Guidelines for Participating in a Support Group (In-person and Virtual)
1. Privacy and confidentiality
We cannot guarantee confidentiality, but we ask everyone respect each other's privacy by agreeing not to disclose what other people shared in the meeting to anyone who did not attend the session.
We ask everyone participating in this meeting virtually do so from a quiet, private location where others do not overhear or interrupt the meeting. For virtual participants, this meeting uses a remote connection over the internet among participants, and in rare cases, security protocols could fail and the content of this meeting could be accessed by unauthorized persons.
Limits to confidentiality exist for the facilitators, and they are mandated to disclose information under the following circumstances; a) imminent risk of harm to self or others, b) reported or suspected abuse or neglect of a child, elderly or disabled individual, c) and/or a Title IX violation (e.g., unwanted sexual experience, stalking, intimate partner violence).
2. Culture of respect
We ask everyone to be respectful of each other by taking turns talking and being open to different opinions.
3. Nature of the meeting
This group is not a counseling or therapy group for treating mental illness. As a support group, it provides a space for participants to support each other as peers by sharing personal experiences and ideas. When clinical needs arise, participants might be referred to the Cook Counseling or other resources for further discussion. In the event of an emergency or if you or someone you know is an imminent danger to themselves or someone else, call the Cook Counseling Center at 540-231-6557 during business hours and after hours to reach the on-call counselor. Please type your name below to indicate that you have read the guidelines for participating in sessions and that you understand the above statement.