Professional and Ethical Issues Introduction In order for counselling to be effective and purposeful it must be conducted in an ethical way. The very act of seeking counselling predisposes that the seeker is vulnerable/troubled and needs assurance that the main focus of counselling will be their well-being and promote for them a greater sense of autonomy, and not to serve any other purpose. Therefore the foundation of good counselling must be an ethical relationship, hence the need for an ethical framework. As Tim Bond (2010) states: An ethical framework creates a basic conceptual structure within which we can all feel safe and supported to move around freely and make choices. There is enough of a structure to define the …show more content…
It is important to look at ethical dilemmas in a systematic way, thus increasing the chance of achieving a solution that gives the best possible outcome. An ethical problem solving model taken from American sources (Paradise and Siegelwaks, 1982; Austin et al., 1990) was used to develop a six-step process to follow, in order to achieve this (Bond 2010, pg. 227). This process informs this paper, and I am in the role of counsellor. Dilemma 1 Description of dilemma Your client Sue is a Social Work Assistant. In your last session she disclosed that she is concerned that on a recent home visit, herself and a senior colleague did not follow the necessary policies and procedures. They had visited a family with a history of neglect and domestic violence and did not ask to see the child or enter the home, both these actions are prescribed as appropriate as part of their work. Whose dilemma is it? The Counsellor The first thing would be alarms bells ringing with regard to child safety with the possibility of having to break client confidentiality with regard to potential Child Protection issues. That part, in my view, is not the real dilemma because I am bound by law to do ‘something’. For me, the dilemma is how to handle the situation to achieve the best outcome for my client, myself (professionally and morally), the family concerned and the organization that Sue works for. The Client It is also a dilemma for Sue. Should she go over her senior’s
The Ethical Framework is made up of rules and regulations within which Counsellors and Psychotherapists strive to achieve in order to attain a high professional standard. It protects client and counsellor and compounds values, principles and personal moral qualities for counsellors to work alongside in order to achieve the highest standard of counselling for clients. These include safety, record keeping, confidentiality and issues such as prejudice, transference.
The aim of this report is to examine key concepts of Person-Centred Counselling (PCC), as it's core theory, in understanding human behaviour. Focusing specifically in relation to Michael's issues from the case study (Appendix A) to critically assess it's appropriateness against other counselling theory. It will offer a brief historical overview of PCC and conclude with the writer's personal evaluation.
The Ethical Framework is designed to regulate the work of the counselling practitioner in order to safeguard the needs of the client and to ensure that they are being treated with respect and dignity.
The British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) Ethical Framework for the Counselling Professions provides the foundations and guidelines for ethical understanding and good practice in counselling work. This enables a counsellor to practice safely in private practice or within an agency. Different agencies may work with other frameworks, for instance the National Counselling Society (NCS), who support counselling and related therapies, and are closely linked with the NHS. (Nationalcounsellingsociety.org). The BACP framework can’t inform a counsellor of specific rights or wrongs, but outlines the values, principles and moral qualities that a counsellor should adhere to, which helps with guidance and ethical decision making and safeguarding client and counsellor. (BACP, 2015)
To have good ethical practice within counselling it is important that there are boundaries and contracts in place that are agreed to and understood by both the counsellor and the client.
To have good ethical practice within counselling it is important that there are boundaries and contracts in place that are agreed to and understood by both the counsellor and the client.
“Joel is a 36 year old man who has come to counselling because he feels unhappy and unsatisfied in his life. Joel’s mother died when he was 12 and Joel grew up with his Father, who he describes as a good man, who worked hard to support his son, but struggled with anger and alcohol issues and was never able to fully recover from the death of Joel’s mother. Joel felt that his father was distant and so caught up in his own grief that he was never able to love Joel. Joel describes himself as a rebel in his teens, who gave his father a hard time but that he worked hard and went to university, which he saw as a way out of the small town he grew up in and a way to escape his father. He now has a successful career in corporate law and
Counsellors do not offer advice as such but instead give an insight into a client’s feelings and behaviour and they help the client to change their behaviour accordingly. They do this by actively listening to what the client has to say and comment from a professional perspective. Counsellors are trained to be effective helpers, especially in sensitive and difficult situations. They have to be independent, very neutral and professional as well as respecting the privacy and confidentiality of a client. Counselling can help clients to clarify their problems, identify the changes they wish to make and give them a fresh perspective. Counsellors should help them to seek other options and look at the impact that life events have made on the
A safe space for a client could be described as a place or space in which a client feels secure and free to express him/herself in a real, true and open way. This could mean a number of things to different clients, it is very individual.
Apply the ethical decision making model presented in week one lectures (adapted from Beemsterboer, 2010; Velasquez et al, 2009) to the case study.
The skills used in counselling, vary from model to model, here are definitions of the skills used in person centred counselling,
Now, let's see how learning about the Four Ethical Lenses and a simple method for decision-making can help you resolve a typical ethical dilemma. Ready?
The term counselling facilitates personal and interpersonal functioning across the lifespan with the main focus on emotional, vocational, social, educational, health related and developmental concerns this encompasses a broad range of practices that help people to improve their well being, alleviate stress and maladjustment, reslove crisis and increases their ability to live more fully functioning lives. Counselling is unique in its attention to both normal developmental issues as well as the problems associated with physical, emotional and mental disorders. The BACP states that “counselling takes place when a counsellor see a client in a private and confidential
Some call is morality some just say it is doing what is right. No matter what you call it everyone has a set of principles they follow to guide them through life. Here we will call it an Ethical Framework. It can be religious based or secular based, but an Ethical Framework (EF) is a set of values, principles, and standards someone uses to guide their behavior and guide them in making decisions.
The essay will evaluate the necessity and importance of the development of the core conditions in the counselling process and critically analyse the strengths and weaknesses of the person-centred approach on the counselling process.