FRHD 4310 chapter 1 PDF

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Chapter 1- Introduction to Professional Ethics Focus of this Book Some Suggestions for Using This Book Professional Codes of Ethics -

Each major mental health professional organization has its own code of ethics It provides broad guidelines for its members

Common Themes of Code of Ethics Limitations of Codes of Ethics Using Ethics Codes as Guides -

Codes do 3 objectives - 1) educate professionals - 2) provide a mechanism for professional accountability - 3) catalysts for improving practices

Ethics Codes and the Law -

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Ethics - The standards that govern the conduct of its professional members Law - The body of rules that govern the affairs of people within a community, state, or country - The minimum standards society will tolerate - Law overrules ethics - If in doubt, discuss with a lawyer Important to operate with concerned-based ethics, not fear based ethics - Relational egagement rather than risk maagement perspective Ethical standards protect clients and practitioners

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Common area where ethics collide with law is confidentiality when councelling a minor The military is another area which is confusing

Evolution of Ethics Codes -

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Ethical codes are made to - Protecting consumers - Providing guidelines for practitioners - Clarifying the professional stance of the organizations Most are modified every 5- 10 years

Professional Monitoring of Practice -

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Roles of governing bodies - 1) determine standards of admission to field - 2) screen applicants applying for certification - 3) regulate - 4) conduct disciplinary action in response to violations Ethics committees - Elected or delegated bodies that oversee the conduct of members of the organization - These guys investigate after complaint made

Ethical Decision Making -

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Values - Beliefs and attitudes that provide direction to everyday life Ethics - Beliefs we hold about what constitutes right conduct - Aspiration goals - maximum/ideal standard - Codes of ethics (broad!) Morality - Perspectives of right/proper conduct basis of some broader cultural context or religion standards Community standards - Vary greatly - Eg rural vs urban practices will have different community standards Reasonableness

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- What you should know when practicing in your field - What others in your field know Professionalism - Being lazy, but not breaking the rules= unprofessional but ethical

Levels of ethical practice -

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Mandatory ethics - Compliance with minimum standards - The musts and must nots - Behaviour rules - Eg informed consent Aspirational ethics - Highest standards of thinking and acting - Must understand spirit behind codes - What you work towards - Eg pro bonos Positive ethics - Focus not on avoiding harm - Focus on what you can do to help

Principle Ethics and virtue ethics -

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Principal ethics - The set of obligations and a method that focuses on moral issues with the goals of solving a particular dilemma and guiding future problems - Focuses on acts and choices - Focus on answering “what shall I do” - actions/answers based on historical and cultural acceptable answers Virtue ethics - Focus on the character traits of the professional and nonobligatory ideals to aspire to - Eg am I doing the best for my client - 4 core virtues - Prudence - Integrity - Respectfulness - Benevolence

Moral Principles to guide decision making -

6 basic moral principles - Autonomy - Empower client to make own decision - Self determination - Nonmaleficence - Do no harm - Dont put clients at risk - Eg label boy as ADHD - Beneficence - Do good for others, promote well being in clients - Proactive to prevent harm - Justice - Fair, equal - Eg when working with vulnerable sectors - Fidelity - Make reasonable commitments, stick with them - Veracity - Be truthful and honest

Steps in Making Ethical Decisions -

Involve clients whenever possible Social construction model of decision making - Like feministe model - Focuses on social aspects of decision making in counseling - Not individualistic - Transcultural integrative model of decision making - Take cultural factors into consideration - Steps - Easy End of chapter...