Confidentiality and Minors

Confidentiality is an inherent component to the counselor-at- justice accomplish. It every(prenominal)ows for the lymph gland to advance a trustful congenatorship with the exponent. Counselors regard the promise of confidentiality to be essential for the mystifyment of lymph node trust (Glosoff & cap, 2002). Most individuals that seek counseling function assume that what is discussed in the counseling sessions with the counselor will be kept in confidence with limited exceptions. These exceptions become a complex equilibrate act for the counselor especially when their clients ar minors. Confidentiality is a widely held estimable standard a confusedly accorded effectual right of clients and indebtedness of counselors (Ameri locoweed centering Association, 2005 Ameri thunder mug inculcate Counseling Association, 2010). correspond to the Ethical Standards for shoal Counselors and the formula of Ethics and Standards for Counseling (2010), both specify that counse lors ar goodly ineluctable to take appropriate action and crack confidentiality in certain great take up involving minors.Counselors be required to breach confidentiality if there is imminent danger to self-importance and separates, if there is suspected child abuse or neglect or to cherish a vulnerable client from danger. There are other limitations to confidentiality and minors as well. Some of these limitations involve parents and their right to roll in the hay what is occurrence in counseling sessions in the midst of the therapist and their child.This problem is one that drills counselors and clinical therapists mustiness face when counseling minors. Counselors in both clinical and rail pictures are faced with ethical issues with regards to confidentiality each time they encounter a client that is a minor. coach Counselors vex a variety of roles and responsibilities to disciples, teachers, parents and administrators (Iyer, McGregor & Connor, 2010).According to the American nurture Counseling Association (2004), it is the responsibility of the drill counselor to second a child develop effective coping skills, identify ain strengths and assets, recognize and express feelings and provide a foundation for the childs personal and social growth as he or she progresses from naturalise to adulthood as apart of the process. School Counselors must collaborate with all persons convolute with the minor in this process, which leafy vegetablely includes the parents and teachers. SchoolCounselors are also fewtimes acquireed to be apart of child study teams within the civilize, which can be very beneficial to the bookmans and those involved in their lives. School Counselors must go along the American School Counseling Associations ethical standards for School Counselors regarding confidentiality. In beginning sessions amongst the client and the schooltime counselor confidentiality should be discussed and the conditions in which it may learn to be breached. According to Lazovsky (2010), The management of student confidentiality has been described as the primary ethical dilemma of school counselors.There are various ethical and legal issues that arise for School Counselors when dealing with confidentiality. School Counselors are required ethically to enunciate when a student engages in clear and imminent danger to themselves or others. Some school counselors lay down their finding to breach confidentiality on how imminent the danger is that is being presented by the situation. Most counselors would agree parents should be certified of drug experimentation by an 8 year old. M whatever however, would disagree to tell parents that a 16 year old client reported occasional experimentation with cannabis (Glosoff & Pate, 2002).This example shows that school counselors should use discretion when deciding to breach confidentiality. These deuce minor clients are different but each situation has a variety of airs that it could be handled. According to Lazovky (2008), school counselors are discuss to consult with supervisors and colleagues onward making decisions based on breaching confidentiality. They should also fill out their state policies and legal philosophys in the school jurisdiction. other ethical and legal issue that can arise for school counselors counseling minors in relation to confidentiality is the disclosure of student provided information to parents.Privileged communication is apart of confidentiality. Privileged communication allows for clients to ask counselors to affirm their communications and records of their counseling sessions confidential. Privilege belongs to the client and the counselor asserts privilege for the client. According to Glosoff (2002), the already complex issue of privileges communication for school counselors is made even more complex by who has the privilege when counseling a minor. Parents of minors rather than minor clients are assumed to view p rivilege. School Counselors are sometimes subpoenaed for court appearances when the parents do not agree on whether the counselors presence is necessary in the attestation or a parental custody dispute may be the heart of the legal proceeding. The ACA and ASCA recognize that school counselors have limits to their ability to harbor client confidences. School Counselors must not only be redolent of their ethical duties but cooperate with any laws that that apply to them as well. The Family fosterage Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) establishes that parents control the rights of students under the age of 18 (Iyer, McGregor & Connor, 2010).This includes any of the students records such as grades, awards and date of birth. Decisions about the arc of these records are based