therapeutic email. It is important to keep in mind that this is not a usual form of email communication. Recognize the depth and importance of our work together, and allow yourself plenty of time to read, think about, and respond to the therapeutic emails you receive. Since you would spend about an hour in my office if we were doing face-to-face therapy, I will encourage you to spend about the same amount of time composing your replies to me. Likewise, I will spend at least 50 minutes thoughtfully composing my therapeutic responses to you (with an additional 10 minutes allotted for administrative activities). This is how one "session" of online counselling will be defined.

    PROFESSIONAL FEES

    One online counselling session is defined as one therapeutic email response, which takes approximately 50 minutes to compose, with an additional 10 minutes allotted for administrative activities.

    Counselling fees due in advance of receiving a therapeutic email reply and may be made via PayPal or email transfer.

    Fees may be subject to change at any time. You will be notified in advance in the event of an anticipated fee increase.

    NON-THERAPEUTIC CONTACT

    You may contact me at any time via email (kmlemke.psych@hushmail.com) if you have specific questions or concerns of a non-therapeutic nature (e.g., administrative issues, fee payment, etc.). I will make every reasonable effort to respond to your message within 24 hours. You are encouraged to send such messages from your Hushmail.com account, as this will ensure that all communication will remain encrypted and confidential.

    Please note that, given the inherent delays associated with services of a strictly online nature, I cannot provide crisis counselling; nor can I guarantee I will be available at all times to respond to urgent messages. If you are currently in crisis, please contact your nearest emergency department or a Crisis Intervention Hotline in your area (links can be found on my website at kmlcounselling.com).

    YOUR RIGHTS AS A CLIENT

    You are free to withdraw your consent and terminate therapy at any time, without obligation to your psychologist.

    You have the right to considerate, safe, and respectful care.

    You have the right to ask questions about any aspect of your treatment or about your psychologist's specific training and experience.

    You have the right to expect that your psychologist will maintain a professional relationship with you at all times, and that he or she will avoid all other forms of interaction that could compromise this professional relationship, including friendship, romantic or sexual relationships, business or financial relationships, and collegial or student relationships.

    FORMAL COMPLAINTS

    You have the right to recourse if you feel that your psychologist has not properly fulfilled his or her professional and ethical obligations to you. The College of Alberta Psychologists encourages you to discuss your concerns directly with your psychologist. Often, misunderstandings can be corrected and better ways of working together can be found. If you are unable to resolve your concerns with your psychologist, you can contact the College of Alberta Psychologists directly. Staff can review your concerns with you and determine if some way can be found to resolve them. You may also file a formal complaint.

    The College of Alberta Psychologists
    #2100, 10123 - 99 Street
    Edmonton AB  T5J 3H1
    Phone: 780-424-5070 / Toll-Free: 1-800-659-0857
    E-mail: psych@cap.ab.ca
    Website: www.cap.ab.ca

    If you are dissatisfied with the therapy you are receiving, I hope that you will feel comfortable talking with me about your concerns so that we can work together to resolve them. Your concerns will be taken seriously and handled with the utmost care and respect. 


  • Terms & Conditions of Service


  • HONEST REPRESENTATION OF IDENTITY

    You agree to honestly represent your identity and personal information in all communications with KML Counselling & Psychological Services. You agree that you will not claim to be anyone other than yourself. Role-playing will be acceptable only if and when your therapist suggests it as a part of the online therapy process. 

    LIMITATION ON DUTY TO REPORT LIFE-THREATENING SITUATIONS

    You are urged to keep your contact information, including address, telephone number, and e-mail address updated at all times. Failure to do so will release KML Counselling & Psychological Services from the ethical and/or legal obligation to warn of life threatening situations. 

    LIMITATIONS ON THE NATURE AND SCOPE OF SERVICES

    Important differences between secure therapeutic email and face-to-face psychotherapy limit the responsibilities assumed by KML Counselling & Psychological Services. In face-to-face psychotherapy, therapists are responsible for the treatment of their clients and exercise a great deal of control over the therapeutic process. With therapeutic email, therapists exercise control over the content of the therapeutic email transcript only. The therapist loses therapeutic control as soon as the transcript is sent. Your therapist will try to anticipate your needs if and when you read your therapeutic email transcripts. However, there is no way for your therapist to control either the context of your interpretations or your reactions to your therapeutic email transcripts.

    Your therapist will create transcripts based on your statements but cannot provide emotional support beyond what is written in therapeutic email. For these reasons, services provided by KML Counselling & Psychological Services cannot be considered the same kind of service as traditional psychotherapy. It is psychotherapy delivered from a distance, and includes the passage of time between exchanges of transcripts. As such, you agree to assume full responsibility for, and control of, your treatment. You further agree to take responsibility for making treatment decisions, including:

    - Whether online counselling is the best option for your needs (refer to http://kmlcounselling.com/client-questionnaire.html for more information);
    - Whether online counselling is appropriate for your particular situation;
    - Whether you possess the necessary technological and writing skills for this mode of support;
    - Whether, when, and where to read the therapeutic email transcripts you are sent;
    - Whether, when, and where to write therapeutic emails to your therapist;
    - How much of each transcript to read, what information to accept, and what information to reject; and
    - Planning in advance what you will do if you find that you require increased emotional support upon reading or writing a therapeutic email message. 

    FEES AND PAYMENT

    Fees are payable in advance via PayPal or email transfer. Therapeutic email sessions involve your therapist carefully reading your message(s) and writing a therapeutic reply. The hour also includes a 10-minute allowance for your therapist to attend to administrative tasks related to the services you receive.

    For ease of comparison, please note that the recommended fee schedule currently endorsed by the Psychologists’ Association of Alberta is $180 per hour for individual therapy.

    Professional fees are subject to change at any time. You will be notified as far in advance as possible in the event of an anticipated fee increase.

    SAFETY AND SECURITY

    KML Counselling & Psychological Services will do its utmost to protect and safeguard your personal information. The email interface utilized by KML Counselling & Psychological Services (Hushmail.com) uses industry-standard OpenPGP encryption to protect your privacy and confidentiality. However, KML Counselling & Psychological Services cannot warrant that Hushmail.com's systems will be error free, that you will be able to operate them without experiencing problems or interruptions, or that they will not be susceptible to intrusion, attack or computer virus infection.

    KML Counselling & Psychological Services does not warrant the security of confidential material that becomes insecure because of actions you may take or that is a result of software that KML Counselling & Psychological Services did not supply. Examples of security breaches that are not warranted may include, but are not limited to:

    - Leaving confidential material on a computer screen for others to see;
    - Storing confidential material on the computer you are using; or
    - Use of monitoring software (this could be spyware or legitimate monitoring by an employer, or other monitoring systems not listed here).

    You are discouraged from disseminating, distributing or copying your counselling records (for example, on a social networking site, blog, or other website). If you believe it may be beneficial to do so, it is strongly recommended that you consult with your therapist before taking such action.

    You agree to use your encrypted Hushmail.com email account for all therapeutic communications to and from your therapist. Should you fail to do so, you waive your privilege to confidentiality and assume full responsibility for the risks inherent in insecure Internet transmissions, including any losses or damages.

    STORAGE OF CLIENT RECORDS AND INFORMATION

    By its nature, therapeutic email creates a verbatim recording of all counselling interaction. Verbatim recordings of counselling sessions are called "transcripts". KML Counselling & Psychological Services will securely store all records containing personal information, including transcripts, for a period of 10 years as per ethical guidelines set out by the College of Alberta Psychologists.

