Final Paper - Ethical Decision Making Model

Term Paper Instructions:

Consider the following case for analysis: For the past two months, you have provided counselling services to Tammy, a 14-year-old girl with Type 1 diabetes. Prior to coming to see you, Tammy had been to three other counsellors in the last year, all of whom she quickly dismissed as “idiots.” Although a very reluctant participant initially, the therapeutic alliance with Tammy has strengthened over time to the point where she often discloses very personal information. Tammy’s parents are thrilled that their daughter has finally found a counsellor she likes and trusts. During your most recent session, Tammy hints that she drinks heavily at parties. When you probe further, Tammy quickly retracts her comments and changes the subject. Repeated attempts to get her to say more about her drinking get nowhere. You are very concerned about Tammy's medical safety if she misuses using alcohol regularly. Answer the following questions: Here are provided questions based on the presented case. Make references to relevant ethical codes and standards and fundamental moral principles in your responses. A minimum of 3-5 references (required material - extra) included. * Final Paper Outline - Students that apply for registration with Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association (CCPA) or other colleges (i.e. CRPO, BCACC) as counsellors, therapists, mental health service providers are required to follow this model. Members of these colleges (in addition to the CCPA Standards of Practice and Code of Ethics) may also analyze the case in terms of the principles of CRPO Code of Ethics or BCACC Code of Ethical Conduct and Standards of Clinical Practice: CCPA Ethical Decision-Making Model This model is a principle-based decision-making model that incorporates the use of emotional decision-making. For your information, this model below is outlined in the CCPA Code of Ethics (pg. 3) and on page 40 of the Sorsdahl, Borgen, and Borgen (2023) textbook with several example provided in Chapter 14 of the textbook. Step One: A. What are the key ethical issues in this situation? Counsellors determine the type of problem or ethical dilemma. They then collect information about the problem, identify primary concerns/conflicts, and consider potential responsibilities. In the textbook, authors have suggested that the students describe parameters, define potential issues, or determine the type of ethical dilemma. Step Two: A. What ethical articles from the CCPA Code of Ethics are relevant to this situation? B. Are there policies, case law, statutes, regulations, bylaws or other related articles that are relevant to this situation? Provide related articles from CCPA (Code of Ethics) in relation to the presented case scenario. Review the CCPA Code of Ethics to see if ethical articles (e.g., confidentiality or record keeping) are appropriate for your particular situation. For this step, focus on using the Standards of Practice. Step Three: A. Which of the six ethical principles are of major importance in this situation? This step also involves securing additional information and examining the probable outcomes of various courses of action. Examine moral and ethical principles that are relevant and important to the situation. These principles are: a) autonomy - allowing clients the freedom to make informed decisions and to plan their own action b) nonmaleficence - doing no harm c) beneficence - doing good d) justice - acting fairly e) fidelity - upholding the clients trust Step Four: A. How can the relevant ethical articles be applied in this circumstance? B. How might any conflict between ethical principles be resolved? C. What are the potential risks and benefits of this application and resolution? Choose the most important principles and relevant ethical articles and start implementing some possible actions by: a) Generating alternatives and examining the risks and benefits of each, b) Securing additional information, and c) Examining probable results of various courses of action. Step Five: A. What do my feelings and intuitions tell me to do in this situation? (See also Virtue-Based Ethical Decision-Making) Up to this point, decision making was mainly cognitive and rational. In this step, the task is to use emotional decision-making techniques. At this stage, counsellors can add some elements of virtue ethics, especially considering all the options below that can best help and show respect for the client. Consider the emotional response to the dilemma and answer these questions: 1. What emotions and intuition am I aware of as I consider this ethical dilemma, and what are they telling me to do? 2. How can my values best show caring for the client in this situation? 3. How will my decision affect other relevant individuals in this ethical dilemma? 4. What decision would I feel best about publicizing? 5. What decision would best define who I am as a person? Step Six: A. What plan of action will be most helpful in this situation? B. Follow up to evaluate the appropriateness, adequacy, and effectiveness of the course of action taken. Identify any adjustments necessary to optimize the outcome. Counsellors should consider the breadth and depth of possibilities. What are all the different ways that the situation might be handled? How feasible is each possibility? Identify and follow the specific action plan, evaluate it, and provide the rationale for how to adjust any negative or neutral consequences that may occur as a result of your actions. The Structure of the Paper Format: CCPA Ethical Decision-Making Model (for students with registration as counsellors) · APA Headings Level 1: Six steps (ex. Step One, Step Two, Step Three…) · APA Headings Level 2: Questions (ex. A. What are the key ethical issues in this situation?) (ex. C. What are the potential risks and benefits of this application and resolution?) Important: Please note that it is imperative to keep the Ethical Decision-Making Model headings (steps) unchanged. Specific Requirements for All Students Maximum Length: 7-9 pages, double-spaced (excluding the cover page, and the reference list), written in a word document and in essay format. You can write in the first person or third-person perspective. References: 3-5 references (CCPA required material - extra), peer-reviewed sources included with the assignment. References need to have been published in the last 5-7 years. When you save your assignments on your computer, you should “save as” using the following formula: First Name Last Name -Course Number-Assignment Number (JohnDoe-PSYC6203-3). All written assignments should have a title page. The title page includes the following elements: Page number, Paper title, Author, Author Affiliation, Course, Instructor, and Due Date. The paper should be double-spaced throughout (without leaving an extra-space between paragraphs or references). This program uses 7th edition APA style. This is a guide for all professional communication. At the same time, please know that we have program expectations for assignments. These expectations include 12pt text size, Times New Roman font and no running head. The reference list should only include sources that were used for in-text citations in the paper itself. Please, format your assignment in Word (files with extension .doc or .docx). No abstract, introduction or conclusion sections will be needed for the assignment. Do not type the case scenario into your assignment.

