Introduction
“In the middle of the journey of our life I came to myself within a dark wood where the straight way was lost” –Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy
The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines ethics as the rules of behavior based on ideas of what is morally good and bad. According to Webster ethics is also defined as the principles of conduct governing an individual or group. Almost every profession abides by certain rules and regulations that protects not only the professional but the client or patient that the profession serves. These rules and regulations guide the professional and try and prevent decisions that might be detrimental to both parties. These rules and regulations are designed to protect the interests of the clients and avoid malpractice lawsuits of certain degrees. This research paper will concentrate on ethical issues in the field of the counseling profession. Even though Licensed Professional Counselors go through rigorous training courses and ethics training occurs at almost every counseling subject’s introduction, there are still counseling malpractice incidents. Most of the literature explains that most challenges professional counselors face occur when their professional code of ethics conflict with their own personal values. Most recently, legal cases such as Keeton vs. Anderson-Wiley, 2010 and Ward vs. Willbanks, 2010 have brought the counseling profession into the limelight. Most LPC do not view the ACA code of ethics as simple
Professional counselor has to behave in an ethical manner, which reflects their profession. In additions counselors must obey federal and states laws. Therefore, the ACA Code of Ethics provides a professional standard, which professional counselors should uphold. The Code of Ethics was developed to provide counselors with a professional identity, which can shape how the public see counselors and offers some rules on how they should behave professionally (Shallcross, 2011). Furthermore, the Code of Ethics is used by the counselor to help address a problem. According to the ACA standard, a counselor must be competence in their job. The Code of Ethics is based on the Kitchener’s five moral principles American Counseling Association (Shallcross,
Do I have a Duty to do something? In counseling, I believe we all have a Duty, but, sometimes, depending on the issue, the question becomes who do I have a Duty to ? myself, my God, or the client? This ?D? and the other ?D?s will be discussed forthcoming in the issue I have chosen to discuss.
Counseling within a professional field requires that individuals obtain and maintain licenses that assure compliance to legal and ethical principles and standards. The provision of licensing in the state of Arizona is governed by the Arizona State Board of Behavioral Health Examiners and follows a code of ethics and legal statutes. Codes of ethics from professional associations are included in state regulations governing the practice of counseling and psychotherapy and ignorance of these codes and regulations does not excuse problematic behavior (Welfel, 2015). These ethical standards provide a framework in which a healthcare provider may work to best serve a client while protecting all parties involved to the best of their ability. As such
D-Met with the patient as she was placed on HOLD to address her AWOLs. According to the patient, she had overslept on 07/31/2016 & 08/02/2016. This writer informed the patient about the risk of missing a dose and the patient signed a AWOL notice. The patient is aware that if it happens again, she will receive a treatment violation. According to the patient, she says, " I will make sure to set my alarm to make sure I get here to dose.......Charlene, I relapse, man.....I did not use heroin, but I used cocaine." When asked how much, the patient did not want to disclose as to how much and only says, " Not a lot....I felt bad about it, but you right...I missed my dose and felt sick." This writer rescheduled the patient's appointment as she was unable to stay for a full counseling session today. Next appointment is scheduled on 08/2/2016 at 11:30am.
In the counseling profession, situations may be come about in the areas of ethical, professional, or legal concerns. New Counselors can become frustrated by the lack of dilemmas they can face in the field of mental health. Counselors must take into consideration the ethical, professional, and legal considerations they can or may encounter. Counselors use the ACA guide as rule book of professional standards of moral duty and obligation. The Ethics guide provides a frame work that centers on the counselor’s conduct in their work, accountability, and professionalism. The codes are written in broad terms to serve as starting point for making decisions in the professional field.
In the best interest as a rule the counseling professional, regardless of location, (rural, urban, city) are to evade dual relationships if at all possible.
-Next Dorothy would need to identify her feelings. It is important to identify and sort out your own feelings about many things. This will take some effort.