    RESPONSE TIMES AND TECHNOLOGICAL FAILURE

    KML Counselling & Psychological Services will endeavour to provide an initial written response to you within three to five of your initial registration. Subsequent replies are normally spaced approximately one week apart. However, it is possible that technological equipment could fail unexpectedly and at any time. If you suspect that this has happened, or if you think there has been an unwarranted delay in a response to your therapeutic email message, please send your latest secure e-mail again. In addition, feel free to send a message to kmlemke.psych@hushmail.com to confirm receipt of your latest email, or to make other administrative inquiries. Please note that email sent to this address from any email account outside of Hushmail.com may not be secure or encrypted, and you would be discouraged from including information of a personal or sensitive nature in this case.

    CRISIS SITUATIONS

    KML Counselling & Psychological Services provides therapeutic services strictly within an online environment, and as such, cannot be held responsible for helping you manage a crisis. Because of the delays associated with the use of e-mail, KML Counselling & Psychological Services cannot act as a crisis centre. If you experience an emotional crisis (intense feelings of distress or thoughts of suicide, emergency or life threatening situation, etc.) during the course of your treatment, sending a secure e-mail message to your therapist without taking further immediate action is neither appropriate nor sufficient. In these situations, you are encouraged to:

    - Contact a local Crisis Intervention Hotline in your area;
    - Call 1-800-SUICIDE;
    - Call 9-1-1 (available in most areas to reach police or ambulance); or
    - Call a trusted friend, relative, or other support person, and ask him/her to talk with you or come over right away.

    HANDLING DISSATISFACTION

    As per the College of Alberta Psychologists (CAP), you have the right to recourse if you feel that your psychologist has not properly fulfilled his or her professional and ethical obligations to you. The College of Alberta Psychologists encourages you to discuss your concerns directly with your therapist. Often, misunderstandings can be corrected and better ways of working together can be found. If you are unable to resolve your concerns with your psychologist, you can contact the College of Alberta Psychologists directly. Staff can review your concerns with you and determine if some way can be found to resolve them. You may also file a formal complaint.

    The College of Alberta Psychologists
    #2100, 10123 - 99 Street
    Edmonton AB  T5J 3H1
    Phone: 780-424-5070 / Toll-Free: 1-800-659-0857
    E-mail: psych@cap.ab.ca
    Website: www.cap.ab.ca 

    LOCATION OF SERVICES

    Therapeutic services provided by KML Counselling & Psychological Services, for all legal purposes, take place in Canada only, and specifically, in the province of Alberta. You agree that you reside within the province of Alberta at the time counselling services are sought and received. Any claims against KML Counselling & Psychological Services, which give rise to suits or judicial proceedings, must be filed and tried within the province of Alberta. By agreeing to these Terms and Conditions, you irrevocably submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the province of Alberta.

    REFUSAL AND WITHDRAWAL

    You have the right to refuse to accept the advice or opinions expressed to you by your therapist. You may withdraw from online counselling at any time with no obligation to KML Counselling & Psychological Services or to your therapist.

    SCOPE OF AGREEMENT

    If any part of this Agreement is deemed by a Canadian court of competent jurisdiction to be illegal, invalid, or unenforceable, that part of the Agreement shall be limited or eliminated to the minimum extent necessary so that this Agreement shall otherwise remain in full force and effect and enforceable.

    This agreement constitutes the entire, final, complete and exclusive agreement between the parties and supersedes all previous agreements, proposals or representations, oral or written, relating to this agreement. This agreement may not be modified or amended except in writing (hard copy) or by digitally signed secure e-mail. 


  • Reason for Referral


  • Please describe, in as much detail as possible, your reason(s) for seeking counselling today and what your main concerns are at the moment. Keep in mind that this is the information that will be used in the construction of my first therapeutic reply to you, so the more detail you provide, the better.

    It would be helpful if you could include the following information as well:

    * Who else is involved in or affected by the issues you are currently facing;
    * Your living situation (who you live with and how you are related); and
    * How well you feel you’ve been coping with the problems so far, and examples of how you've been coping.

    When you’re finished, take a moment to re-read what you have written and add any other information that you think might be important for me to know about you and/or your current situation. A response to your concerns will be sent to your Hushmail.com encrypted email account, upon receipt of payment, within three to five days.
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