Discussion : Counseling the Terminally Ill

Professional counselors face immense challenges when working with terminally ill patients. Deciding how to offer support is challenging with this population group. Providing treatment for terminally ill clients may illicit personal beliefs and values.

As a counselor, you must not only consider the client's needs, but also assess how providing treatment aligns with the guidelines proposed by the codes of ethics and legal mandates.

A counselor's professional judgment is rooted in personal beliefs and values; however, it is also molded by the foundational definitions of ethics learned in the counseling profession. Learning how to integrate professional codes of ethics into your personal moral compass is a critical skill for practicing ethical counseling.

For this Discussion, you have been asked to counsel a terminally ill client who is considering hastening his own death. Consider what personal values this triggers in you. Investigate what the ethical codes say about this. Think about your potential course of action.

An explanation of your personal values that may be triggered by this case. Then, explain one potential ethical challenge related to counseling terminally ill patients. Finally, explain the potential course of action you may take in this case. Use the codes of ethics to support this action.

Be sure to use the Learning Resources and the current literature to support your response.

Propose different challenges that your colleague did not discuss related to counseling terminally ill patients. Then, provide an alternate course of action for this case.

Counseling The Terminally Ill

Personal Values

In the event I had to counselor an individual who is terminally ill and is complotting taking their own life, it would create personal challenges within myself. I have a strong belief that we all have a plan in life, that even though for this individual at some point they know their life will be cut shorter than expected, we have a purpose in life that we all must serve.

It would be hard for me to put my personal beliefs and values aside and gave this individual hope and will to live when they know there's an end soon.

Ethical Challenge Related

I think with counseling a terminally ill patient the biggest ethical dilemma is that of confidentiality. This is due to the information that is shared with us that can be harmful or hurtful to themselves and to others. Herlihy & Corey (2015) stated as a counselor we have to determine how we will balance interventions if these problems arise or breath in confidentiality in order to help this individual.

Course of Action

Of course ACA Code of Ethics (2014) section of informed consent is the first course of action when faced with a issue of confidentiality. On the other hand I also believe clients sometimes may not tell a counselor something if they know that the information they share will be shared in order to prevent their plans from going through.

For me personal I have to be motivated by someone or something, more or so someone that has been in my very own shoes. An course of action I believe can be potential to save a life is showing them what others with terminally illness have accomplished. That even though they believe they have this ticking count down in life, they still have the power to enrich lives around them.

Reference

Herlihy, B., & Corey, G. (2015). ACA ethical standards casebook (7th ed.). Alexandria, VA: American Counseling Association. ?Chapter 8, "Working With Clients Who May Harm Themselves" (pp. 231-237)

American Counseling Association (ACA). (2014). 2014 ACA code of ethics [White Paper].