Term Paper Sample Content Preview:

Ethical Decision-Making Model Final Paper First Name and Last Name Name of School, Name of University Course Code: Course Name Dr. Jane Doe Month Day, Year Step One Key Ethical Issues The ethical issues of interest in Tammy’s case are confidentiality, duty to protect, autonomy, and consent. Confidentiality is a core moral principle that ensures that Tammy always trusts me and is ready to communicate openly. The fact that she disclosed her drinking habits during parties is a testament that she entirely depends on me with her secrets. However, there is a dilemma here because of the potential risk that drinking harbours to her life since she has diabetes. Secondly, counsellors must protect themselves from physical, mental, or emotional harm by preventing foreseeable action. In this case, Tammy is exposed to harmful practices to her health and, therefore, needs appropriate support and resources to address her excessive alcoholism. At the same time, Tammy has the right to make her own decisions and be entitled to consequences that may arise (Canadian Counseling and Psychotherapy Association, 2021). Autonomy may be breached when the counsellor’s client’s safety is at risk. This necessitates that the counsellor obtain informed consent by informing the client about the counselling process, the limits of confidentiality, and any risks or benefits that a personal disclosure may have. Drinking is a bad lifestyle habit for persons with Type 1 Diabetes. It complicates their already immune-compromised state by making them susceptible to opportunistic diseases, as Diabetes Care Community (2023) noted. However, Tammy was uncooperative with three previous counsellors last year, so it would not be ideal to break the trust she has given the counsellor. Therefore, the ethical dilemma in this situation is maintaining confidentiality and respecting Tammy’s autonomy while accruing her health safety. At the same time, Tammy's health condition is at risk, and the counsellor needs to talk to her to give informed consent to seek help for her. This calls for careful consideration of Tammy’s well-being and the potential consequences of losing Tammy’s trust forever, as she had done with three counsellors last year. The primary concern here is addressing Tammy’s drinking behaviour in the best interests of her health while upholding the ethical standards of professional counselling. Step Two Relevant Ethical Articles from the CCPA Code of Ethics Ethical articles from the CCPA Code of Ethics that will be relevant to Tammy’s case are Counseling/Therapy Responsibilities (B), Assessment and Evaluation (C), and Clinical Supervision Services (E). Counselors and therapists are exposed to different situations that vary over time and in multiple social, geographic, cultural, political, and economic contexts. However, the primary responsibility of safeguarding the welfare of the clients, protecting their details, and maintaining their trust has been consistent, even with the evolving issues handled during these sessions (Canadian Counseling and Psychotherapy Association, 2021). Under this article, Tammy is entitled to confidentiality and informed consent before taking any significant action, and the primary responsibility is to respect her integrity and promote her welfare. Suppose there is no working relationship between the counsellor and Tammy. In this case, she is entitled to exit, ask for a referral, change the counsellor, and report any intriguing issues that may have arisen. Tammy is also allowed to initiate closure of the therapy sessions when the goals have been met, she feels like she is gaining no benefit from the sessions, or she is not comfortable with the sessions. Assessment and evaluation of Tammy’s counselling sessions will be done formally, informally, and in unstructured and structured formats. Tammy and the counsellor should set intelligent targets, formalities, risks and benefits, assessment timelines, and when and who can access their progress. An evaluation will be done based on the documented data available for analysis (Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association, 2021). However, Tammy is entitled to know her progress and the type of information that her parents will receive. Moreover, clinical supervision services are relevant in this case because Tammy drinks heavily at parties, yet she has type 1 diabetes. The counsellor will request informed consent from Tammy in the form of a video or audio recording before linking her to a supervisor. This consent allows for a review of the counselling session documents in her file and indicates that Tammy entered the clinical supervision phase knowingly, voluntarily, and intelligently (Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association, 2021). The clinical supervisor will maintain an ethical commitment to the welfare of Tammy and her protection from the public. Step Three Principles of Major Importance The principle of autonomy addresses the concept of client independence in counselling sessions. Tammy had had three unsuccessful therapy professionals last year, but she failed to trust them with her issues. This indicates that she felt like she would not retain her independence with the former counsellors and had to request the termination of their engagement. Tammy slowly became very comfortable with her current counsellor and is willing to share her top secrets, like her alcohol addiction. Respecting Tammy’s autonomy means acknowledging her independence and allowing her to have a significant say in the decisions taken on her counselling and healthcare (Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association, 2020). Sessions where autonomy is observed create a conducive environment for clients to disclose information at their own pace and when they are comfortable discussing it. The principle of beneficence requires the counsellor to take actions that promote the well-being of their client. It also includes the physician's obligation to protect others' rights and remove any conditions that will cause harm (Varkey, 2021). Tammy took some time to disclose her drinking issue but is currently avoiding giving further informat...

Updated on April 26, 2024

Get the Whole Paper!

Not exactly what you need?

Do you need a custom essay? Order right now:

Order

👀 Other Visitors are Viewing These APA Essay Samples:

Reflection Case #2

7 pages/≈1925 words | 5 Sources | APA | Psychology | Term Paper |
Assignment 1/ Modern Psychodynamic Approaches and Diverse Client Populations

3 pages/≈825 words | 5 Sources | APA | Psychology | Term Paper |
Integration, Psychology and Christianity

8 pages/≈2200 words | No Sources | APA | Psychology | Term Paper |