Locating and Integrating State Laws and Ethical Codes

Locating and Integrating State Laws and Ethical Codes

Instructions:-

Resources

By now, you should have located several current sets of ethical standards used by various counseling professionals. For this assignment, reference the ACA Code of Ethics as well as any other ethical codes from professional organizations specific to your program (that is, ASCA’s 2016 Ethical Standards for School Counselors, AMHCA’s 2010 Principles of AMHCA Code of Ethics, NBCC’s 2012 Code of Ethics, NAADAC’s 2011 Code of Ethics). This assignment has three parts.

Part One

Research two ethical codes that are relevant to your specialization. Identify at least two specific standards in each of the codes that address ethical issues that you did not consider prior to researching the code. Explain why the standards stand out as important for counselors in your specialization. The description of the standards should be written in your own words in third person, paraphrasing the information you have located; do not use any direct quotes from the materials. Address how you will remain abreast of changes as the ethical codes are updated.

Part Two

Document the location of the laws regulating the practice of counseling in your state. These will be the regulations that outline the requirements for becoming licensed/certified in the state, as well as the laws pertinent to the practice of counseling (such as requirements for continuing education, mandated reporting laws, and so on).

Do not use Counselor-License.com. The laws regulating the practice of counseling in your state can be found on your state counseling board website, or through your state counseling association. School counselors should check with the state board of education. There are also helpful resources found on the Capella Licensure Tool on iGuide.

  • In your own words: Describe where you found these laws and include the link to the Web site.
    • How are notices about new laws and regulations in your state made available to practicing counselors? For example, some states allow counselors to sign up for email notices of new legislation; or it is published in the state counseling journals/newsletters. Do some research to find out how this information is provided in your own state and provide a brief description of how you will stay informed about new laws and pending legislation made available to counselors in your state. Include the full references to publications or links to Web sites where this information is provided.

Part Three

Use the presentation Locating and Integrating State Laws and Ethical Codes in this unit’s study (located in the assignment resources) to apply your knowledge of laws and ethical codes to particular issues:

Select three (3) issues from the presentation that may arise in the type of setting in which you will be working and for each selected issue, complete the following:

  • Determine whether your response to the situation would be guided by an ethical standard, a state law, or both, for each issue.
    • Identify at least 2 specific state laws and 2 specific ethical standards that are relevant to each issue. In other words, list the code number for the applicable laws and the ethical standards. For example, if the case involves supervision of a counselor, I might reference the Ohio Revised Code (ORC) 4757-17-01 “Counseling supervision”, and the ACA (2014) code F.2.a. “Supervisor Preparation”.
    • Write a description of why these laws/standards are applicable in this case, considering how the specific laws and codes inform responsible counseling practice.
    • What are the specific decisions, actions, and/or steps you would take in order to behave in a legal, ethical, and professional manner?

Submission Requirements

Your paper should meet the following requirements:

  • Written communication: Develop accurate written communication and thoughts that convey the overall goals of the assignment and do not detract from the overall message. Your paper should demonstrate graduate-level writing skills.
     
    • References: Your reference list must include:
      • The 2014 ACA Code of Ethics and another relevant set of standards (ASCA, AMHCA, etc.) .
      • An APA-formatted link to your state’s rules and laws.
      • Distinguished submissions will likely exceed this minimum requirement.

You must use APA sixth edition style to format your references. Refer to the iGuide page APA Style and Format for more information.

  • Number of pages: The length of your paper should be 4-5 double-spaced pages. Note: Page count does not include cover page or references.

Formatting: Use 12-pt, Times New Roman font; MS Word documents only.
Use APA sixth edition formatting, including correct in-text citations, proper punctuation, double-spacing throughout, proper headings and subheadings, no skipped lines before headings and subheadings, proper paragraph and block indentation, no bolding, and no bullets. Refer to the iGuide page APA Style and Format for more information.

Solution

Locating and Integrating State Laws and Ethical Codes

Part 1

Confidentiality 

Counselors should hold on to client’s privacy as they engage in their day to day activities. Counselors should always enquire from the clients if they are able to talk about their private issues. The counselors will only have the right to know the private life of the client if and only if the client is willing to talk about such a topic without feeling uncomfortable. The limits of the privacy should also be considered and discussed by the two. In addition, the federal and state laws concerning the privacy of an individual should also be considered. According to section A.1.b of the ACA code of conduct proper record keeping should also be considered to ensure that the private details of the client are not tampered with by a third party (ACA ,2014). When such security is ensured the confidence of the client will increase and will be willing to engage in such discussions or questioning in future. The limits of the internet should also be considered. The internet and information that it provides should also be evaluated and verified. Sharing of information or the data that has been collected should be discussed and the limitations of sharing such information.

Ethical relationships

The relationship that counselors should maintain is also important to be considered. They should be conscious of the various roles that they may be subjected to. According to the ACA code of ethics, psychologists should not subject themselves to relationships that may cause impair on their professional work. In addition, it states that they should not involve themselves in a relationship that may harm other people. However, the code of ethics states that multiple relationships should not be considered unethical not unless they have adverse effects. The code of conducts states also that although multiple relationships are welcomed, Psychologists should be careful when getting involved in any relationship with their clients or groups. A perfect example is studying the effects of a company’s product that they may be having shares or having interest.  A task such as selecting students to participate in experiments should be voluntary.