under exceptions under FERPA and also the parents consent. yet, around records regarding the student are held in safe places where other school officials do not have or need access. Another law that school counselo rs must keep in mind is HIPAA. This law was enacted to protect patients health information. In relation to school counselors, the students medical records are being protected. The issue of confidentiality in barbarian Study Teams has become an ethical dilemma for many a(prenominal) school counselors.The school counselor must decide on what to disclose and what information to take about based on each members rights and responsibilities. decision making what to reveal and what to keep confidential can be a catchy and difficult task for school counselors. clinical Therapists face many ethical and legal issues with regards to confidentiality as well. Clinical Therapists are different from School Counselors in their role with minors because the only stakeholder involved with the therapist in most cases is the parent. According to Ellis (2009), minors right to confidentiality is an area at times, which ethics and the law are in conflict. nonpareil of these ethical dilemmas arises in the area client privilege. In the case of minors, this privilege extends to the parents who act as representatives to their dependent children. Clinical Therapist campaign with maintaining confidentiality for their minor clients especially when the law is on the face of the parents because they have the right to know. Stone & Issacs (2003) suggest that in order to deal with ethical issues regarding confidentiality and minors therapists should prepare a written schoolmaster service agreement which provides details on the limits and conditions of confidentiality.At this point the parent can be involved in their childs treatment in various ways. One of the ways that parents can be involved is through bimonthly family sessions. In the clinical counseling setting, there are often conflicts between duties of confidentiality and the need to share information with parents or other agencies that provide finagle for a child or adolescent. There can also be ethical conflicts between dutie s of confidentiality, grounded in respect for patient autonomy, and both statutory and moral pacts to report child abuse, which are grounded in duties of care and shelter (Kaplan, 2005).One issue which troubles some clinical therapists is a statutory obligation to report consensual sexual relationships that adolescents are engaged in with adults irrespective of whether they are clinically judged to be abusive, because they can be framed in many child protection statutes or guidance as constituting abuse. (Ellis, 2009). There are some convertibleities between confidentiality and counseling minors in both school and clinical settings. One similarity is that in both settings counselors must take note the same ethical guidelines for breaching confidentiality.Breaching confidentiality is allowed by ethical codes in special or extreme circumstances (Lazovsky, 2008). In both settings counselors must carefully moot over the circumstances that are presented to them by the minor client in the counseling sessions. The counselor should then decide whether or not to breach confidentiality. This ethical dilemma is a difficult issue that many counselors are faced with in both clinical and school settings.Another similarity between counseling minors in both school and clinical settings is that counselors must often consult with other staff members in both settings for the avail of the children that they serve. It is important for counselors to educate other non-mental health staff members that they must keep confidential any personal information they learn about children as a result of their professional positions (Rehmley & Herley, 2010). If any information were to be break outside of the school or clinical settings, it could be lead to thou for a lawsuit.There are some differences between confidentiality and counseling minors in both school and clinical settings as well. One difference is that counselors in clinical settings encounter fewer ethical issues around co nfidentiality and minors because parents usually have given(p) legal consent for the counselor to work with the client. However in the school setting, Rehmley & Herley (2010) state that the counselor often does not have a legal obligation to obtain parental permission before counseling students unless there is a federal or state statute to the contrary.Another difference between confidentiality and minors in the school and clinical setting is in the clinical setting the counseling process may be limited to the counselor, the minor client and the parents. Most minor clients who are hardened in clinical treatment facilities will be unable to rush crucial decisions for themselves. The privilege of informed consent will be given to the parent and the parent will operate in the childs best interests (Glosoff & Pate, 2002). Counselors in both clinical and school settings find the ethical and legal issues of confidentiality difficult because there are constant conflicts between the law and ethics.One issue that counselors find causes tension between law and ethics is whether children have the right to enter into a counseling relationship without parental consent. According to Rehmley & Herley (2010), every child has a moral right to privacy in the counseling relationship. Kaplan (2005) believes that children should have the same rights to confidentiality as adult clients. However, counselors constantly struggle between the ethical obligation of privacy to their minor clients and their legal obligation to the parents of the same minor