Rehabilitation and Counseling Ethics

Vignette: John Smith and the Code of Ethics

Q1. What are the ethical considerations for the counselor in this case? Where applicable, refer to the Code of Ethics and identify relevant standards.

According to the Code of Professional Ethics for Rehabilitation Counselors (2016), cultural competency is a critical component of offering effective counseling to clients. Section D2 pertaining to cultural competency and diversity demands that counselors maintain a high degree of both knowledge and sensitivity. This means continuing to sharpen their skills regarding how to navigate cultural issues. The counselor in the vignette is still struggling with how to balance issues of race and sexuality in his assistance, as he considers if he is even competent to enough help the client. Offering services and advice that reflect the subjects’ unique cultural needs pertaining to both sexual orientation as well as her Latino heritage is critical. However, refusing services would at least convey the appearance of discrimination, and Smith should ideally seek out assistance from other counselors, not simply abandon the client to another provider.

Q2. How might you proceed in this situation?

According to Knapp & VandeCreek (2006), however, being overly sensitive and precious about cultural differences and an inability to understand them may actually be to the counselor’s and the client’s detriment. Even though Sylvia and Joan are experiencing difficulties and ostracism from their community because of their relationships, this is not necessarily so different from the other forms of discrimination pertaining to interracial, interreligious, or simply cross-cultural relationships that between people of diverse backgrounds might experience. In other words, the counselor can try to draw upon his database of past experiences. Smith as a counselor can offer support to the family and suggestions of how to bridge these divides, as well as outside resources when community ones may be lacking. He can also look outside the immediate sphere of support groups to find those which cater to gay people of color, or offer suggestions for groups which emphasize different facets of Sylvia’s identity, so she may gravitate to the one which best represents her interests.

In short, although Smith may have to seek out more continuing education and sensitivity awareness training, he should not necessarily proceed much differently than I might, which would include referrals for additional nursing and counseling support staff as needed, and connecting the patient and her family with supportive resources to help navigate both her disability and any psychological challenges her loss of mobility might be causing.

Q3. Discuss how useful you found the Code of Ethics in this particular situation with a more complete conceptual framework from which to view the client holistically and the diversity issues clients routinely bring to us.

Arredondo & Toporek (2004) have criticized the Code of Ethics and other codes which emphasize diversity awareness in a primarily consumer-based fashion. In other words, cultural competency is used as a way simply to build trust in the counselor, but not in a manner to genuinely help the client. In this particular instance, I would agree that the Code is not especially helpful. On one hand, it does stress the importance of continuing education in cultural issues. But since the counselor in the case study still did not feel confident in addressing his client’s needs, this did not really offer guidance in terms of weighing the benefits of proceeding versus suggesting another counselor or how to cope with intersectionality of client needs.