Issues in Counselling

1008 Words5 Pages
Client safety and ethical practice Ethics, contract and boundaries are essential to the welfare of a client. A formal contract setting out arrangements and boundaries between the counsellor and the client should be agreed before counselling begins. According to Feltham and Horton (2006, p.190) the contract is legal and as a result, a client, if necessary, could take court action for breach of the contract. The contract could be amended during the course of the counselling sessions if the client or counsellor felt there was a need to amend the boundaries of their working relationship. If I felt my mental health was threatened by a client I would discuss the issue with my supervisor and try to gain insight and understanding of myself, by doing this I would hope I’d remain fit and competent enough to be able to effectively counsel my client. Although I can never have a responsibility for the safety of my clients I would always want to remain responsible to them and to be committed to improving their wellbeing. The BACP ethical framework can also be used as a guide towards both client and counsellor safety, it presents the values, principals and personal moral qualities that should always be considered when working with clients, the framework is intended to guide how counselling is practiced and seeks to be inclusive of all client abilities, needs culture. It stresses that all the three approaches to good practice should be used together and not as separate, however I feel one of the most important aspects of the ethical framework and one that could always stand alone as a good indicator of safe, acceptable and professional behaviour is the personal moral quality of Integrity: commitment to being moral in dealings with others, personal straightforwardness, honesty and coherence Taking case notes and the Data Protection Act During a course of counselling
Open Document