Ethical Decision Making Multicultural Considerations Free Essay Example

The best ethical decision-making model that will be suitable for this case is one by Forester-Miller and Davis (1996). The model will help the counsellor on whether to disclose the discussion they had with Kendra or to keep it secret. The model has five core principles which are essential since they provide counselors with a guide to help them deal with the ethical dilemma that are presented on daily basics Forester-Miller and Davis (1996).

Kendra is a 15-year-old female, young person, who is looking for advising in the interest of her mom Lashawna.

Lashawna truly needs answers and guidance to help with Kendra, and so she can understand her previous behavior. Her mom is worried about a certain behaviors Kendra is displaying at home. The issue raised a concerned when Kendra chose to flee from home which made her mom have worried about her well – being. The mother stated that Kendra has begun to harass her sister, behavioral outburst, and a negative frame of mind.

Sometimes she would throw things around the house or at her sister, slam doors around the home, and yell. Every one of these segments raised awareness to Kendra’s mom and counsellor that something must be affecting Kendra as a person and she also needs help before it’s too late.

When going to the underlying session, the instructor made the Kendra and mother mindful of the inform consent and the limitations with keeping everything confidential. Kendra appeared to have no longing of needing to collaborate with her mom or the counselor, and it seemed as though she was determined to go against her mother wishes and be rebellious to receiving help.

The counsellor was aware that Kendra is suppressing a lot of things that may be causing her to react this way; therefore the counsellor knew that a one- on- one session was necessary to get Kendra communicating.

She trusted to the advocate that the best way to alleviation from her torment was by cutting herself with items, for example, blades, shakes, and razors. She confessed to doing other unsafe acts to herself, yet it didn’t soothe the sort of agony like cutting. When advising the client, it was apparent that there were a few worries for the benefit of the advocate. Kendra additionally referenced that her mom was a vital factor of the motivation behind why she is behaving in a way. The counsellor thoroughly comprehends and can distinguish the issues in this circumstance.

Kendra is recent behaviors are an indicator that a few issues are going on at home or with Kendra that needs attention and fast before it goes too far. During the counseling section Kendra never shard her thoughts with anyone, she only listened to her mother and the counselor, which is sometimes a sign that the client needs to speak alone. Once Kendra started to trust the counsellor and began to open up to the counsellor about cutting herself, a bond between the two was created at that moment. However, the counsellor informed Kendra of the inform consent and how far confidentially goes between the two. Kendra still chose to confine in the counsellor with this information.

The counsellor is faced with an ethical dilemma, as a counsellor, it’s a rule to follow your ACA code of Ethics and make moral decisions, as well as being within the legal lines. The counsellor had to decide between breaking her trust with Kendra or sharing the information with Lashawn. The counsellor should share the info with Lashawn because Kendra is a minor; therefore the parent and or the legal guardian will serve as the client as well. However, Kendra could hurt herself due to her enjoying the feeling of pain. If the counsellor chose to keep Kendra secret and she harms herself or others, the counselor would have to face the law, and that would also be going against the ACA code of ethics with confidentially and reporting when is causing harm to self or others.

As indicated by the ACA Code of Ethics, the counsellor was made mindful of all the good gauges that might be explicit to the circumstance with Kendra. The Code of Ethics is intended for guides to utilize if there are moral choices to be made. At the point when Kendra was hesitant among the nearness of her mom, the guide chose to change from family directing to independent advising to see if this would improve Kendra’s level of openness. (ACA,2014 A.6.d). The advocate must have regard for Confidentiality. The guide ought to make certain to utilize moral legitimization and must consider breaking privacy due to her age and the mischief she is doing to herself. (ACA,2014 B.1.c). Learning of Kendra’s mystery of cutting herself, the advisor should check to see whether there are predictable damage and lawful necessities disregarded. Disclosure is required to secure a client and must be uncovered to consistently. The advocate should utilize the moral of standards when deciding. (ACA,2014 B.2.a). Self-rule, Justice, Fidelity Nonmaleficence, and Beneficence should be analyzed by the advisor to check on how these standards could apply to Kendra’s circumstance.

