EMPOWERMENT THERAPY

Confidentiality

Confidentiality is an ethical belief that private information between two people, verbal written or otherwise, should not be shared, in whole or part, to any other third party (e.g. another individual, an organization, groups of people) without a client's written and signed consent, the consent form being clear and specific about the purpose, content, time length and exact recipients of any shared information. In legal terms, some types of confidential information are referred to as privileged communication, meaning that the confidentiality is so protected that even a court subpoena can not acquire such information. Perhaps the best example of this is the priveliged communication between an attorney and a client. Unfortunately, medical information, including mental health communication, is not considered privileged, but there are many safeguards to ensure that the highest degree of confidentiality between a therapist and a client indeed is a reality.

The identity of clients, email addresses, content of therapy conversations, professional opinions about the client, and other personal information contained in a clinical record are generally considered to be confidential information. Whether working with clients online, by telephone, or in face-to-face meetings, mental health clinicians consider protecting the confidentiality and privacy of clients the highest of moral duties. In fact, it is one of the most familiar Code of Ethics with the National Association of Social Workers (NASW). So, confidentiality is crucial to high quality and productive therapy. This is only common sense, how candid can a client be with his therapist if there is even a shadow of a worry that what he or she confides may reach another person? As your online therapist, your personal information is safeguarded the same way it would be for clients who are seen in an office setting.

It is important to understand, however, that every US State has exceptions and legal limitations to confidentiality and privacy. There are three basic exceptions to confidentiality:

1) licensed mental health clinicians are required by law to notify the proper authorities in cases of actual physical, emotional and/or sexual child abuse and/or child neglect; or

2) clinicians must breach confidentiality if clients make serious, believable threats to harm themselves and/or others (serious suicidal and/or homicidal threats)

3) in certain, unusual situations, such as divorce or child custody hearings or grievance board
actions, lawyers can subpoena information from clinicians. If this last condition were to occur, I will make every sincere and cooperative effort to get your written permission to release any portion of a record before such a release is made. In my thirty years of clinical practice, I have never had a record subpoenaed. Furthermore, there never has been a circumstance where I released, written or verbally, portions of client communication without careful written consent of the client. Great care is also taken to ensure that record keeping is always in the best interest of the client without risking the safety of others in society.

Internet Security and Privacy

As confidentiality and privacy are related to each other, so too, are they related to online security. Since the Internet poses some unique problems related to privacy my online therapy secures all emails using 40-bit encryption. As a result of these security measures, my Internet security consultants and I believe that communicating via the Internet is as safe as talking to me in an office setting. In addition to the measures I have taken, there are added steps that you can take to improve privacy and security on your end.

The single most important thing that can be done to improve security is for you to safeguard privacy on your end. As one example, you should not send email from your computer at work since an employer has a legal right to access and view all of your emails. Likewise, when using your home computer, please make sure you are the only person to have access to your email account, using a secure password. The selection of a password can be critical because some e-mail programs will bring up the entire password if only the first correct letter is typed in. You also may wish to copy e-mail transactions to a floppy disk or a CD, then store these disks in a safe place. This will, of course, allow you to delete the information from the hard drive of your computer. The stark reality concerning confidentiality is that it has never been foolproof, either online or in face-to-face settings. In real-world encounters, client confidentiality and privacy are violated fairly often, such as when a patient sees someone else's name on a file or computer screen or when a door is left ajar and a patient in the waiting room overhears another's name or presenting problems being discussed on the telephone. Even waiting rooms can be a source of confidentiality breaching, enabling waiting clients to see and identify other waiting clients. Anyone who followed the famed Menendez brothers murder trial in California know how the case was broken wide open through an issue of confidentiality the brothers had with their psychologist.

My Internet security consultants and I believe communicating through the Internet is as safe as communicating with someone in an office visit. However, you may still wonder about someone else intercepting our communication while it is in progress. While it is technically possible for a third party to intercept email correspondence, it is highly unlikely. In summation, although confidentiality can be violated, it isquite rare. The low risk will be further minimized if both client and therapist do their part in safeguarding confidentiality to the highest extent possible. I also believe that technology will soon find a way to make secure lines much more feasible and cost-effectivein the near future, the same type of online security employed by banks and credit card companies. To use this type of security encryption has too many disadvantages at the current time-namely, it is very expensive and is disruptive to the flow of communication.