Caldwell Intro Flashcards
First and most important point to understand about the rules of our professions
They don’t exist for our benefit. They exist to protect the public from us. Or at least, from the worst of us.
The 3 sets of rules that govern mental health work
Laws, ethics, and standard of care. Laws override everything else; if there is a direct conflict between your professional code of ethics and the law, the law generally wins.
Laws
Developed by legislators and regulators. The laws that govern a profession typically define what you must or must not do within your professional role. They provide legal recourse for a client who is severely mistreated, as that person can file a civil lawsuit, or a complaint against a professional’s license. For either of those to be successful, it must be demonstrated that the professional violated the law.
Codes of Ethics
Developed by professional associations. In other words, while laws are imposed on a profession from the outside (government), codes of ethics are generated from within (the profession itself). While the ethical standards contained in codes of ethics are also obligations, they tend to make more room than laws do for consideration of the client’s context, and for a process of ethical decision-making when standards appear to conflict.
How codes of ethics benefit both the public and the profession
Codes of ethics benefit the public by providing a set of agreed-upon rules for their care. They benefit the profession by virtue of less government regulation (lawmakers are reluctant to add regulations to a profession when the profession seems to be adequately governing itself). In addition, clear ethics codes help shield professional against malpractice suits, since professionals can use them to demonstrate that they have followed standard rules of the profession.
Standard of Care
In situations where there is no clear legal or ethical guidance, therapists are expected to follow the standard of care for their field. Essentially, the standard of care is whatever most other people in the profession are doing in a particular situation. Your best sources of information when seeking a specific, applicable standard of care for your situation are writings in the field, and your supervisors and colleagues.
The mental health profession are regulated primarily at what level, state or federal?
State
What are the best sources of information on ethical guidelines?
The codes of ethics themselves
BBS stands for
The California Board of Behavioral Sciences, which is the state licensing board for Professional Clinical Counselors, Clinical Social Workers, and Marriage and Family Therapists.
Licensee vs. Registrant vs. Trainee
Licensees are fully and actively licensed by the BBS (LMFTs, LPCCs, LCSWs).
Registrants have completed their graduate degrees and are registered with the BBS as MFT, PCC, and CSW associates (AMFTs, APCCs, and ASWs, respectively). Registrants are not considered to be licensed.
Trainees are completing required experience as part of their graduate degree programs. These individuals are not licensed or registered with the BBS, but their work is still partially governed by California law and regulation.
