Yes, for both therapists I have seen, I phoned them up first and we chatted briefly before making an appointment. I found out their credential (e.g. Masters of Social Work for my first counselor and Family Therapist for my current T), and told them briefly what I wanted to see them for (not a lot of detail). The latter was so they could say whether this basic problem was within their scope of practice or not so they could either tell me yes or no it would make sense to proceed to a face to face meeting. I had the sense I could have asked them more, but I didn't. They may have told me more stuff about themselves, but I have forgotten (it can be a stressful conversation).