Ethics in Therapy

Psychological practitioners, regardless if they see clients in person or work with clients through electronic technologies (i.e., Online Therapy or Phone Therapy) must adhere to ethical guidelines and principles. This means that as a registered psychologist in NSW, Australia and a member of international psychological societies, I maintain professional, ethical standards for all my clients.

Online Therapy and Phone Therapy: Mountain Lake

It is important that my clients experience me as a competent psychologist, who conducts herself with the utmost integrity. This means that I do not discriminate against clients on the grounds of cultural, racial, religious, and/or sexual orientations. I do not conduct therapy with individuals that I feel need a more intensive level of treatment than I can provide nor do I continue to work with individuals who I feel are not benefiting from my treatment approach. In such cases, I make recommendations for other possible treatment options that they can pursue.

Your consent for any service I provide will be sought prior to the service commencing and as it progresses.

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Confidentiality in Therapy

The need for confidentiality in the psychotherapeutic relationship is crucial for therapy to be successful. Thus, at no time will any of your therapy be discussed or documentation be forwarded to others without your consent. Also, I maintain all physical documentation in a locked cabinet and all electronic documentation is kept on a desktop computer that only I access. These records are generally maintained for a minimum of seven years since our last contact.

It is important that you are aware that I can disclose client information where there is a legal obligation to do so. Also, if I feel that you may be a threat to yourself or others, I am ethically required to report this to the authorities only as a means to avert harm. This includes suspicion of child abuse.

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Confidentiality with Online Therapy and Phone Therapy

While I feel very strongly that Online Therapy and Phone Therapy can be beneficial for many individuals, it runs a hightened risk of confidentiality being breached. It is important to remember that online therapy and phone therapy are limited by the security of the technology. Especially with online therapy, limitations include system breakdown, authorised (e.g., internet service provider system administrator) and unauthorised persons potentially viewing messages, and the potential access of deleted messages where back-up records have been made.

To assist with maintaining confidentiality, the contact form on this page is transfered via secure SSL connection. All email correspondence I send you is also via secure SSL connection. However, you are responsible for securing your emails to me. Alternatively, you can always send them safely through the contact form.

Further, I request that our initial consultation is over the telephone. I call you, so you do not incur any cost for this service.

Importantly, if you decide to have Online Therapy or Phone Therapy, it is your responsibility to make sure you have the necessary privacy you need. This means if you are at home, at work, or in a public place, you need to be aware of who may be present and thus invade your privacy during your therapy session.

As with clients in my private practice, at no time will any of your therapy be discussed or documentation be forwarded to others without your consent. It is important that you are aware that I can disclose client information where there is a legal obligation to do so. Also, if I feel that you may be a threat to yourself or others, I am required to report your identity to the authorities only as a means to avert harm. If you are communicating anonymously, then I will make efforts to find out your identity and alert authorities only as a means to avert harm.

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Cynthia Kunze
Registered Psychologist
www.PsyShrink.com