Case Study
Dr. Eisenhower is a licensed clinical psychologist employed by a community mental health agency in western Massachusetts. While she is visiting relatives in Oklahoma, a tornado strikes the small town where she is staying, killing five and leaving dozens homeless. Many in the town are traumatized, overwhelming the town's two physicians. Although she has no training in crisis intervention, she offers her services to the doctors. Happy to have the help, physicians provide Dr. Eisenhower with a small office in their clinic, where she provides psychological support to numbers of townspeople for several days until the emergency passes.
Most professional organizations have a set of ethical principles or guidelines that guide the conduct of a crisis worker. From the essential concept of "do no harm" to more involved practices, such as obtaining informed consent, the ethical considerations that you may take for granted in normal practice are often amplified in disasters, crises, or traumas.
Crisis workers must also be aware of legal issues that may arise in the event of a disaster, crisis, or trauma. For example, when responding to crises or traumas involving minors, crisis workers are bound by mandated reporting laws. Every country has such laws, requiring mental health professionals and school personnel (among others) to report crises and traumas such as child abuse, to state departments of children, youth, and families.
In this Assignment, you will explain ethical considerations and legal issues related to responding to a disaster, crisis, or trauma described in one of two case studies.
To prepare for this Assignment: Write 2 pages
• Review the APA Ethics Code and reflect on the standards that apply to crisis response and intervention.
• Reflect on which APA ethical principles relate to crisis response and intervention.
• Think about the ethical considerations and legal issues related to school violence.
• Think about the ethical considerations and/or legal issues related to the case study you chose. Then, consider how you might address those considerations and/or issues as a crisis worker.