Counselor nets new clients
with on-line service
By Peter Key, INDIANAPOLIS STAR/NEWS
Monday, May 5, 1997
 FISHERS, Ind. -- Jeff Heer has seen the Internet cause problems. Now, he's trying to use it to solve them.
Heer (pronounced Hair) is a certified marriage and family counselor who has worked in the mental health field for 16 years and run a private practice for the past six.
Since November, he has been offering his services to World Wide Web users as CounseLine at http://www.counseline.com.
"I see a need and I'm trying to meet that need, which is what I think a counselor is supposed to do," Heer said.
Heer initially saw the need two years ago, when three couples who were his clients had problems that involved the Internet. One had met and fallen in love on line and was now having difficulties dealing with the mundane issues that had never come up in their cyber-courtship. The second was having problems because one of them was addicted to the Internet. The third had marital troubles that the man was discussing with a woman on line instead of with his wife.
Heer thought that, if the Internet was causing problems, he could use it to solve them, too. The way to do that, he decided, was to offer on-line counseling.
Heer's clients schedule appointment, pay and communicate with him on line, using passwords to ensure their confidentiality.
Most of his work is done via live chat sessions. These begin with a client getting a note from Heer asking what he or she wants to talk about. The person clicks on a response box, types in a message and sends it. Heer reads the message, replies with his own, and the session progresses just as it would if Heer and the client were in the same room.
At the end of each session, Heer sends the client a summary of their discussion and suggests some things they might want to work on. Each session is saved so the client can review it. A session lasts 25 minutes and costs $25.
In addition to individual live chat sessions, Heer offers group live chat sessions for $15 and professional responses to e-mail for $20.
Heer's service is unusual, but not unique.
Metanoia, a Web site at http://www.metanoia.org that offers an introduction to the world of on-line counseling, has detailed descriptions of 66 on-line counselors, including Heer, with links to each.
On-line counseling has some detractors.
"I think, at this stage, there are not adequate ethical safeguards for on-line work," said Gail Robinson, president of the American Counseling Association.
A task force for the National Board for Certified Counselors is working to develop some professional standards. They'd be voluntary, but they'd "help the consuming public to have some idea of what's a legitimate Web provider and somebody who's just a fly-by-night operation," said John W. Bloom, the education professor at Butler University who heads the task force.
Ethical safeguards aren't Robinson's only concern. She's also worried about miscommunication that could result from counselors not being able to see their clients.
"A lot of information is transmitted non-verbally and without having that eye-contact, it's just lost," she said.
Of course, technology may make that argument moot in a few years. It's already possible to transmit still pictures over the Internet, and live-action video might not be far behind.
In the meantime, Heer said that what is lost by the client and therapist not being able to see each other is made up for by the increased directness people have on line. While clients who visit his office may spend the first five or 10 minutes of a session making small talk, his on-line clients just cut to the chase.
"It keeps me on my toes. I've got to be ready because the information's coming quick. It's not like I have to dig for it."
A common concern about on-line therapy is that it may not be able to help people with deep problems, especially those who are suicidal.
Heer said he recognizes its limitations, but says it's just as effective as the crisis intervention phone lines he manned for a few years.
"You've just got to try to talk them through it and encourage them to get help locally," he said.
Heer's on-line practice hasn't allowed him to shut his office. He has only a few on-line clients and isn't sure how to go about getting more, other than by listing his service with Web search engines, which he he's done.
He thinks the practice has a lot of potential for people who can't bring themselves to see a counselor in person.
"I can reach anybody anywhere in the world and be able to help somebody who might not go get the help."
Copyright (c) 1997 Indianapolis Star/News. Reprinted with permission.
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