Letters of Support and Animal Policies

Letters and Documentation

We are here to support you. You may at some point require documentation of the treatment you have received at CAPS, whether to verify a diagnosis, to document mental health reasons for academic withdrawal, or to coordinate with another treatment provider, among other reasons.  If you require a letter from a CAPS counselor, please note the following: 

• Letters are provided at the discretion of CAPS counselors according to the health information in your record, current functioning, contextual circumstances, and relevant legal and ethical statutes.
• When providing the “Verification of Diagnosis” form for the Accessability and Disability Services office, CAPS counselors are informed by the Americans with Disabilities Act (2009) guidelines, Disability Rights under the California State University System, as well as the AHEAD Guidance.
• Letters will be provided only when a clinical relationship has been established with a CAPS counselor. 
• All requests for letters must be made at least five working days in advance of when it is needed 
• You must fill out a Release of Information before a letter will be provided to a third party. 
• The following shows the process of obtaining accommodations and where health care providers can provide supporting documentation

CONFIRMATION OF APPOINTMENT(S)

If you only need a confirmation of your appointment(s), contact the front desk of Student Health Services or call 707-654-1170 for more information.

SERVICE ANIMALS

CAPS complies with all ADA requirements and welcomes appropriately trained and specifically designated service animals as defined in the ADA 2010 to the Student Health Center and CAPS spaces.  Please work with the Accessability and Disability Services office to get more information about the process of obtaining a service animal. 

EMOTIONAL SUPPORT ANIMALS

In general, approved Emotional Support Animals (ESAs) are not permitted in campus buildings apart from Campus Housing. CAPS and Student Health Services do not permit ESAs in the Health Center in compliance with university policy. Emotional Support Animals, sometimes used as part of a treatment plan as therapy animals, are not considered service animals under the ADA. 

Letters and other documentation for emotional support animals are only provided in the most rare of circumstances because there is currently no clearly established literature base for the clinical efficacy of emotional support animals.  Additionally, though we love animals and many of our providers have important animals in their lives, we do not have training in the assessment of animal behavior or impact to complete necessary documentation for ESAs. The documentation we would provide when indicated for established clients would only be about the student's mental health symptoms, diagnosis, and recommendations.