7-2 Milestone Four: The Ethical Decision-Making Process

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Can A Therapist Testify For His Her Client In A Gainful Case?

Southern New Hampshire University

PSY 570: Ethical Practice in Psychology

[Your Instructor’s Name]

[Date]

Can A Therapist Testify For His Her Client In A Gainful Case?

I. Case Study Abstract

The identified case study is Dahlia Dicord, MSW. The case involves a psychotherapist, Ms. Discord, and her patient, Melissa Malfunction, who was involved in an automobile accident that left her with anxiety and mild depression. Ms. Malfunction wants Ms. Discord to testify for her before an administrative judge so that she can receive disability insurance payments. Ms. Discord cannot be an independent evaluator and witness in her client's case, so she should recommend an independent counselor to interview Ms. Malfuction and make recommendations for her before the judge.

II. Case Study Description

The case involves a psychotherapist, Ms. Discord, and her patient, Melissa Malfunction, who was involved in an automobile accident that left her with anxiety and mild depression. Ms. Malfunction wants Ms. Discord to testify for her before an administrative judge so that she can receive disability insurance payments. In this way, Ms. Malfunction wants Ms. Discord to be her therapist and evaluator simultaneously, which will complicate their working relationship. The important people in the case scenario include the therapist, Ms. Malfunction, the client Ms. Malfunction, the judge, and another stakeholder.

III. The Ethical Conflict

the ethical issue in the case is that Ms. Malfunction wants Ms. Discord, the therapist, to testify in court that she is disabled to get insurance payments. Nevertheless, based on the evaluation of Ms. Malfunction, Ms. Discord has concluded that she can still work (Koocher et al., 2016). Therefore, completing disability for Ms. Malfunction to get insurance payment will be contrary to her professional finding and will be going against her conscience as it will compromise her professional integrity. She is a therapist in this case and cannot act as an expert witness to avoid multiple role relationship conflicts.

IV. The APA Code of Ethics Principles

Based on the APA Ethics principles, the principles that will apply to this case include justice, respect for people s rights and dignity, integrity, fidelity and responsibility, and beneficence and nonmaleficence (APA, 2016).

V. The APA Code of Ethics Standards

section 1 of the provided standards requires solving an ethical issue. The APA Code of Ethics Standards applicable to this case include privacy and confidentiality, human relations, resolving ethical issues, competence, assessment, therapy [y, and record keeping and fees (APA, 2016).

VI. Statement of Culture and Social Orientations

When developing the cultural and social orientation statement in this case, the focus should be on the economic and social situation of Ms. Malfunction presently. In this way, she uses pain medication and cannot care for herself, so she needs any income (Koocher et al., 2016). Because of accidents that altered her lifestyle, she may have lost her social and economic bearing in the community. She may have also lost her connections with family and friends; any financial support will elevate her status again in the community.

VII. Statement of Multiple Relationship Issues

Ms. Malfunstion was expected rather than required to be open about the intended therapeutic relationship between her and Ms. Discord which she did not. Ms. Discord's relationship with Ms. Malfunction is purely therapeutic, and she cannot be an expert witness as it will result in conflicts from multiple role relationships.

VIII. The Ethical Decision-Making Model (Eight Step Model)

The eight-step decision-making model steps include determining the ethical problem, researching applicable guides, and lines, thinking about possible factors, discussing the issues with peers and making recommendations, reviewing legal beliefs and arising issues, creating contingency decisions, identifying issues that may emanate from the decision, make decisions and implement it (APA, 1990). Based on the case, all eight steps in the decision-making model will apply to the scenario.

IX. Ethical Strategy

Ms. Discord has to identify an independent counselor to evaluate and review Ms. Malfunction’s case and make recommendations to the court. This ethical strategy will help preserve the client and therapist's dignity. By using an independent counselor to write a report or testify on her behalf, she will avoid the unethical implications synonymous with multiple-role relationships (APA, 2016, s 2.01.a).

X. An Alternative Decision-Making Model

In this case, the alternative decision-making strategy will use the restorative justice model, which will bring the parties to the issue together and solve the conflicts amicably (Koocher et al., 2016). here, a solution will be brainstormed, and a plan will be formed and adopted to move the people forward.

XI. Conclusion

Based on the case scenario, Ms. Discord has to identify an independent counselor to evaluate and review Ms. Malfunction’s case and make recommendations to the court. This ethical strategy will help preserve the client and therapist's dignity. Similarly, it is the best strategy since no conflict of interest that may emanate from multiple role relationships which compromise professional ethics will be experienced.

References

American Psychological Association. (2016).Ethical principles of psychologists and code of conduct.Retrieved from www.apa.org/ethics/code/

American Psychological Association. (1990).Guidelines for Providers of Psychological Services to Ethnic, Linguistic, and Culturally Diverse Populations.Retrieved fromhttp://www.apa.org/pi/oema/resources/policy/provider-guidelines.aspx

Koocher, G. P., & Keith-Spiegel, P. (2016).Ethics in psychology and the mental health professions: Standards and cases(4thed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

2

5-2 Milestone Three: Applying the APA Code of Ethics

Student's Name

Name of the Institution

Course Number and Name

Professor

Due Date

Applying the APA Code of Ethics

Case Study Abstract

The identified case study is Dahlia Dicord, MSW. The case involves a psychotherapist, Ms. Discord, and her patient, Melissa Malfunction, who was involved in an automobile accident that left her with anxiety and mild depression. Ms. Malfunction wants Ms. Discord to testify for her before an administrative judge so that she can receive disability insurance payments. Ms. Discord cannot be an independent evaluator and witness in her client's case, so she should recommend an independent counselor to interview Ms. Malfuction and make recommendations for her before the judge.

