Confidentiality and Informed Consent
In the article by Martindale, Chambers, and Thompson, we learn that informed consent and confidentiality. A person should be informed of their right to confidentiality and the treatment they are consenting to in the therapeutic relationship. This study is significantly important because we are shown that there has been not very much previous research done on how well we manage consent, how informed the patient is, how honest they are, and what they actually know about the policies of the provider.
Professionals in many settings create and utilize very different techniques of informed consent and confidentiality. In professions where professionals constantly see people who are troubled, who see the everlasting devastation of grief, pain, and the disparities of people in situations that they can’t change, it can be very taxing and wearing on even the most seasoned professional person, but do we actually communicate well to the patient that they have rights? In the article, we see that so many patients are so desperate to receive care that they instantly just “sign papers” so that the can see the psychologist. If a patient is that desperate, how do we know that mental health professionals are performing to their maximum standards of informing the patient about their care standards and things like who has the appropriate access to their medical information? We, as counseling psychology graduate students and professionals alike, have a strong moral and ethical responsibility to ourselves, our colleagues, and our clients to make sure that we provide appropriate documentation, informing the patients clearly of their rights and responsibilities, so that we do not potentially negatively affect the lives of other people.
In the article by Martindale, Chambers, and Thompson, in the four themes that emerge, “being referred; the participant’s feelings, mental health difficulties, and their impact; relationships with workers and carers; and autonomy (Martindale et al,
Professionals in many settings create and utilize very different techniques of informed consent and confidentiality. In professions where professionals constantly see people who are troubled, who see the everlasting devastation of grief, pain, and the disparities of people in situations that they can’t change, it can be very taxing and wearing on even the most seasoned professional person, but do we actually communicate well to the patient that they have rights? In the article, we see that so many patients are so desperate to receive care that they instantly just “sign papers” so that the can see the psychologist. If a patient is that desperate, how do we know that mental health professionals are performing to their maximum standards of informing the patient about their care standards and things like who has the appropriate access to their medical information? We, as counseling psychology graduate students and professionals alike, have a strong moral and ethical responsibility to ourselves, our colleagues, and our clients to make sure that we provide appropriate documentation, informing the patients clearly of their rights and responsibilities, so that we do not potentially negatively affect the lives of other people.
In the article by Martindale, Chambers, and Thompson, in the four themes that emerge, “being referred; the participant’s feelings, mental health difficulties, and their impact; relationships with workers and carers; and autonomy (Martindale et al,
References: Martindale, S. J., Chambers, E., & Thompson, A. R. (2009). Clinical psychology service users ' experiences of confidentiality and informed consent: A qualitative analysis. Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research, and Practice, 82, 355-368. Welfel, E. R. (2013). Ethics in counseling and psychotherapy: standards, research, and emerging issues (5th ed.). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole, Cengage Learning.