Professional representatives may be asked to research options, arrange introductions, or coordinate practical support. Define the mandate before contacting providers or circulating personal information.
Clarify whom you represent.
Identify the person seeking care, the payer, the referring professional, and the administrative contact. These roles may overlap but are not interchangeable. Establish who can authorize communication and its limits.
Keep clinical decisions with qualified professionals.
An assistant, employer, wealth advisor, or family-office representative can organize appointments and proposals. That role does not establish authority to diagnose, decide treatment suitability, or receive unrestricted clinical records.
Prepare a useful referral brief.
Describe the requested help, location, practical constraints, existing clinical support, and the individual’s participation. Use the minimum information necessary initially. Confirm the receiving service’s secure process before sending records.
Compare scope and accountability.
Ask who provides assessment, who coordinates the plan, who responds when needs change, and what happens out of hours. An introduction, intervention assignment, and residential admission need separate scope and cost information.
Coordinate across locations carefully.
For international care, identify the actual treatment location, professional responsibilities, travel suitability, admission agreement, and local follow-up. A consultation office does not necessarily provide residential care.
Use a written handover.
Agree which documents and arrangements travel with the individual and which contacts remain involved. The family-office guide develops these questions for complex private arrangements.
Sources and further reading
NIMH: Finding mental health care; NIAAA: Evaluating treatment options.