To start, the relationship between a counselor and a client is based on trust, therefore being the cornerstone of the counseling relationship. Professionals in many situations deal with issues that have ethical and legal ramifications. The communication amongst the two is to occur freely, the client must have privacy, and the information shared during the session is to be private (Newsome, Gladding, Pg. 66). The ethically and legally job of the counselor is to maintain and respect professional boundaries. Boundaries help provided structure to the professional relationship and the vulnerability of the client. Another area clinical mental health professionals practice is the boundaries of their competence. Based on the counselor's education, training, supervised experience, state and national professional credentials, and appropriate experience, counselors will achieve the knowledge in personal awareness, sensitivity, and skills to working with a diverse population (Newsome, Gladding, Pg. 66). The wide-spread of the availability of the internet since the
When discussing the importance of ethics, it must be clearly understood exactly what ethics are. Remley and Herlihy (2016) simplified ethics as, “conduct judged as good or right for counselors as professionals,” (p. 3). Ethical codes lay a groundwork to outline appropriate and consistent professional behavior amongst various occupations, including professional counselors. The American Counseling Association (ACA) is the primary professional association for counselors, and continues to publish revisions to its ethical guide, the Code of Ethics, for professional counselors (Remley & Herlihy, 2016). Individual states can also publish their own ethical guidelines for working professionals. In my home state of Pennsylvania, State Code refers all
Counselors face ethical challenges when engaging in research studies due to the complexity of conducting, interpreting and reporting the results of research. Confidentiality is an essential component that researchers need to take very service to avoid any wrongdoings because of the potential impact it can have on participants. Therefore, guidelines and the use of protocols that are in place in all stages of research need to be followed by the researcher. While conducting research it is vital to consider if the assessment being used is appropriate for the study, considering cultural differences and disabilities are factors that counselors need to be aware of.
A therapist has many decisions to make when a client walks through their doors for his counseling session. First, the counselor must greet the patient and assess a baseline behavior and his goals for counseling. Among this, as a future therapist, my role is to be an educator for my clients so they may be best equipped to go through life with a handle on their mental distress and illness. Beginning with a client, uncovering what has worked in their treatment, what has not worked out so well are key points in how to explore counseling options. Afterwards, I must properly educate my clients on his diagnosis(es). With as many “medical” websites as there are today, I want to ensure he understand his diagnoses from psychiatric research rather than the questionable information on these websites. In addition, clients most likely need guidance in how to navigate difficulties in life and balancing the stress they face in day to day life. Education also comes into play with uncovering what coping skills my client has been utilizing. If they are negative coping skills, such as
Chapter 11 discusses the Issues and Ethics that come along with counseling Couples and Families. In class, we discussed the value system that exists among Couples and Families in the therapeutic relationship. I believe that through the combination of concepts and techniques from multiple theoretical approaches I will be able to perform ethical and effective therapy. This method enables me to introduce different theories that offer a variety of understandings about how problems develop and how these problems can be solved because each couple is unique and different. By using this basic guiding principle in organizing treatments for couples based on what they value in their marriage, and not imposing my values of what marriage is for me, I will
Having an ethical code enables the facilitator to have a guide when predicaments occur, so it becomes the facilitator responsibility to know the ethical codes. According to Corey, Corey, & Corey (2010), “Group leaders must learn how to apply established ethics codes to a range of dilemmas they will face” (p. 71). A counselor will face challenges, having an ethical code is an invaluable tool that keeps them from harming the participants. Furthermore, having an ethical model helps counselors make decisions to protect their clients. The code of ethics, guides group leaders “to sound decision making rather than relying on “common sense” which may or may not be accurate” (Bradley, & Hendricks, 2008). Therapists do not always know what
While counseling a client with a substance abuse issue, a number of legal and ethical concerns come into play regardless of the clients wants, needs, or obligations. In the workplace, there are a number of standards that are expected from the addiction counselor in order for the counseling to make a relatively constructive impact on the client. Making appropriate decisions for the sake of the client’s safety, the clients loved one’s safety (family and friends), and the safety of the general public is an utmost priority.
The Counselor faces a number of dilemmas in dealing with the counseling sessions of the