Counseling Intake Form Template

What is a Counseling Intake Form Template?

Counseling intake forms, similar to therapy intake forms, are given to patients prior to their first session at a counseling practice.

Such counseling forms ask for various information concerning a client's personal details, including their personal details, emergency contact details, medical history (their mental health history and substance abuse history can be discussed), and insurance information. Collecting this data prior to the session allows counselors to be better prepared (like knowing what other relevant forms to provide such as an informed consent form) and make more informed decisions that'll shape their client's mental health treatment journey.

A counseling intake form also helps standardize the process of bringing in new patients, ensures the mental health professional has access to all the necessary information and helps with insurance situations.

Because an intake form typically includes an extensive amount of information, the best way to streamline this process is by using a document that has already been created—which is where we come in. We have researched and developed a comprehensive intake form template to help organizations, healthcare professionals, and service providers efficiently collect necessary data from their clients or patients.

Check out this free intake form template for counseling practices to help record your client's details and consent more efficiently.

Who can use this Counseling Intake Form Template?

Our counseling intake form has been designed specifically for patients who are new to a counseling practice. There are a wide range of different counseling specializations and we've tried to ensure that all of these are accommodated for in our intake form. For that reason, the following types of counselors will easily be able to implement our form:

• Mental health counselors
• Rehabilitation counselors
• Grief counselors
• Marriage counselors
• Family counselors
• Youth counselors
• Speech therapist/counselors

Our intake form is effective only if it is filled out prior to a patient's first session. If you work in a reasonably large counseling practice and delegate these kinds of tasks to administrative staff, that is perfectly fine as well. Simply ensure that your administrative staff have access to this intake form and send it to patients when necessary.

Why is this template useful for counselors?

Considering the often busy daily schedule of counselors, many are looking for solutions that streamline certain tasks. Fortunately, this is just what our intake form aims to do. Other uses of this resource include:

• Standardization: Using one intake form for all patients in your practice guarantees standardization. This means that regardless of the reason why a patient is being treated, or how long they have been at your practice, the information required to deliver quality healthcare will be accessible and easily interpreted.
• Accuracy: The good thing about using a template that someone else has created is that you can trust they have done the research and included all of the necessary elements – which we definitely have! Intake forms are very important for delivering quality care solutions to patients in need and with our template, you can rest assured that you are obtaining all of the necessary data prior to treating a patient.
• Organization: Having access to an intake form that has already been designed is essential when it comes to organization. You will be able to store this document in a secure and accessible place, so it is readily available whenever required. Maintaining organization is key to an efficient workplace, and this is exactly what our intake form facilitates. 
• Saves time: The counseling intake form is also going to save you a lot of time. No longer do you have to draft up your own documents or double-check that the questions included are relevant – we've done all that work for you. Now, you can simply click on the form template and download it, ready for immediate use.

Benefits of using our Counseling Intake Form

In addition to having various uses, our counseling intake form is guaranteed to benefit your practice in a range of different ways, including the following:

Patient experience 

The healthcare industry is slowly but steadily transitioning to a model of value-based care and as such, the patient experience has never been more important. As healthcare practitioners, it is vital that you are doing everything you can to ensure a patient's experience at your practice is seamless.

Using an online intake form helps to speed up the waiting room process, allowing patients to get seen faster on the day of their session. Although this may seem like a minor improvement, reducing the possibility of patients feeling stressed or frustrated is a very important component of improving patient experience. 

Workflow 

Reducing wait times improves patient experience and helps increase workflow efficiency. Manual processes for completing intake forms and other administrative tasks slow down workflow and can lead to reductions in productivity. With our intake form, patients can complete these tasks prior to coming into the practice, which in turn frees up time to offer more appointments. 

Reduce costs 

If you choose to send your intake forms to your patients to complete online, you will be cutting down on paper costs. Instead of paying to print forms and giving hard copies to patients, you can simply send them the form online (which also has the additional advantage of being environmentally friendly!). 

Improve accuracy 

Human mistakes cause many errors during the healthcare delivery process. While these aren't always completely unavoidable, using resources like online intake forms can help minimize them. The required information is already included in the online intake form, and counselors simply have to distribute it to patients.

Gathers all necessary information

Using a counseling intake form that contains all of the right information will ensure that you have access to everything you need to make the best clinical decisions for your patients. Intake forms are a vital component of informing counselors of their patient's previous medical, personal, and social history, which in turn will allow you to treat them more effectively.