Case Study Description

The case involves a psychotherapist, Ms. Discord, and her patient, Melissa Malfunction, who was involved in an automobile accident that left her with anxiety and mild depression. Ms. Malfunction wants Ms. Discord to testify for her before an administrative judge so that she can receive disability insurance payments. In this way, Ms. Malfunction wants Ms. Discord to simultaneously be her therapist and evaluator, complicating their working relationship. The important people in the case scenario include the therapist, Ms. Malfunction, the client Ms. Malfunction, the judge, and another stakeholder.

Applying the APA Code of Ethics Principles

The APA Code of Ethics provides five basic principles that psychologists and other therapists use to manage different cases of clients. The principles are justice, respect for people s rights and dignity, integrity, fidelity and responsibility, and beneficence and nonmaleficence (APA, 2017).

The principles of beneficence and nonmaleficence require that psychologists balance the benefits accrued from the causation of harm. Psychologists should make conscious efforts to ensure that their activities and decisions are in the client's best interest, thereby ensuring that no harm is caused to the patient (APA, 2016). Professionals in this realm are expected to be cautious not to cause harm to all stakeholders involved in the case and resolve conflict in the best professional way. The second principle is that that ensures fidelity and responsibility. These principles call on professionals to develop and sustain trusting relationships with clients and coworkers. They must know their professional duties and responsibilities to clients, society, and communities (APA, 2017). They are required to minimize any form of conflict of interest by observing professional standards and consulting with others when there is a need.

The third principle of APA Ethics is the principle of integrity. Psychologists are required by the principle of integrity to support actions and practices that promote accurate reporting of findings and align with colleagues that do the same (APA, 2017). Professionals in the realm are expected to adhere to developing a trusting relationship when forms of mistrust crop up. The principles call on professionals in the field to ensure they can be trusted by the clients and other stakeholders impacted by the case. The fourth principle is that of justice. All clients and people affected by the case should be treated fairly and justly. Therefore, psychologists are expected to be fair when dispensing their mandate to ensure justice is served. Professionals should ensure that their professionalism is upheld and that no forms of bias compromise their practices (APA, 2016). They have to operate and practice within their boundaries of competence. Finally, respect for people's rights and dignity is a fundamental APA Code of Ethics principle. Psychologists must respect their clients' dignity and rights to establish a strong and trustworthy work relationship. This should be done regardless of the client’s demographics.

Analysis of the principles reveals that all principles apply to the case of Ms. Discord and her patient, Melissa Malfunction. Firstly, Mr. Discord must ensure that her client receives treatment and avoid her as expected by the principle of Beneficence and Nonmaleficence (Koocher & Keith-Spiegel, 2016). Therefore, Dr. Discord must do what is in her patient's best interest, which testifying in this case is not. Mr. Discord is responsible for providing the best care to the client. However, it is not her responsibility to testify in court on her behalf because it may compromise her trust in the client for giving false testimony, interfering with the requirements of fidelity and responsibility. By testifying in court and following the conditions that Ms. Malfunction wants, Dr. Discord will have violated the principle of integrity because she will have gone against her professional ethics and standards (Koocher & Keith-Spiegel, 2016). The principle of fairness and justice will also be violated as she will not be telling the truth based on her client's evaluation. She will likely be unfair, unjust, and biased when she chooses to testify for Ms. Malfunction as her therapist.

APA Code of Ethics: Standards

There are also ten Standards that APA therapists should adhere to in practice. The standards include (1) Resolving Ethical Issues- which implies that etiquette must be the foundation of practice. (2) Competence requires the client to be referred to another therapist who can handle the client's needs in emergencies. (3) Human Relations- therapists are not expected to involve in multiple-role relations or harassing or discriminative (APA, 2016). (4) Privacy and Confidentiality- information and data about clients cannot be displayed publicly or discussed with other people or clients. (5) Advertising and Other Public Statements- all adverts done by professionals or on their behalf should be accurate since they are held accountable. (6) Record keeping and Fees- files of clients should be kept orderly, and fees should never be misrepresented. (7) Education and Training- Psychologists who educate or train others must provide effective training sessions that provide accurate and verifiable benefits, programs, and requirements (APA, 2017). (8) Research and Publication- professionals can conduct research and publish findings accurately after getting approval from relevant institutions. (9) Assessment- professionals should conduct assessments and report accurate outcomes using established procedures and standards. (10) Therapy- emphasizes the kind of relationships a therapist must NOT involve in during practice.

Statement of Culture and Social Orientations in the Case Study

Although there may be no cultural consideration for Ms. Discord and her patient, Melissa Malfunction's case, several elements of social considerations must be addressed. The issue of client confidentiality will be violated if Ms. Discord decides to testify on behalf of the client. Professional psychologists should ensure that they handle client information with high confidentiality and ethical and legal standards (Koocher & Keith-Spiegel, 2016). Suppose Ms. Discord chooses to testify for the client, and the case comes out negative. In that case, the client's trust regarding her competency and capability will decline, damaging the working relationship between the psychiatrist and the client. The client will feel that the therapist did not do much to help her and will be ashamed to deal with the patient going forward. The client may not also be willing to continue working with Ms. Discord if they lose the case hence compromising the professionalism of the therapist.

References

American Psychological Association. (2016).Ethical principles of psychologists and code of conduct.Retrieved from www.apa.org/ethics/code/

American Psychological Association. (2017).Guidelines for Providers of Psychological Services to Ethnic, Linguistic, and Culturally Diverse Populations.Retrieved fromhttp://www.apa.org/pi/oema/resources/policy/provider-guidelines.aspx

Koocher, G. P., & Keith-Spiegel, P. (2016).Ethics in psychology and the mental health professions: Standards and cases(4thed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.