230 Muench Street

Harrisburg, PA 17102
Nasr Consultant Group, Inc. Phone: (717) 695-9512
Fax: (717) 695-9513
Providing quality, effective, & accessible treatment
Website: www.nasrgroup.com

MEMORANDUM

TO: All Outpatient Drug and Alcohol Counselors

FROM: Robert A. Boswell, Executive Director

RE: Telehealth Guidelines Related to COVID-19

DATE: March 18, 2020

PURPOSE: In order to minimize face-to-face contact to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 we

will be offering telehealth services to our clients. This Memorandum is being issued to offer
clarification regarding the implementation of telehealth services.

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 is a new virus that causes respiratory illness in people and can
spread from person-to-person. This virus was first identified during an investigation into an
outbreak in Wuhan, China. COVID-19 is a severe respiratory disease, resulting in illness or
death, caused by person-to-person spread of the virus.

Commonly reported symptoms of COVID-19 infection include fever, cough, and shortness of
breath. While the exact incubation period for this coronavirus has not yet been determined, it is
believed that most infected people will develop symptoms 2-14 days after they were exposed.
There is no vaccine available for COVID-19. Prevention measures center on frequent
handwashing, covering coughs and sneezes, and separating people who have respiratory
symptoms. Treatment for COVID-19 includes the use of over the-counter fever-relievers,
drinking plenty of fluids and resting at home to help relieve symptoms. Those with more severe
symptoms may be hospitalized to provide additional support.

IMPLEMENTATION OF TELEHEALTH SERVICES RELATED COVID-19: In order to

ensure that our clients continue to receive drug and alcohol services, Nasr Consultant Group will
allow the use of telephonic video technology commonly available on smart phones and other
electronic devices. In addition, telephone only services may be utilized in situations where video
technology is not available.

In the coming days we will be using Google Hangouts/Meets to conduct our assessments, family,
group, and individual sessions. Currently, I am in the process of setting up our organizational
account with Google. In the meantime, I am asking you to provide all services (i.e., assessments,
family, and individual sessions) over the phone. We will suspend all group sessions until our
Google account is setup.

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It should be noted that these temporary measures still require adherence to our current
procedures as they would when delivered face-to-face. All necessary documentation will need to
be completed as usual. However, in cases where we need the client’s signature; fill in “Signature
not available due to crisis” where the client will usually sign. Additionally, in the DAP note you
will need to record it was a telehealth service that was provided. For example, “Client Jan Doe
attended her individual session today via Telehealth.”

All outpatient counselors are required to show up for work as usual providing they are not sick or
having symptoms. In the case of being sick or having symptoms please continue to use protocols
in place to notify your immediate supervisor.

NEXT STEPS: Immediately begin to implement the use of telehealth. Once our Google
Account is setup, I will notify you all. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to
contact me via email at abdulkhabir@nasrgroup.com.

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