clients to keep their child protected and safe.There are some ways that counselors are able to deal with these ethical and legal dilemmas regarding confidentiality and minors. One recommendation that was made by Iyer, Baxter-McGregor & Connor (2010) is to develop and maintain a wet informed consent policy. Informed consent is a process that is an on-going process and should begin before the counseling process begins. According to Gl osoff & Pate (2002), it is beneficial in both settings to develop a written informed consent policy so that it can be given to parents and anyone else who is involved in the clients counseling process.This is beneficial because all parties involved in the process will know about confidentiality and also what to expect. Another recommendation that was suggested by Iyer, Baxter-McGregor & Connor (2010) is to educate all members that are involved in the minor clients counseling process about the importance of confidentiality. In this way there will be a reduction in the likeliness of difficult situations posed by ethical dilemmas developing in the archetypical place. An explanation of confidentiality would be a great addition to an orientation to parents, teachers or other non-mental health professionals.They would know what to expect with regards to confidentiality in counseling sessions with minors. Another suggestion that was discussed in the literature in relation to ethical and legal dilemmas regarding confidentiality and minors is to send out educational newsletters and emails. This suggestion takes a proactive stance towards the ethical and legal issue of confidentiality and minors and it helps to avoid the practical ethical dilemma before it occurs (Glosoff &Pate, 2002).Some possible items that could be included in these newsletters or emails may be a definition of confidentiality, ones informed consent policy, state regulations or laws regarding confidentiality and a summary of ASCAs and ACAs ethics statements for counselors. Lastly, another suggestion that was discussed in the literature in relation to ethical and legal dilemmas regarding confidentiality and minors is for counselors to develop a strong network of professionals that counselors can confide in and ask advice when they encounter an ethical dilemma (Iyer, Baxter-McGregor & Connor 2010 Glosoff & Pate, 2002).This network may include school psychologists, local psychologists, counseling prof essionals and any who works within a similar field. According to Iyer, Baxter-McGregor & Connor (2010), a counselor may use a common framework such Kitcheners five moral principles regarding ethical decision making. The five moral principals are autonomy, justice (fairness), munificence (doing good), non-maleficence (doing no harm) and fidelity (keeping promises).Another ethical decision making model that can be followed is by Forester-Miller and Davis which is to 1) Identify the problem, 2) Apply ones professional code of ethics, 3) Determine the nature and decisions of the dilemma, 4) Generate potential grads of action, 5) Consider the potential consequences of all options and convey a course of action 6) Evaluate the selected course of action and 7) Implement the course of action. Counselors in both clinical and school setting have a tremendous amount of responsibility to embolden when they are counseling minors.The ethical and legal issues that arise for this group can some times differ and also be contradictory to each other. It is the responsibility of the counselors to prepare themselves and all parties involved in the counseling process with the knowledge that is necessary in regards to confidentiality and minors. In many cases when the counselor is left to choose the right course of action in regards to confidentiality, the outcome will inevitable benefit the client. References American Counseling Association. (2005). Code of ethics and standards of fare (Rev. ed. ) Alexandria, VA Author.American School Counselor Association. (2010). Ethical standards for school counselors. Retrieved from http//www. schoolcounselor. org/content. asp? contentid=17 Barnett, J. E. (2008). The ethical practice of psychotherapy Easily within our reach. Journal Of Clinical Psychology, 64(5), 569-575. doi10. 1002/jclp. 20473 Ellis, E. M. (2009). Should a psychotherapist be compelled to release an adolescents treatment records to a parent in a contested custody case?. master key Psychology Research And Practice, 40(6), 557-563. doi10. 1037/a0017419 Glosoff, H. L. , & Pate, R. r. (2002).Privacy and confidentiality in school counseling. Professional School Counseling, 6(1), 20-27. Iyer, N. N. , Baxter-McGregor, J. & Connor, A. R. (2010). Ethical dilemmas for the school counselor balancing student confidentiality and parents right to know. new-sprung(prenominal) York State School Counselor Association, 7(2), 17-22. Kaplan, A. I. (2005). Therapist-Patient Privilege Who Owns the Privilege?. Journal Of Aggression, contumely & Trauma, 11(1/2), 135-143. doi10. 1300/J146v11n0111 Lazovsky, R. (2008). Maintaining confidentiality with minors Dilemmas of school counselors. Professional School Counseling, 11(5), 335-346. oi10. 5330/PSC. n. 2010-11. 335 Mitchell, C. W. , Disque, J. , & Robertson, P. (2002). When parents want to know Responding to parental demands for confidential information. Professional School Counseling, 6(2), 156-161. Rehmley, T. P. , & H erlihy, B. (2010). Ethical, Legal and Professional Issues in Counseling. Merrill New York. Stone, C. , & Isaacs, M. L. (2003). Confidentiality with minors The need for policy to promote and protect. The Journal Of educational Research, 96(3), 140-150. doi10. 1080/00220670309598802 Confidentiality and Minors By Neferteria Thomas