The next step is to examine the problem in all of its dimensions. Interventions through the elements of counseling moral principles come in handy at this point. Therefore, autonomy non-malfeasance and fidelity apply to help deal with the ethical dilemma for the counselor to disclose or keep Kendra’s secret. Regarding autonomy, the counselor should encourage Kendra to be autonomous by acting on her values or decisions, which would mean to keep her secret. However, there have to be considerations as to whether the independent decision will affect others and if Kendra is in the right state of mind to make the autonomous decision. Further, non-malfeasance will ensure that Kendra will be in a position to reduce harm as much as possible by whatever actions she considers worth making in her situation. Concerning fidelity, the counselor has a responsibility to build trust with Kendra by fulfilling any obligations as required, being loyal, faithful and honoring commitments. Beneficence ensures that welfare is to the most significant advantage of the clients; the counselor should always try to prevent any harm done toward the client. Consequently, Kendra will open up on any issue that would make it easier to find a solution for the ethical dilemma.

At this point, the counselor thinks about as many courses of action as possible that can be applied in Kendra’s case. The two major decisions for this case are 1) Going against Kendra’s wish and disclosing her secret to her mother and other parties, or 2) Keeping Kendra’s secret. Either of the two decisions will be accompanied by other interventions such as a) giving Kendra different tools to use to help work on her angry or help her find another way that she enjoys to help release her stress to keep her from wanting to self-harm. b) Recommending and enrolling her in group therapy sessions, c) School-based programs, d) art therapy, and d) Continuing with the counseling sessions until the client overcomes her issue.

Also, inform Kendra of the seriousness of the issue and maybe explain how Getting professional help may help. tell her about services such as psychiatrist; who may offer psychopharmacological treatment for possible underlying symptoms such as depression or psychosis may be an option if needed, but it’s always up to her depending on which gateway she decides to choose in her time of angry.

Each of the possible courses for action has effects which might aggravate the situation or help in solving it. Therefore, the counselor has to consider what each action portends before settling on the most appropriate one. If the first significant option is found which is to disclose Kendra’s secret to Lashawna, it is possible that there may be a loss of trust between the client and the counselor. However, if Kendra can be convinced that the disclosure will be for her own good, she might still maintain her trust in the counselor. As for the second primary option which is to keep the secret, Kendra may continue harming herself and possibly others. The counsellor could work the Kendra on learning better communication skills, so she can try to express herself in an understanding less harmful way.

The best course of action in this scenario is for the counselor to review the code of Ethics as well as the legal codes to better assist with the next step. The counselor should discuss all treatment plans and see which one could work best for Kendra, as well as consult with other professionals in the field to ensure that existing laws and professional standards guide every decision, and action. The counsellor handled the case in a reasonably decent way; the counselor was open, understanding, and professional with Kendra and the situation.

When meeting with Kendra, she has to explain that since she is harming herself and might harm others, it is vital to reveal her secret to her mother or professionals such as medical practitioners. Giving her autonomy that the move will help her have peace with her mother as well as her sister and also to stop harming herself while reducing her chances of injuring others. The separate meeting with Lashawna should then follow to prepare her for the following news about her daughter so that she responds appropriately intending to helping her daughter recover from her problem. It is also recommended that after disclosing the secret, another meeting can be held with the counselor, Kendra, and her mother to chart a way forward that involves the input of everyone and suggestions for what interventions to pursue which everyone agrees .

In conclusion, different professionals may consider various courses of action even for the same situation; however, and ethical dilemmas must be solved in such a way that professionalism is maintained. In the case where there is an ethical dilemma of revealing Kendra’s secret or not, the seven-step model does well to arrive at the best course of action to ensure that the client gets the help she needs and to bring to an end the negative consequences of her anger at her mum. ACA Code of Ethics, existing laws and consultations with relevant professionals as applied in the model make it easier to decide on the best course of action in this situation.