Confidentiality in Counselling

To have good ethical practice within counselling it is important that there are boundaries and contracts in place that are agreed to and understood by both the counsellor and the client.

Hello, Professor and Classmates! Human service professional has a lot of dilemmas they are faced with, and confidentiality is one that is very common. Human service professional recognizes the healing power of a trusting relationship. Confidentiality entails a certain amount of complexity for those who have professional roles in clients’ lives (Sommers-Flanagan, 2015). Confidentiality refers to the ethical obligation not to disclose confidential information obtained during the client relationship. Trust is imperative in the cornerstone of the counseling relationship. “Human service professionals inform clients of the limits of confidentiality before the onset of the helping relationship (NOHS, 2017).” Because of the rules of confidentiality,

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).

When we look at other professions like social workers, housing officers, the emergency services, the police and priests who utilise counselling skills we realise that some of the key concepts that are fundamental to the counselling profession are not their main priority. If such people were to introduce themselves as counsellors their clients may be under the impression that such things as confidentiality will be upheld. An example is the work of doctors, social workers, nurses and carers, in these types of professions advise is given to the client as to what to do and what not to do, medication is administered to the client whereas in the case of counselling especially with

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.

The situation is the decision to breach the confidentiality between a client and his patient. The therapist has to decide if the client will pose a threat to himself or any other 3rd party, or society as a whole. If the therapist feels in any way that the client could be a threat, he has the right to notify the person or the correct officials to insure that no harm comes to anyone involved.

Before a counselling session starts it is important that the client understands confidentiality. To be able to understand this the counsellor must explain to the client that anything they say within the

However, it is not always that simple and there may be some instances when it is not possible to maintain total confidentiality and the counsellor my have to pass on certain information that was revealed. For example, if a crime has been committed or if there is a risk of harm to another person. In this case the counsellor must be clear with the client what information they may have to pass on and to whom.

Confidentiality is a concept of vast importance for professionals in the medical field. It is a professional obligation in this field and is considered to be an ethical concept that falls in line with integrity, compassion, veracity, charity, and fidelity as explained in both the International Council of Nurses Code for Nurses (1973) and the American Nurses Association Code of Ethics (1985). However, in today’s ever growing world of technology and demand for information, challenges continue to arise that force doctors and nurses to reexamine virtues such as confidentiality.

Clearly, confidentiality is essential to the healing process. However, though it may appear to be a relatively easy concept, its application in the therapeutic atmosphere has proven to be quite complex (Younggren & Harris, p. 589). One issue that causes confusion for many professionals pertains to the differences between confidentiality and legal privilege. Quite often, ethical obligations overlap with the legal requirements. Frequently, the practitioner is not well informed about these particular limits on confidentiality and this lack of knowledge can place both the client and the helping professional at risk (Younggren & Harris, p.590, 598).

Both the ACA (2005) and AACC (2004) code of ethics require the counselor to maintain client confidentiality to the fullest extent. Working in the counseling field, trust is a rock in the foundational of a helping relationship and confidentially plays a large role in the client counselor relationship. Both codes share similarities regarding their stance on confidentiality. When counseling others, a counselor is to inform their clients about their commitment to confidentiality as well as their limits before

A patient will often reveal thoughts or deep inner secrets to his or her doctor that they have never revealed to anyone else and these patients who express their darkest thought along with expression that lurks deep within them. When the patient open up they will feel comfortable and the trusting mechanism will kick in to disclose all relatable information/data. A confidentially breaches occurs when a person tells information the is private without someone consent. A psychologist should always take the necessary precautions to protect their patient information because they are held liable and for some strange reason the patient information is breached or even leaks out a lawsuit will be the next step for the patient. Confidentiality breaches can be stopped by taking all appropriate precautions to prevent the patients’ medical treatment/information from leaking out by us as professional to keep our mouth closes. Make sure data is secure and follow the rules and regulations according to the Ethical Principles of Psychologist and the Code of

Health care professionals are subject to a multitude of professional, legal, and ethical responsibilities which call for personal judgment to be utilized in such a manner as to protect clients as well as public wellness and interests. Overall considerations in handling such duties may be considered to be respect of a client’s autonomy, confidence, and recognition of obligations owed to all clients. While the aforementioned acts fall within the professional realm, there are also legal implications that guide care. Therefore, it can be said that ethical considerations occur in observation of legal responsibilities. Confidential information is perceived as private facts which are disclosed with the

When it comes to confidentiality there are rules that one has to follow in order to abide by the person’s rights. Using caution when talking to others about the client who want to obtain information that they are not at liberty to have. An example of this would be someone claiming to be a patient’s friend wanting a room number in the hospital to go visit them. Confidentiality is a very delicate situation in the practicing field of professionals.

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: