Are There Risks And Confidentiality When Conducting On Line Counseling?

Specialists on this type of sites ask about potential clients’ records and use them to gain an understanding their mental issues. After that, experts offer strategies, plans and well as methods for dealing with difficult issues. Therapists who work online will conduct consistent conferences while keeping the record of patients ' improvement like a physician who operates out of an office. Online therapists use different strategies than a traditional mental health professional. Because these meetings do not take place in the regular setting, the doctor uses a variety of methods to make contact with the client. The session can be conducted through the use of online video chats, by email and phone calls. But there will be times when the connection for some of these methods is not clear, and the therapist might not hear a client’s entire response. The online therapist must have the same level of education as a regular therapist. Online therapy allows the client to remain in the comfort of their home instead of traveling to the doctor’s office. A traditional therapy session may last for years while only treatment lasts for a few months. If the client needs further care, the online doctor will refer him to a regular therapist for further treatment. MyTherapyNet.com connects clients with counselors and support groups based on the needs of the customer. There are several therapists available around the clock. Each

Granello discusses how through the decades many individuals, including those in medical, were slow to embrace computer information and technologies. In the 70s and 80s is when personal computers became more advent and personable to everybody. Granello talks about this embrace, and how medical professionals in the 90s began to embrace this technology that they have at their disposal. He talks of 1984, when a professional journal ran an article that talked of the potential benefit of technologies in counseling if individuals are trained properly. In the 90s is when counselors began using technology more often. They had the ability to open their own websites, have online sessions with patients, and teach courses online but he follows up with a

In the relationship between counsellor and client the need for confidentiality is vital as it is not only the bases that the relationship is built on and it is a legal obligation.

This essay will explore the counselling relationship along with the benefits and limitations as well as discussing other factors that have an important impact in relation to the outcome of counselling. Counselling is an interpersonal relationship between the client and qualified therapist, the relationship involves communicating with the client and using skills to explore the client's feelings. The counselling/ therapeutic relationship can be used in all types of counselling such as psychodynamic, humanistic, behavioural, person centred and cognitive therapy. As mental health disorders increase so does the need to deliver effective counselling, which means that the therapeutic relationship is more crucial than ever. (Miller, Hubble, Duncan and Wampold 2010; Norcross and Lambert 2011).

According to National Board of Certified Counselors online counseling defined as “technology assisted distance counseling for individuals, couples, and groups involves the use of the telephone or the computer to enable counselors and clients to communicate at a distance when circumstances make this approach necessary or convenient”.

According to the ethical and legal principles of the counseling profession, it is our morally professional responsibility to break confidentiality in order to eliminate the possibilities of chaos, to the best of our ability. The American Counseling Association (ACA) code of ethics explains adherence to confidentiality in a number of instances. In standard A.2.e., Mandated Clients, it describes the requirements for informing mandated clients of the limitations to confidentiality and, should an issue arise, to whom the revealed information must be shared with. This rule applies to all clients. The counselor’s responsibility to do so must be conveyed to the clients at the very beginning of the counseling relationship, with periodic reminders throughout sessions, and include the dangers involved if the client refuses to participate in the mandated sessions. ACA code of ethics further explains in standard B.1.c., Respect for Confidentiality, that counselors are to guard “confidential information” and “disclose” this “information only with appropriate consent or with sound legal or ethical jurisdiction.” Therapists must also “identify situations” where breaches can void or challenge confidentiality (ACA, 2014, B.1.d., p. 7).

This paper is a response to a video discussing the issues of confidentiality, privilege, reporting, and duty to warn. This paper looks at these issues and their explanations in the American Counseling Association Code of Ethics as well as the Georgia State Board of Professional Counselor’s ethical guidelines and provides a commentary on the laws. It was found that these issues are not always black and white, but there is some debate on these issues. Confidentiality is both an ethical and a legal responsibility yet there are often times when the ethical demands clash with the legal demands. This paper explores some of those crashes and explains what I have learned from the video and the professional and stage guidelines concerning confidentiality and its implications and how I will apply what I have learned into future practice.

* I believe it is unethical for the counselor to reveal anything said in individual counseling with the husband. She didn’t address a “no secrets” policy in the informed consent. Sharing this information with the wife without his permission is unethical. In marriage counseling the “no secrets” policy needs to be addressed and explained in the informed consent. Since she did not have a policy concerning this, she is bound by confidentiality which should have been in her informed consent.

Mental health services conducted on the Internet have been described as e-therapy, online counseling, e -mail therapy, Internet-based therapy, and similar terminology. Online therapy services may be provided as an adjunct to more traditional forms of mental health treatment, or may be initiated without any offline contact between the therapist and client. Currently, there are a variety of websites providing links and information regarding online therapy. As I was reading about benefits and risks in using internet as a source for

Breaking confidentiality is a serious ethical component in counseling and must be considered very carefully before doing so. Each state has laws regarding the disclosure of confidentiality whether it to the courts, the clients, relatives, lawyers, schools, or other unbiased parties (Corey et al., 2015). It is very important that the therapist is aware of the laws in regards to disclosure of confidentiality in the state in which they practice to ensure that they are practicing in an ethical manner and to avoid any legal

In some situations, counselors must clarify that confidentiality cannot be guaranteed (Herlihy and Corey, 2016). Ethically, a counselor should be sure that

A potential harm when boundaries are crossed is damaging the therapeutic relationship. A client may feel embarrassed or awkward, leaving them in a vulnerable position when encountering a counselor outside of the counseling setting (Remley & Herlihy, 2014). This may cause the client to feel indifferent about counseling and they may choose not to return. I know from personal experience, coming from a military family, counseling is not a subject to be openly discussed. Encountering a client outside of the counseling setting may worsen their anxiety and discontinue sessions. Although there are potential dangers when crossing boundaries, there are specific ways to handle each situation in a professional

When conducting online counseling, social workers need to evaluate the security of their computers and websites against other outside disruptions that may damage the client’s confidentiality (Childress, 2000). In order to protect the client’s confidentiality, the social worker should install systems with passwords, firewalls, and backup data storage systems to maximize the security of communications. Failing to protect the client’s confidentiality may be subject to legal subpoena or lawsuits, which could damage the social worker’s career and agency. Another

There are many ethical issues that can arise during counseling. One issue that is fairly common is sexual attraction from patient to counselor, counselor to patient, or even in both directions. Even though an attraction may exist, this does not necessarily mean that these instincts will be followed in any inappropriate way. In fact attraction is a natural part of life and is impossible to avoid. However, any fulfillment of these desires is an unethical act that could not only be in violation of the code of ethics that a counselor is bound by, but it could also subject the counselor and their organization to litigation and legal action.

In no more than 3,000 words you are required to complete an essay on ethical issues in the practice of counseling, by addressing the following question: