Ethical Considerations Of A Therapist's Confidentiality

A therapist’s confidentiality is guided by ethical and legal issue. As a professional there are some practices which are deemed to be unethical or referred to as professional malpractices. Confidentiality of client’s information leads to effectiveness of therapy therefore, a therapist has an ethical duty to protect the client’s privacy. In case a therapist discloses client’s information without the consent of the client, he/she can take a legal action against the therapist. The therapist will be charged in a court of law for breaching the constitutional right of the client to privacy. A therapists always practices high confidentiality level of client’s information however, there are exceptional circumstance which compel a therapist to disclose the client’s information. Some of these circumstances are when a court order is issued to a therapist to present counseling records, when a therapist is being supervised, when a client consents to information disclosure, when a therapist consults from a

The main reason why a therapist should not disclose client’s information in normal circumstances is because this will subject the therapist to unethical practices. Another reason is because the client’s right to privacy is protected by the constitution except in circumstances when the client consents. Moreover, it is the duty of a therapist to protect client’s private information at all time during and after treatment. The reasons why a therapist should disclose client’s information to authority are exceptional circumstances. Some of these reasons lead to saving the lives of victims. These reasons are when a client expresses intentions to commit a crime, when a client poses danger to self or to others, when a therapist discovers that the client is undergoing neglect or abuse and when a court order is issued to a therapist prompting her to give counseling