Ethical Reflection In Mental Health Care

The American Counseling Association and the American Mental Health Counselors Association Codes of Ethics both provide guidance and direction in making ethical decisions for their members (ACA, 2005) (AMHCA, 2010). Both the ACA and the AMHCA Codes of Ethics cover a wide range of moral and ethical situations that could present themselves to mental health professionals. Both of these codes of ethics have significant impacts on the counseling profession. The tools provided by these codes of ethics ensure that mental health professionals are able to conform to the regulations set forth. They address common concerns from varying points of view. Understanding these codes of ethics is essential to all mental

In health and social care, four key Ethical Principles that are taken into account during these settings. Which are:

Autonomy. Hai’s mental state is altered with the manifestations of delusions and hallucinations making him incapable of deciding for himself. His ability to practice his autonomy and refusal of medical treatment is deemed invalid due to his mental illness.

Most people with mental illness can and do seek out treatment for their condition. The Mental Health Act is concerned with the small number of persons who cannot or who do not seek out treatment.

Article 4 of the act intrigues to me because of the language used to change the fact that it could come across as discrimination. Impairment in other words means ‘abnormality’ which could come across as belligerent to those who suffer with psychological disorders, this then would present them as ‘lesser’ and therefore more likely to prejudice comments. However the word ‘impairment’ implies that someone isn’t able to lead a normal life and in some cases that is untrue. Recently the government has canvassed through radio and posters to convince the public that there is nothing wrong with having any psychological disorders, and these people shouldn’t be marginalised. Some people use the word ‘mental disorder’ when describing someone with a mental health problem because it again leads these people to be marginalised and have prejudice thoughts about them all the time. Additionally, these certain people do have amazing talents, have successful lives and have a normal life because their society has been taught different.

As being diagnosed as mentally ill creates a use of label’s which help us to understand and accept the behaviours that they are displaying within a patient centred environment where the individual will not be held in charge for their actions. However, this use of terms will generate empathy and accepting the attitudes of those who are suffering from the mental health issue/ disorder. In some cases, this type of language is seen as a control by professionals which shows off the power that they have over the service user. In some cases, the label’s give some form of relief to service users and individuals for example they will find out that the illness that they have has a name and reassures the service users in a way because they can receive a more adapted way of getting treatment and information of their illness. The findings that we have on labelling provides us with the evidence which we can use to argue that labelling empowers people and raises individual’s self-esteem which in a way can make their wellbeing better, but this is supported throughout the service users opinions once they’ve been diagnosed some individuals become aware of the illness that they have and they gain an understanding of the behaviours that they are displaying or showing. The mental capacity act 2005 says that choices are made but are made

It not easy to determine how many people suffer from mental illness. This is due to the changing definitions of mental illness and problems classifying, diagnosing, and reporting mental disorders. There are social stigmas attached to mental illness, such as being labeled "crazy," being treated as a danger to others, and being denied jobs or health insurance coverage. These negative connotations keep many sufferers from seeking help, and many of those in treatment do not reveal it on surveys. Some patients do not realize that their symptoms are caused by mental disorders. Even though more is being learned about how the brain works a lot of information has still yet to be discovered, thus mental health professionals must continually reevaluate how mental illnesses are defined and diagnosed. The Surgeon General 's report estimated that roughly 20% of the United States population was affected by mental disorders and that 15% use some type of mental health service every year. Community surveys estimate about 30% of the adult population in the United States suffer from mental disorders.

Mental Health Act 1983 and 2007, for somebody to be treated as mental illness or mental disorder the Mental Health Act must also be involved. The Mental Health Act was started in the 1983 and was then amended in the 2007. The Mental Health Act 2007 was also amended the Mental Capacity Act 2005. The Mental Health Act 1983 was covering the following mental health disorder such as mental illness, mental impairment, severe mental impairment and psychopathic disorder. Then it was later amended in Mental Health Act 2007 which has provided a definition of a ‘mental disorder’ has does two things by improving the understanding of who can be treated under the Health Act and has increased the number of illness and disorders that can lead to the detention

In order to provide holistic, person-centred care, having an understanding of ethics is essential (Kozier et al, 2008). Ethics is concerned

While the nursing profession is fulfilling, it is not without challenges. Nurses are faced with a multitude of ethical dilemmas in clinical practice on a daily basis. According to Fant (2012) no matter where nurses function in their diverse roles, they are faced with ethical decisions that can impact them and their patients. Some examples of moral issues that nurses encounter in contemporary nursing practice and research include but not limited to: refusal of treatment, scarcity of resources, disagreement with caregivers, treating patients with impaired decision-making, futile treatment decisions for cancer patients, end-of-life decisions, advanced treatment directives, and euthanasia (Leuter, Petrucci, Mattei, Tabassi, & Lancia, 2013).

My experience in mental health clinical was very different from any other clinical I had before. In a mental health clinical setting, I am not only treating client’s mental illnesses, I am also treating their medical problems such as COPD, diabetes, chronic renal failure, etc. Therefore, it is important to prepare for the unexpected events. In this mental health clinical, I learned that the importance of checking on my clients and making sure that they are doing fine by performing a quick head-to toes assessment at the beginning of my shift. I had also learned that client’s mental health illness had a huge impact on their current medical illness.

Healthcare professionals will be faced with ethical dilemmas throughout their career, particularly in the hospital environment. Having an education regarding professional healthcare ethics will provide some direction in how to best address these dilemmas at a time when either the patient or their family is in need of making decisions for themselves or their family member. It can be difficult for healthcare professionals to weigh professional protocol against their own personal beliefs and ethical understandings when determining critical care for their patient.

In the mental health profession of counseling, therapy, psychology, psychiatric and social services ethical dilemmas are faced primarily on a daily basis. Being that mental health professionals are working with clients who are often fragile and vulnerable, they must develop an intense awareness of ethical issues. On the other hand, mental health professionals would never intentionally harm their clients, students or colleagues and others whom they work with. Unfortunately, good intentions are not enough to ensure that wrong doings will not occur and mental health professionals have no choice but to make ethically determined decisions. Depending upon the experience and expertise of the professional determines the outcome of the ethical

There are lists upon lists of mental disorders and illnesses, and a lot of them people are not aware of. Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), bulimia, anorexia, anxiety, schizophrenia, and depression are just a few of the most well-known and common mental illnesses. In America, about 18 million people are diagnosed with depression, 15 million with anxiety, 5 million with OCD, and 3 million with schizophrenia (Raley and Johnson 50). There are even more people

It has been reported that the number of people with mental disorder is increasing in our communities at an alarming rate. Environmental and social changes are among the most mentioned causes of the accelerating rate of mental illness in society (Häfner, 1985). Despite the prevalence, about one fifth of the adult population will battle with mental illness every year ("Facts and figures about mental illness," 2014) and the acknowledgement of authorities mental illness is still given less attention then is needed to treat the problem successfully. Health bodies need to be putting more resources into this area as