Summarize the situation and identify the ethical dilemma(s). Describe how you, as the Human Services 1 answer below »
Summarize the situation and identify the ethical dilemma(s).Describe how you, as the Human Services Professional, would approach this ethical dilemma while:
· Implementing the least intrusive intervention
· Respecting confidentiality
· Recognizing the client’s multicultural ethical behavior
Include at least one peer-reviewed academic resource from the University of Phoenix Library.
Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines.
The Case of Noah.
Noah is a therapist in private practice who primarily sees relatively
well-functioning clients. He considers keeping records to be basically
irrelevant to the therapeutic process for his clients. As he puts it: “In all
that a client says to me in one hour, what do I write down? and for what
purpose? If I were seeing high-risk clients, then I certainly would keep
notes. Or if I were a psychoanalyst, where everything a client said matters,
then I would keep notes.” One of his clients, Sue, assumed that he
kept notes and one day after a session asked to see her file. Noah had to
explain his lack of record keeping to Sue.
??What do you think of Noah’s attitude on record keeping? Do you
consider it unethical? Why or why not?
??Taking into consideration the kind of clientele Noah sees, is his
behavior justifi ed? If you disagree, what criteria would you use in
determining what material should be recorded?
??What if a legal issue arises during or after Sue’s treatment? How
would documenting each session help or not help both the client
and the counselor?
??Assuming that some of Noah’s clients will move to other locales
and see new therapists, does the absence of notes to be transferred
to the new therapist have ethical implications?
??How do you react to Noah’s opinion that keeping notes is irrelevant
in his practice? Explain.
??If keeping notes were not mandated, would you still keep notes?
Why or why not?
Commentary.Keeping adequate clinical records is a legal and
ethical requirement regardless of the degree of functioning of a client.
Note taking is a critical component of therapy; it can help the
therapist remember relevant information and is useful as a review
of clinical procedures used with a client. Few therapists, if any, can
remember everything that is covered in a given session over the
course of time. Noah may have to justify in a courtroom how his
decision not to keep clinical records affected the standard of care
for his clients. Bennett and colleagues (2006) remind us that the
legal requirement for maintaining clinical records involves much
more than following a set of arbitrary rules: “Good documentation
demonstrates that you used a reasonable standard of care in conceptualizing,
planning, and implementing treatment” (p. 34).
