Texas Health And Safety Code Essay

Life expectancy in the United States greatly improved over the years for HIV positive people, from 11 years in 1996 to over 20 in 2004. This being said the stigma is still very strong. Therapists have a duty to intervene when clients pose a grave danger to themselves or to others. We need to consider that point before breaching confidentiality. Breaching confidentiality can sabotage the therapeutic relationship and eliminate the opportunity to influence behavior change in the future. So even though the Texas Health and Safety Code does permit the disclosure of HIV to exposed persons through its Partner Notification Program, we need to consider the emotional damage that cannot be undone. The Texas Health and Safety Code rely on our ethic and judgment when they state that there

When it comes to immediate threat toward a third party, once again the law in Texas is saying that we may or may not decide to breach confidentiality. We have no duty to inform local law enforcement if a threat of violence has been made. The responsibility lies on us and our judgment. If a therapist warns the threatened third party, he can be sued for violating a State law. If he warns the local enforcement it will be at his own peril because there is no protection for good faith reporting under the present statute. As of today, we can contact the County Mental Health deputies or local law enforcement to have the patient admitted through emergency detention, which is permitted, by the Texas Health and Safety Code. Another option is for the health provider to initiate an Emergency Admission and Detention under Section 573.002 of the Texas Health and Safety Code. No need to say that the relationship will be then broken and there will be no chance for us to see that patient ever again. Now, if we do not warn it may imply consequences we would have to live with, such as somebody being