Associates In Quality Psychiatric Medicine PC

I found the name and number of a therapist in this practice on my insurance’s website. She returned my call and seemed OK and said to call her office to set up an appointment.
It was apparently more complicated than that. The receptionist asked me some intake info that went beyond insurance info. Most of it was yes-​or-​no questions, «Do you ever feel suicidal?» «Do you have trouble sleeping?» I thought it was strange that I had to answer these questions after reviewing my needs with the therapist I’d be seeing. And I wasn’t too keen to open up to some faceless receptionist, but whatever.
Then she asked, «What are your goals for therapy?» I responded, «I am in a public place and can’t answer that now.» She snorted back, «You’re not being very helpful.» I was stunned but managed to reply, «I can say the same of you.»
I called the therapist directly and relayed the whole thing and said I was canceling everything. She called me and apologized, which I appreciated and accepted.
My friends with more experience in this field told me they didn’t know of any therapist who outsourced this kind of work to a receptionist and it was a «red flag.»
I know that for the paraprofessionals of the mental health world all the worst things that happen to people are just lines on a form to fill out but there’s no reason to be rude about it.