Progress Notes for Couples and Families

Progress notes are written or electronic notes that summarize and document the counseling treatment process. They are written after each counseling session by the mental health clinician who provided the counseling service whether that clinician is a licensed professional counselor, counseling psychologist, clinical psychologist, licensed marriage and family therapist (MFT), or licensed clinical social worker. Regardless of their specific discipline, mental health clinicians maintain and safeguard progress notes throughout and beyond the course of treatment for a couple or family. This entry further defines progress notes, details the information that goes into them, and discusses how progress notes relate to other information found in a client file. It then discusses why progress notes are important, how the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) has ...