Ethics in Clinical Counseling

Presented By:Art Romero, MA, LADAC, LPCC

Patricia McKeen, MA, LPCC

Professional Ethics:

DO NO HARM!

Begins With Self Reflection

Self =

Morals Beliefs Ethnicity Experiences Gender Significant Events Dysfunctional Family

Personal Ethics

Morals

Are you aware of your morals? Are your morals rigid? Are they based on religion? Are they based on ideals? Are your morals self imposed? Are your morals imposed by others?

Beliefs

What are your beliefs? Are your beliefs hereditary? Are your beliefs rigid? Do you believe self-will can overcome

disorders such as alcoholism?

Ethnicity

What is your ethnicity? Does your ethnicity give you a

disadvantage? If so, how? Does your ethnicity give you an advantage?

If so, how? Do you feel forced to live in two worlds?

Life Experiences

Name some of your experiences? Do some of these experiences affect current

behaviors/opinions ect.? Do some of these experiences make you a

better counselor? Do some of these experiences make it

harder to counsel?

Gender

What is your gender? Are you satisfied with your gender? Do you feel your gender gives you an

advantage or a disadvantage?

Significant Life Events

Think of some life events that are significant. Would any of them be considered traumatic? Have you dealt with these events? If so how have you dealt with them?

Dysfunctional Family

Did you grow up in a dysfunctional family? Did you grow up in a functional family? If your family was dysfunctional, why? How does your family experience affect your

work?

Co-Dependency

Are counselors by the nature of our work co-dependent?

Can a co-dependent counselor adversely affect the client?

What are some examples of how co-dependency can hurt a client and the therapeutic relationship?

What is co-dependency? What does it look like?

Enabling Martyrs Resentment Sympathy Denial for addict/self Overachiever Responsible

More co-dependency

Lack sense of humor Pessimistic Fear Low self esteem No self confidence

Discussion

Small discussion groups

Transference Vs Counter-transference

“The only really serious difficulty he has to meet lie in the management of the

transference”—S. Freud

Transference--LOVE

Love

Client openly declares she has fallen in love with the counselor!

What do you do?

First Option

This is a nice couple. Initiate a more permanent union.

Second Option

Discharge the client. Right away…

Third Option

Continue Treatment?

Discussion

What about that first option?– Against the law!!– Harmful to the client!– Did we mention it is against the law?

The second option is not against the law!!

What is the client falls in love with the second therapist?

What happens to the recovery and the hard work and time invested in the treatment at this point?

Could discharging damage the client?

Therapeutic third outcome…

What could come from continuing treatment? What is the counselor role? Should the counselor explore his own

feelings? Should the counselor just stay professional

and not discuss his feelings toward the client?

Ethical Choices

What if you don’t like your client? What if they do things you do not like?

Working With Children

“I want to go home with you….” “I hate you..” “Nobody wants me….”

What ethics follow with working with children?

Working with couples..

Special considerations for couple counseling Who does the couple counseling? What if you want to take sides?

Family Counseling

Special considerations for family counseling– What are they?

Group Counseling

Confidentiality Putting a group together

Counter-Transference

Therapy is never a truly reciprocal relationship.

The therapist must be cognizant of his own emotional responses to his client.

The therapist must analyze these feelings in order to discover as much as he can about why they are being elicited!

How Counter-Transference Can Help

In analyzing the counter-transference the therapist can garner information about the way the patient may be affecting others in his/her life.

The idea of even admitting the presence of counter-transference feelings, in modern counseling, let alone using it in therapy is relatively new!

Counter-Transferenceand

Co-Dependency

What are some counter-transference feelings of co-dependency that may arise from therapy?

How can the co-dependency feelings toward the client be used to enhance therapy or hurt the therapy?

Why we choose the clients we choose?

What type of client are you most comfortable with and why?– Is it always training that makes us most

comfortable?– Does counter-transference play a part in this?– When is this preference unethical?

Homework:

Break into small groups and discuss scenario given to group.

Pick a spoke person to present to group.

Wrap Up…

Ethics are important to maintain a healthy career.

Avoid lawsuits. Prevent damage to clients. Preserve the field of work for consumers and

providers. KNOW YOUR ETHICS BOARD!!