Part 2

 I located the ethical standards on the website of American Counseling Association (ASA). The website link of the Association is https://www.counseling.org/. The webpage has a tab that can help one to access the most current version code of Ethics. The version that I located is a 2014 publication that was approved by the Governing Council of the Association. The 2014 version replaced the 2005 version after being revised by the Ethical Revision Task Force. The other source of the code of ethics was the American Mental Health Counselors Association (AMHCA) Code of Ethics website. The link to the website is the http://www.amhca.org/. Just like the ACA website using a search tab the code of conduct can be located on the website. The link to the code of conduct is ethics http://www.amhca.org/codeofconduct. The ACA website also provides the qualifications and requirements for licensing of the counselors in different states through the link http://www.counseling.org/docs/default-source/ethics/2014-aca-code-of-ethics.pdf?sfvrsn=fde89426_5.

In my state, the practicing counselors are required to be members of these websites to receive any notices through their emails. They can also receive notices through the various meetings that are held across the state during different times of the year. In addition, according to the website South Carolina Legislature, the Board of Examiners for Licensure of Professional Counselors can give notices on the various changes or updates that are made to the code of conduct. The website also provides publications of the code of conduct that can be located by clicking the publication tab on the home webpage. In addition, the website South Carolina Legislature provides all the descriptions and qualifications for one to qualify for a license and how to apply for it. The link to the website is http://www.scstatehouse.gov/index.php, while the qualifications and requirements can be accessed through the link http://www.scstatehouse.gov/code/t40c055.php. Section 40-55-80 of webpage provides the various qualifications and requirements. There are also the various updates on the ethical conduct of a Counselor and the relationship that should exist between him or her and the clients that she is serving.

Part 3

Issue 1

Ethical. The Ethical code of conduct states that it is the responsibility of the Counselor to protect the private information of the client. The need to protect any discussion that they two have had will be important according to the 2014 publication of ACA rules section B.1.b. that advocates for respect of the privacy of the client. In addition, section B.1.c. of the same code of conduct stresses on the needed of confidentiality of the client’s information. Section B.4.b. of the code of conduct on family and couple counseling clearly defines who is considered the client and the need to limit the information shared. Therefore, the parent will only have limited information on the child. These laws are important because they are part of the qualification for licensing psychologists. The laws are also required to be observed by the counselors as they go about their operations. Therefore, the best decision to take is not revealing what the child has been discussing during the counseling sessions.

Issue 2

Both. In this case, I used the American Association for Marriage and Family principle III, Professional Competence and Integrity. The code of conduct 3.10 states that marriage, as well as family therapists, should not give out gifts or receive any from his or her clients. The code of conduct lists these gifts such as gifts of high value and those that may question the integrity of therapeutic relationship (ACA, 2014). The need to weigh the benefits of receiving such, the rules of the organization and therapeutic relationship has to be factored in. Section A.10.e of the American Counseling Association states that the Counselors should be able to comprehend the difficulties that come with accepting gifts. According to the code of conduct, they should also be able to appreciate that in other cultures when one is given small gifts it is a show of respect. Another issue that should be considered is that it may result in a legal issue with the agency when such gifts of value are accepted. Therefore, for my case to behave in an ethical manner I would not accept the gift but recognize the parents for showing respect and gratitude towards me.

Issue 3

Ethical. The teacher may not be asking for any details of the child discussion. Therefore, will just explain how the child is progressing without giving details because she may not be a member of the family. Section B.2.e. of the  ACA 2014 code of conduct advocates for minimal disclosure requiring that counselors offer minimal information for decision making to outside parties.  The client will also have to be informed o the interdisciplinary teams that are involved in the process which may include the teachers. Section B.3.b of the ACA code of conduct advocates for the involvement of interdisciplinary team that should be informed to the client prior (ACA, 2014). Therefore, the teacher may be entitled to the limited information on the progress of the child although the details may not be necessary. The laws play an important role in ensuring that the privacy of the child is protected while significant progress is made and monitored by the various teams involved ( Francis & Dugger,2014). The code of conduct provides inclusivity for the interdisciplinary teams that are involved in the process. Therefore, the perfect decision is to inform the teacher on the progress made without spilling the privacy of the child.

References

Ethics & Professional Standards. (2017). Counseling.org. Retrieved 30 July 2017, from http://www.counseling.org/knowledge-center/ethics.

2014 ACA Code of Ethics.(2014) Counseling.org. Retrieved 30 July 2017, from http://www.counseling.org/docs/default-source/ethics/2014-aca-code-of-ethics.pdf?sfvrsn=fde89426_5.

Francis, P. C., & Dugger, S. M. (2014). Professionalism, ethics, and value‐based conflicts in counseling: an introduction to the special section. Journal of Counseling & Development, 92(2), 131-134.

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