The Importance of a Counseling Intake Form: A Guide to Understanding and Completing the Process

Intake forms are a staple in service-oriented and healthcare professions, and for good reason. While the content varies from industry to industry and business to business, the purpose is the same: intake forms provide professionals with much-needed information about new clients prior to their first meeting or treatment.

Intake forms typically work like this:

1. The client sets their first appointment.
   
2. They are either sent an intake form virtually through a digital platform, or are instructed to arrive approximately 15 minutes early for their first appointment so they can fill it out onsite.
3. The professional is then able to assess the client file and add it to their database.

Counseling isn’t an exception. Well-developed counseling intake forms that go beyond the basics are critical in this field. When done right, they lay the foundation for a positive client-therapist relationship. 

And what do we mean by “well-developed?” In simple terms, we mean going beyond the standard name, address, emergency contact types of information that you find on every generic intake form, regardless of industry and service provided. Counseling intake forms should be designed to provide greater insight into the issues clients are facing, so therapists can start working on an effective treatment strategy ASAP. 

At this point you’re probably wondering, what does that well-developed counseling intake form include? Here are a few topics that should be covered:

1. Reason behind the client’s visit
2. Current struggles or obstacles
3. Specific symptoms or behavioral issues they want to address
4. Goals for counseling
5. Current medications 
6. Their medical history
7. Past trauma, if any
8. History of family mental health, if notable (i.e. close relatives who have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, depression, etc.)

Does your counselor need to include all of these on their intake form? No. Would it help? Yes. Here’s why:


Clients and counselors can make the most of their first appointment.

The material we listed above is going to be uncovered at some point during your counseling journey, it’s just a matter of when, and how. We’re partial to addressing everything early on, before the client has their first appointment. This will ensure that you can make the most of your time together from the start.

1. Counselors will know where to focus their attention, and can start developing a strategy in advance based on what they know.
2. Clients won’t be immediately subjected to a Q&A. They can start their journey by having an organic conversation about what’s going on in their life and in their mind.

As you may have noticed, this benefit won’t come about unless the intake form is sent out and received well in advance of the first appointment. While this will require some pre-planning and organizational skills (as opposed to asking clients to come in 15+ minutes early at their first appointment), it’s well worth it. Counselors will be in a better position to help early on in the relationship, and clients will appreciate the thoughtfulness and professionalism. 

You can determine if the relationship will be a good fit.

Different counselors have different specialties and approaches. Counseling intake forms can be used as a vetting process to ensure that a good match is being made between the counselor and the client before a significant amount of time is invested. 

Say, for example, that a counselor specializing in couples therapy is contacted by a prospective client who is struggling with addiction. While the counselor might be in a good position to help that client, the issue might fall outside of their areas of expertise. By being transparent about needs, struggles, and expectations early on, issues like these can be headed off before time and money is invested by the client.

It forces the client to actively think about what they would like to accomplish through their counseling sessions.

There’s a substantial difference between thinking about something in abstract terms and having to write down a well-worded response—especially when it comes to goals. Putting pen to paper can help clients identify what they want to change, think about influencing factors, and mentally prepare themselves to speak to a professional. 

While intake forms are typically used to glean very basic client data, they’re capable of a whole lot more. Forward-thinking counseling firms will use them to improve the overall client experience and streamline that critical first appointment.

If you’d like to hear more tips for effective counseling, check out our podcast, The Shrink Think Podcast. We offer engaging, informative conversations and light-hearted humor help to normalize and demystify therapy for those beginning or continuing their mental health journey.