Ethical dilemmas and professional challenges surround us on a daily basis, how we respond to them is crucial to our professional career. In 2005, the American Counseling Association (ACA) published a document titled the ACA Code of Ethics which was designed to aid counselors in the ethical decision making process and, in response, “expand the capacity of people to grow and develop” (Alexandria, 2014, p. 3). Counselors are obligated to follow these sets of guidelines on a daily basis, in and out of the workplace, and will be reprimanded for violating any given rule. Currently I am interning at East Coast Counseling here in Greenville, NC.…
The foundation format, provided for the professional to become state licensed or certified fosters, with the understanding of practices and the scope as a substance abuse counselor with guidelines. First, we must review, define, and analyze “the Scopes of Practice developed by the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB)”, which defines a Scope of Practice as follows: “ Defined as rules, regulations, and the boundaries within which a fully qualified practitioner; with substantial and appropriate training, knowledge, and experience practicing in a field of medicine, surgery, or other specifically defined field; and practices governed by and required with continued education and professional accountability mandated by governing regulations”…
The American Mental Health Counselors Associations (AMHCA) has their own code of ethics. It is to help mental health counselors to assist them on making the right ethical decision, the support of the association as well educate counselors and future counselors, the ethical standards of mental health counselors. When comparing both the ACA code of ethics and the AMHCA code of ethics there are some similarities. They both educate the counselor and the counselor in training on the ethic views on confidentiality, patient client relationship, and the responsibility of the counselors.…
This paper will provide a brief summary of both the American Counselor Association (ACA) and American Mental Health Counselors Association (AMHCA) code of ethics, explore similarities and differences between the two, as well as discuss the application of these codes in the future as a professional counselor. Brief Summary of ACA and AMHCA Codes of Ethics The ACA Code of Ethics was born out of necessity for the need of an ethical standard for the relatively new counseling profession.…
When I think about my personal code of ethics I think of the golden rule. Treat others how you would want to be treated. I have had lots of customer service experience which transfers to helping patients. You need to have people skills, good communication skills and all. The way I would bring my code of ethics into my profession would be to respect my co-workers, the patients and anyone I would come in contact with in the professional setting.…
I would like to believe that I learned my personal ethics from my family more importantly my parents. Growing up my parents thought me many things that had several messages attached to them. Those messages I now use on a daily basis most importantly in my career. One of the ethics that I could remember is to be caring and loyal friend, neighbor, family, or co-worker. Having these two ethicses has guided me to the field of psychology and is still helping me.…
Though I was not able to put all of my attention to school until junior year, I kicked it into high gear as soon as I could. Despite all my hard work, I was unable to find myself a place in the top 10%. This has hurt my appearance to colleges, but I hope that with these explanations of what I had to go through freshman and sophomore year, my position will be slightly more understandable. Engineering honors is the best thing for my future and everything I want to do with my life. Honors will help me grow as a student, so I can be a better employee and will help me grow as a person.…
Ethics are moral principles that govern a person’s behavior. They were created from the branch of philosophy that evaluates moral behavior, concepts and language. Ethics are the basic perceptions and the essential principles of decent human conduct. Obtaining an “ethical life” involves: protecting, structuring, and endorsing concepts of right and wrong conduct. With that being said, it is crucial within the profession of counseling and psychotherapy to follow ethical standards and motives (Ethical Principles, 2010).…
Ethical Standards Compared This paper examines the ethics code put forth by the American Psychological Association (APA) and that of the National Career Development Association (NCDA). An explanation of the major similarities and differences between the two ethics codes is presented. Finally, four individual standards are selected and explored more throughly. Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct According to the American Psychological Association (2002), the ethics code applies to clinical, counseling, research, assessment, supervision, training, and administrative issues faced by psychologists.…
Careful and diligent case writing enhances the quality of services provided to clients and, ultimately, can protect practitioners. Sometimes counselors find themselves in situations where they must be able to provide evidence of their conduct and actions during some time in the past. For example, when a former client files a malpractice claim alleging some kind of professional negligence; the counselor needs to be able to provide appropriate documentation that is accurate and reflects the services provided. Counselors should include sufficient and timely documentation in records to facilitate the delivery of services and to ensure continuity of services provided to clients in the future. In addition legal, clinical, and fiscal accountability, record keeping and ethical conduct are essential components of professional counseling.…
Week 3 Discussion Questions: Personal Ethics Awareness Part 1: Mini-case Read the case provided at the end of this assignment. Then, answer the following questions based on this case. 1. The first step in ethical decision-making is recognizing an ethical issue.…
While dealing with counselors in the career field, we must remember the clients is the forefront of our concern and it out ultimately responsibility to ensure they are treated as such. We must make sure we respect our clients right to make their own decisions; meaning we should not be posing our own opinions on them or making decisions for them – we must allow clients to be autonomous or we could face ethical difficulties. Additionally, we must ensure we cause no harm. Standard A.1.a of the Code of Ethics state that our primary responsibility in to ensure the welfare of our clients. Furthermore, we must treat all clients fairly and not violate the rights of our other clients or other professionals in the field – this is known as justice.…
I first became interested in counseling when I was helping a friend with serious drug related problems and family problems seek help and counsel from advisors. Being just sixteen, I didn’t know how to help him efficiently and felt both powerless and helpless at trying to find adequate resources and services to help him deal with his problems. While I did eventually find counseling services and potential help for him, the effects of his psychological problems were so brutal that he committed suicide. This profound experience of losing a close friend to suicide forced me to develop a strong interest into understanding the role, guidance and motivations that leads people to such extremes. At this point, I had already cultivated the desire to…
Professional orientation and Ethics course has taught me a lot about the principles of a counselor’s conduct and behavior. I learned the importance of separating my personal beliefs and behaviors from my therapeutic approach as a counselor. The text defines ethics as “acceptable or good practice according to agreed-upon rules or standards of practice established by a profession” (Remley & Herlihy, 2014, p.4). Professional orientation and ethics has expanded my knowledge in the importance of counselor compliance, the importance of boundaries between and counselor and a client, and the different types of ethical decision making models. Establishing boundaries and establishing and environment of professionalism I feel has always been a strength…
“Who Am I?” : Forging an Ethical Path The Oxford Dictionary offers a definition of ethics as, “The codes of conduct or moral principles recognized in a particular profession, sphere of activity, relationship, or other context or aspect of human life” (Ethics, 2015). The Merriam-Webster dictionary’s offering is more succinct but also sheds light on where problems can arise in the interpretation and actualization of ethics on a practical level: “rules (sic) of behavior based on ideas about what is morally good and bad” (Ethic, n.d.). I grew up in a home that was permeated with Christian values—from grace at every meal, to prayers dutifully recited at bedtime, to church every Sunday.…