Ethics Meta
The ACA Code of Ethics
What is informed consent?
Clients have the freedom to choose whether to enter into or remain in a counseling relationship and need adequate information about the counseling process and the counselor. Counselors have an obligation to review in writing and verbally with clients the rights and responsibilities of both counselors and clients.
A client brings up in session that they are sexually attracted to you. Would agreeing to see them for a date or hangout after you are done with your work day be ethical?
NO!
Sexual and/or romantic counselor–client interactions or relationships with current clients are prohibited. This prohibition applies to both in-person and electronic interactions or relationships.
You have a particularly rough session to end your day right before going out with a friend. How much information about this session can you ethically tell your friend about?
Anything that does not include identifying information.
Define ethics
A set of moral principles: a theory or system of moral values.
In an intake session, the client demands to know your credentials and how many years of relevant experience in the field you have. Are you required to give this information?
Yes.
Counselors explicitly explain to clients the nature of all services provided. They inform clients about issues such as, but not limited to, the following: the purposes, goals, techniques, procedures, limitations, potential risks, and benefits of services; the counselor’s qualifications, credentials, relevant experience, and approach to counseling.
You go on a date with someone from a dating app and in the middle of the date realize this person is the sibling of a client you terminated services for last year. May you ethically continue to see this person?
No.
Sexual and/or romantic counselor– client interactions or relationships with former clients, their romantic partners, or their family members are prohibited for a period of 5 years following the last professional contact. This prohibition applies to both in-person and electronic interactions or relationships.
When is it ethical to break confidentiality for safety reasons?
Foreseeable harm to self (suicide), others, or mandated reported (suspected abuse of a vulnerable population).
The general requirement that counselors keep information confidential does not apply when disclosure is required to protect clients or identified others from serious and foreseeable harm or when legal requirements demand that confidential information must be revealed
What is the difference between ethics and morals?
Both distinguish between doing good and bad, but:
Ethics - External beliefs that come from an outside (community, culture, religion, etc) perspective.
Morals - Internal personal beliefs, defined by individual
In your first session with a client who is legally mandated to receive counseling, they report that they will not be attending future sessions and would like to cancel services. Are they allowed to do this?
Yes.
The client may choose to refuse services. In this case, counselors will, to the best of their ability, discuss with the client the potential consequences of refusing counseling services.
You do great work with one of your 8 year old clients. Would it be ethical to take this client's younger brother for individual therapy at their mother's request?
No - This is a conflict of interest.
Beyond concerns for the safety for the client, the safety of others, and mandated reporting scenarios, when is the one instance where breaking confidentiality without the client's permission is ethically allowed?
When seeking compensation for previously rendered services that were not paid for.
If counselors intend to use collection agencies or take legal measures to collect fees from clients who do not pay for services as agreed upon, they include such information in their informed consent documents and also inform clients in a timely fashion of intended actions and offer clients the opportunity to make payment
You suspect a coworker has broken the code of ethics and is taking advantage of their clients in some way, you want to report them for this. Who can you report them to?
Ira Gooch!
or (if they are licensed)
File an ethics complaint form to the board of NCC certified counselors
You have a minor client, not capable of giving consent for their treatment plan. You instead seek assent. What is assent?
The expression of approval or agreement.
When counseling minors, incapacitated adults, or other persons unable to give voluntary consent, counselors seek the assent of clients to services and include them in decision making as appropriate. Counselors recognize the need to balance the ethical rights of clients to make choices, their capacity to give consent or assent to receive services, and parental or familial legal rights and responsibilities to protect these clients and make decisions on their behalf.
Are we as therapists allowed to accept gifts from clients? What must be considered?
When determining whether to accept a gift from clients, counselors take into account the therapeutic relationship, the monetary value of the gift, the client’s motivation for giving the gift, and the counselor’s motivation for wanting to accept or decline the gift.
Your 6 year old client says she is fine with you telling her uncle about her new diagnosis, as he is not her guardian but is coming to pick her up from session today. Can you do this?
No.
When counseling minor clients, counselors seek permission from an appropriate third party to disclose information
What does the ACA 2014 Code of Ethics list as the primary responsibility of counselors?
"The primary responsibility of counselors is to respect the dignity and promote the welfare of clients."
Your client has been working hard with you to improve their school performance and after making great strides, invites you to their graduation ceremony. Would attending be ethical?
How would informed consent play into this?
Potentially!
Counselors consider the risks and benefits of extending current counseling relationships beyond conventional parameters. Examples include attending a client’s formal ceremony (e.g., a wedding/commitment ceremony or graduation), purchasing a service or product provided by a client (excepting unrestricted bartering), and visiting a client’s ill family member in the hospital. In extending these boundaries, counselors take appropriate professional precautions such as informed consent, consultation, supervision, and documentation to ensure that judgment is not impaired and no harm occurs.
A client cannot afford to pay you for their upcoming therapy session. They are an engineer and offer to service your car in order to compensate you for the session instead. Is this something that can be accepted?
In Somerville, no
In other places, sometimes:
Counselors may barter only if the bartering does not result in exploitation or harm, if the client requests it, and if such arrangements are an accepted practice among professionals in the community. Counselors consider the cultural implications of bartering and discuss relevant concerns with clients and document such agreements in a clear written contract.
When is it okay to terminate services with a client? What are acceptable reasons for terminating services?
Counselors terminate a counseling relationship when it becomes reasonably apparent that the client no longer needs assistance, is not likely to benefit, or is being harmed by continued counseling. Counselors may terminate counseling when in jeopardy of harm by the client or by another person with whom the client has a relationship, or when clients do not pay fees as agreed upon. Counselors provide pretermination counseling and recommend other service providers when necessary.