_____________________________________ Setting Ethical Limits: For Caring and Competent Professionals
APA’S ETHICAL PRINCIPLES OF PSYCHOLOGISTS AND CODE OF CONDUCT 2.01 Boundaries of Competence (a) Psychologists provide services, teach, and conduct research with populations and in areas only within the boundaries of their competence, based on their education, training, supervised experience, consultation, study, or professional experience. (b) Where scientific or professional knowledge in the discipline of psychology establishes that an understanding of factors associated with age, gender, gender identity, race, ethnicity, culture, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, disability, language, or socioeconomic status is essential for effective implementation of their services or research, psychologists have or obtain the training, experience, consultation, or supervision necessary to ensure the competence of their services, or they make appropriate referrals, except as provided in Standard 2.02, Providing Services in Emergencies. (c) Psychologists planning to provide services, teach, or conduct research involving populations, areas, techniques, or technologies new to them undertake relevant education, training, supervised experience, consultation, or study. (d) When psychologists are asked to provide services to individuals for whom appropriate mental health services are not available and for which psychologists have not obtained the competence necessary, psychologists with closely related prior training or experience may provide such services in order to ensure that services are not denied if they make a reasonable effort to obtain the competence required by using relevant research, training, consultation, or study. (e) In those emerging areas in which generally recognized standards for preparatory training do not yet exist, psychologists nevertheless take reasonable steps to ensure the competence of their work and to protect clients/ patients, students, supervisees, research participants, organizational clients, and others from harm. (f) When assuming forensic roles, psychologists are or become reasonably familiar with the judicial or administrative rules governing their roles. 2.03 Maintaining Competence Psychologists undertake ongoing efforts to develop and maintain their competence. 2014 ACA CODE OF ETHICS C.1. Knowledge of and Compliance with Standards Counselors have a responsibility to read, understand, and follow the ACA Code of Ethics and adhere to applicable laws and regulations.
INTRODUCTION Counselors can make a significant, positive impact in the lives of those with whom they work, and the practice of therapy can be highly rewarding and gratifying. However, it can also be emotionally demanding, challenging, and stressful. Counselors are at risk for occupational stress from a variety of sources, including [1]: • The demands of clinical and professional responsibility • The challenges of managing the client/counselor relationship • The role characteristics that make counselors prone to burnout (e.g., high level of involvement) • Vulnerability to vicarious traumatization • The changing standards and business demands of the profession (e.g., increased documentation requirements, increased intrusion of legal/business concerns into therapeutic practice) • The intersection of personal and professional demands Healthy boundaries are a critical component of self-care. Setting boundaries can help counselors manage occupational stressors and maintain the delicate balance between their personal and professional lives. Boundaries also demonstrate competency in clinical practice and help counselors avoid ethical conflicts [2]. Please note, throughout this course the term “counselor” is used to refer to any professional providing mental health and/ or social services to clients, unless otherwise noted. COMPETENCE Professional associations representing the various fields of clinical practice have codes of ethics that provide principles and standards to guide and protect both the mental health professional and the individuals with whom they work. For example, the American Psychological Association (APA), the American Counseling Association (ACA), the National Association of Social Workers (NASW), the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC), and the National Certification Commission for Addiction Professionals (NCCAP) each has an ethics code created to identify core values, inform ethical practice, support professional responsibility and accountability, and ensure competency among its members [3; 4; 5; 6; 7]. Competency is defined as “the extent to which a therapist has the knowledge and skill required to deliver a treatment to the standard needed for it to achieve its expected effects” [8]. It is the scope of the professional’s practice. According to the ethics codes of the APA, the ACA, and the NASW, members are to practice only within their boundaries of competence [3; 4; 5].
25
EliteLearning.com/Social-Work
Powered by FlippingBook