WHEN ARE COUNSELLORS AT RISK OF
ETHICAL MISCONDUCT?
Dr. Cristelle Audet
Dr. Glenn Sheppard
Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association
Annual Conference
May 14-17, 2013
Halifax, Nova Scotia
OVERVIEW
• Ethical practice & fiduciary relationship
• But…misconduct happens
• Working outside areas of competencies
• Unintentional  awareness
• Identifying ethical vulnerability
THE BASIS FOR ETHICAL PRACTICE
 Intentionality
 Knowledge of ethics, standards, the law,
and school board policy
 Skill in making ethical decisions
 Courage to act on our ethical obligations
 Tolerance for ambiguity
NATURE OF COUNSELLOR-CLIENT
RELATIONSHIP
Fiduciary Relationship
 Counsellors have a fiduciary duty to their
clients.
 It is “a relationship in which one person is
under duty to act for the benefit of the
other on matters within the scope of the
relationship.”
NATURE OF COUNSELLOR-CLIENT
RELATIONSHIP (cont’d.)
 A fiduciary is “one who owes to
another the duties of good faith,
trust, confidence…one who must
exercise a high standard of care…”
(Blacks Law Dictionary 1999)
ETHICAL MISCONDUCT
In the US…
• 6 - 10% counsellors affected
Nuekrug et al. (2001)
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34 states report 1,018 complaints
Inappropriate dual r/s (24%)
Sexual r/s with client (7%)
Breach of confidentiality (5%)
Failure to report abuse (1%)
COMPLAINTS
Theme
Informed Consent • Couples counselling
& Client
Confidentiality
• Working outside areas of
Boundaries
competency/expertise
• Socializing the therapeutic
encounter
• Multiple roles/multiple clients
COMPETENCE
“Render counselling services to a degree
of skill and knowledge commonly applied
under all circumstances in the community
by the average prudent reputable member
of the profession.”
BOUNDARIES OF COMPETENCE
Counsellors limit their counselling services and
practices to those which are within their
professional competence by virtue of their
education and professional experience, and
consistent with any requirements for provincial
and national credentials. They refer to other
professionals, when the counselling of clients
exceed their level of competence.
CCPA Code of Ethics, 2007
COMPROMISED JUDGEMENT
• Gap in professional knowledge
• Personal issues / wounded healer / burnout
• Unconscious, feeling-based actions not
sufficiently accounted for
SELF-AWARENESS EXERCISE:
Identifying Potential Vulnerability
(Brennan, 2009)
http://www.counselingoutfitters.com/vistas/vistas09/A
rticle_13_Brennan.pdf
Conscious good intention
Preconscious/
unconscious needs,
wants, motivations
GOAL: Identifying PAST developmental
themes
TASK: Apply 2 adjectives/phrases to each period
• Childhood
• Adolescence
• Adulthood to this time
GOAL: Identifying
PRESENT developmental
themes
TASK: Apply 2 adjectives/phrases to each period
or position of adulthood
• Professional identity
• Personal/intimate identity
• Social identity
GOAL: Identifying
HOT issues
TASK:
• What events or issues arouse your passion?
• What kinds of people raise your blood
pressure?
• What kinds of clients make you sad?
Based on the above: What kinds of clients or
issues are most likely to raise a red flag for you?
GOAL: Identifying
COLD issues
TASK:
•What events or issues leave you cold, uncaring,
without any passion?
•What kinds of people induce boredom, lethargy,
lack of concern or interest?
Based on the above: What kinds of clients or
issues are most likely to raise a red flag for you?
MECHANISMS OF IMPAIRMENT
Countertransference
• Feelings toward client triggered by
counsellor’s past
Splitting
• Mental process enabling the co-existence
of two separate yet competing desires
High Risk Situations =
Developmental theme + HOT/COLD
issue + countertransference
OR
Developmental theme + HOT/COLD
issue + splitting
“PREVENTION”
 Focus on feelings, fantasies, personal history
 Analyze occurrences of countertransference
 Identify areas where ethical violations are most
likely to occur
 Process/consult in individual or group supervision
 Maintain an ethics notebook/journal
 Connect with an ethics mentor
 Move beyond rule-based discussion
 Be open to feedback
RESOURCES
http://www.ccpa-accp.ca/en/resources/
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CCPA Code of Ethics
CCPA Standards of Practice for Counsellors
Ethics Casebook
Notebook on Ethics
FAQ  7. Ethics