Ethics of Therapy in Psychology

Albus Dumbledore said, “Happiness can be found even in the darkest times if only one
remembers to turn on the light.” The life of Mental Health Practitioners is a constant
learning curve. Everyday is a rollercoaster with the versatile clients and their ever twisted
lives. Keeping up with the daily behavioural changes can be tough on them but also makes
them the guide that broken hearts and souls need. This also leaves a window for their own
state of mind which is necessary to be paid attention to for their own well-being and of their
clients. While it’s important to take care of oneself mentally and physically, it is also of high
priority that due to this reason, any therapeutic aid ethics and boundaries are not broken
which is a deal maker or a breaker for a practitioner.

One of the major reasons people don’t believe in the Integrity of Clinical and Counselling
Psychology is the failure of establishing ethics and boundaries. It is a matter of “life and
death.” If a mental health practitioner continues to make unethical decisions while practicing
counselling or therapy, the results with respect to his/ her clients will start to show later in
their lives as huge life-altering behaviours and split decisions. Ethics can be extremely
difficult to define in a clinical setting as every therapy session is personal and subjective in
perspective of the client’s needs. The framework of these ethics have taken years and years to
be established and thus rigorous research and attention before every session is being held.

1. ESTABLISHING CONFIDENTIALITY:

In order for therapy to be effective, the first duty of a sound counsellor should always be
Confidentiality and Privacy. Confidentiality is something which is widely debated but still
only a few take it seriously. Mental Health Practitioners have a huge responsibility towards
their clients and their individual rights to privacy. Establishing and maintaining a trustworthy
partnership in a therapeutic relationship is the cornerstone of therapy.

● !!WHAT YOU CAN DO!!- At the very start of the session, the client should be made
aware about the code of conduct and boundaries of the therapeutic relationship and
how only essential information about them in anonymity will be revealed for further
suggestions, reviews and educational purposes only. For instance, gossiping and
talking about your client’s personal information is highly unethical and should be
discouraged at all costs in a social setting, especially in staff rooms and other public
places.

2. WELL- BEING AND BEST INTERESTS OF THE CLIENT:

Another principle element that determines how the therapeutic relationship will be shaping as
the sessions proceed is what we call Beneficence and Nonmaleficence. “The principle of
beneficence means acting in the best interests of the client based on professional
assessment.” It focuses on working on client;s immediate and urgent requirements and
behaviours that need professional attention. For example, even if the client refuses to follow
homework given by the practitioner, it is the counsellor’s responsibility to ensure that the
client smoothly steps out of their comfort zone and takes the uncomfortable path slowly and
steadily for best results.

● !!WHAT YOU CAN DO!!- This requires the counsellor to also be highly technical,
strictly systematic and unbiased in the process keeping in mind there is no harm to the
client and his needs. Make sure you don’t encourage your personal opinions and
subjective biases while addressing the client’s flaws or needs.

3. LETTING THE CLIENT MAINTAIN THEIR ESSENCE:

Once confidentiality and beneficence are established, mental health practitioners have to
ensure the clients have the right to practice full Autonomy while being in the therapeutic
alliance. “This principle emphasises the importance of developing a client’s ability to be self-
directing within therapy and all aspects of life.” The profession of mental health leaves a thin
line for the practitioners to practice their skills and also let their client’s be. Counsellors and
therapists see various types of life struggles everyday and the empathy to help just keeps on
increasing with the thought that deep down they all want to make the clients’ lives better. But
with this also comes great responsibility of helping only those who are willing to put in time
and effort to help themselves and work on their flaws if any.

● !!WHAT YOU CAN DO !!- Clients will to be autonomous also helps them embark
on a self-sufficient life after therapy. You have let the client alter their behavioural
patterns in ways that only they comprehend. If it is a child, use play and creative
techniques. If it is an adult, respect their personality traits and resort to ways they find
most comfortable.

4. COUNSELLORS’ ETHICS AND INTEGRITY:

On the practitioners behalf, maintaining Integrity and Justice is to ensure accuracy, honesty
and truthfulness in the practice of psychology and mental health. In these activities
counsellors and therapists do not steal, cheat or engage in fraud, subterfuge, or intentional
misrepresentation of fact. American Psychological Association states “in situations in which
deception may be ethically justifiable to maximize benefits and minimize harm, psychologists
have a serious obligation to consider the need for, the possible consequences of, and their
responsibility to correct any resulting mistrust or other harmful effects that arise from the
use of such techniques.” Hence, it is the counsellor’s duty to ensure that their practice is
purely professional and does not involve unlearnt outcomes.

● !!WHAT YOU CAN DO!!- As potential mental health advocates, we can always
ensure that the knowledge we apply to our client’s benefits does not go to waste by
dealing in harmful practices and lying. Every session should be a reminder of the
larger responsibility therapy holds to the well-being of individuals and the world.
5. PRIORITISING YOUR OWN MENTAL HEALTH:

Lastly, being a mental health practitioner is not always easy on the individual. It requires
years of education, rigorous research through those years and constant work on those skills
that might result in quick burnout from time to time. Therefore, it should be a top tier priority
of every therapist to indulge in optimum Self-Care and Determination. Mental health
professionals are also humans and thus, at any point during or outside the therapeutic
alliance, they should not be expected to make superstitious changes to clients’ lives. Instead,
they all have emotions and to be able to practice well in the longer run, it’s important they
take care of themselves too.

● !!WHAT YOU CAN DO!!- For instance, indulging into appropriate self-care
practices like meditation, exercising, not taking more than four five clients a day
determines that the individual wants to preserve their mental health as well.
Practitioners should create healthy boundaries and avoid clients that trigger their
personal experiences so that a healthy therapeutic alliance can be formed.

We at EkakiVedam encourage the safe practice of the discipline of Psychology and Mental
Health and further work on to make sure that individuals and clients who take therapy and
counselling see it as a rewarding, life-altering experience rather than feeling it as a burden.
Insightful clients can always act as a compliment to our efforts as with their determination
and proper guidance, we can bring about a healthy and spiritual change in each of our lives!