As easy as a Facebook post. A lot more useful.

1. Clinical fit comes first

Every provider tells us how deep they go on each concern: a core specialty, something they are skilled with, or something they can work with. When you pick the client's main concern, that depth sets the starting point. A provider whose specialty is trauma starts well ahead of one who can just work with it. The result card tells you which one you are looking at ("Core specialty: Trauma"), so you can see the difference instead of guessing at it.

For the more serious stuff (bipolar disorder, suicidal thoughts, eating disorders, psychosis, and a few others), we are stricter. If a provider has not marked it as a specialty or a skill, they do not show up at all.

2. A few things are simply rules

Licensed in the client's state. Sees that age group. Accepting new clients. Offers the format you asked for. Takes the insurance (or offers self-pay). Has not told us they do not take that kind of case, like court-ordered or custody work. If you say something is a must-have, we treat it as one. Those providers are left out, not ranked lower.

3. Working style matters, but it has limits

If you tell us how the client would do best (warm and supportive, direct and structured, calm and grounding), we weigh how well the provider's style lines up. Rapport matters. It also cannot turn "can work with" into "perfect fit." The closer a provider is to the heart of the concern, the more their style can add or subtract. (And if you skip the style questions, the best rating a match can get is Strong, because we have not measured the personal side. We would rather say that than pretend.)

4. The practical details count, but not as much as the clinical fit

Insurance, times that work, how close they are, and how soon the client can be seen. A great clinical fit who is a long drive away or has a six-week wait is still shown, with a note, because you may know something we do not. For rural clients, we do not punish a 40-mile drive when the nearest good fit is 40 miles away.

5. What we will never do

Nobody pays to rank higher. Nobody gets pushed up for being online fastest. A profile that nobody has updated in 90 days quietly steps out of results until the provider confirms it, so you are not referring to someone who stopped checking. The only small nudges to the order, among providers who are close, come from recently confirmed openings, colleagues who have confirmed someone's style, and how past referrals actually went. The rating itself never changes because of them.

And one more thing, because it matters: AI helps read your quick description and fill in the form. It does not decide who ranks where. That part is a fixed set of rules you can read about right here.

6. What you see when you search, and when you receive a referral

When searching you see a tier: Excellent, Strong, Good, or Possible fit, with the reasons behind it and anything worth double-checking. The provider who receives your referral sees the number, along with why they matched, so they know what you saw in them.

7. How we keep ourselves honest

A match is only good if the client actually gets help. Three weeks after a referral is accepted, we ask the receiving provider whether the client scheduled and how the fit looks so far. At 90 days, whether the client stayed. And we ask you, the person who referred, how it went. We use those answers to check whether our ratings are earning their keep. If an "Excellent fit" is not turning into clients who show up and stay, that is our problem to fix, not yours.

Prescribers work the same way, with one addition. If a client needs a controlled medication, we only show prescribers who actually prescribe it and whose own requirements (like in-person visits) can be met.