While teachers, parents and administrators commonly refer students to the school psychologist, many times, especially in high school some of these referrals are self-referrals. If a student is having issues and they decide to seek help, should we be held responsible to tell their parents? Currently there do not seem to be any case law decisions that address this specific question. In some states minors are given the right to access certain types of treatments without parental notice but usually only for conditions considered medical in nature like drug abuse or venereal disease.
Becky is a 16-year-old student at the local high school where you work. She asks to speak with you, the school psychologist, about some issues. You decide to sit down with Becky and have a pre-counseling screening session. In the session she tells you that she is having some issues at home and she wants to learn some methods on how to deal with them. She is not in any kind of harm but she needs someone to talk to about these issues. She asks that her parents not be notified because it might put extra strain on their relationship. You determine that Becky could probably benefit from spending some time talking with you, but you know contacting her parents will compromise that. You work in a district with unclear rules for this sort of issue. What are your ethical responsibilities to Becky? to her parents?
Becky is a 16-year-old student at the local high school where you work. She asks to speak with you, the school psychologist, about some issues. You decide to sit down with Becky and have a pre-counseling screening session. In the session she tells you that she is having some issues at home and she wants to learn some methods on how to deal with them. She is not in any kind of harm but she needs someone to talk to about these issues. She asks that her parents not be notified because it might put extra strain on their relationship. You determine that Becky could probably benefit from spending some time talking with you, but you know contacting her parents will compromise that. You work in a district with unclear rules for this sort of issue. What are your ethical responsibilities to Becky? to her parents?
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I would continue talking to Becky without getting permission from her parents. She is old enough to decide whether or not she wants to talk to me and expressly asked that her parents not be notified. My responsibility is to Becky first and foremost. I would be better able to help her by accepting that she didn't want her parents involved and I would not want to risk harming the therapeutic relationship. Since the district has unclear rules about this type of situation, I would do what I felt was in Becky's best interest. Trying to obtain parental consent against her wishes, especially when she just wants to discuss ways to better deal with her parents will not help her. I would also check to see what the law in my state was just in case and inform Becky if the law was not on my side. But, personally, I believe that high school students should have autonomy to decide for themselves if they want counseling and my obligation is to the student first.
According to Jacob & Hartshorne (2007) we would need ”parent consent for school actions that may result in a significant intrusion on personal or family privacy beyond what might be expected in the course of ordinary classroom and school activities.” We as school psychologists would see a minor student (Becky) without parental consent for one or two precounseling screening sessions. By doing so we would make sure to find out that Becky is not in danger. Also, during these screening sessions we should tell Becky that parental consent is needed for further counseling sessions, offer to contact her parents on her behalf, or offer to meet up with both Becky and her parents. Also, if would be a great idea for us to consult our state laws to make sure whether minors can in fact seek independent treatment or not.
In the first pre-counseling screening session my first ethical responsibility to Becky would be to tell her that although she feels telling her parents would put extra strain on their relationship, they have to know in order to continue counseling sessions. I would offer to have a session with both Becky and her parents and ask them to support Becky in her decision to seek counseling.
In the perfect world I would have no problems in agreeing with Becky to not tell her parents of the counseling sessions. If all she wants to do is talk about some coping skills, I don’t see the harm in this. I would encourage it and take it as a sign of maturity. Unfortunately this is not the perfect world and not only do we have to question the secrecy but also wonder about what is really going on at home that she wishes not to tell her parents. Being a teenager is difficult. Maybe telling her parents could possibly make her home life even more stressful. I feel that any minor student should be able to engage in counseling sessions and have the request to not inform their parents granted. Only in cases of threat to self or others should this request be revoked.
Although it is against Becky's wishes, her parents must be aware of the counseling before it begins. During the pre-counseling session I would speak to Becky about informing her parents and why it is necessary, even though she feels it may make her life at home worse than its current state. I would ask Becky if she would like to have a session with her parents, so they can sit down together and discuss what is taking place within the home. If she agrees, I would ask the parents if they would like to join a session with Becky and myself, to gain more insight on what is occurring and explain what future sessions will be like.
On the other hand, I do agree with what Tahina said, involving Becky's parents after she specifically stated she did not want them to be notified may add more stress to her life and make the situation worse. I also agree that if she would just like to attend some counseling sessions just to speak about a few things than she should be able to do this without her parents being aware. She is 16 years old, and I believe at this age she is able to make the decision of seeking professional help from a counselor in her high school. If the situation becomes more serious and it seems as if Becky is seriously distraught and depressed, and/ or seems to be a threat to herself or others then yes, without a doubt her parents should be notified at this point.
I agree with Tahina. Teenager's in high school should be able to seek some guidance and help, within certain boundaries of course without their parents having to be informed. In this particular case, Becky is old enough to know what she needs and wants. If she feels that it's in her own best interest to speak in secrecy, without her parents knowing, then this should be respected and granted. However, the law does state that in regards to minors, parents have the right to be informed about what is going on. Like Tjasa stated as well, parental consent is required for any type of services or action to ensure that they are aware of what's going on as well as to prevent anyone from being held liable if any consequences do arise from those services or actions. Therefore, in this situation, even though I would want to help Becky out as much as possible, I would have to let her know that her parents do need to be aware of what's going on. I would explain to her that they do not need to know the nature of the conversations and any specifics, but that I do need their consent in order to continue the counseling relatioship. Once that is obtained, I would definitaly continue my sessions with Becky to explore the problem and get a better understanding as to whar the underlying factors are. Once rapport is established and a relationship is formed, I would talk to Becky to see if we could get a session with her parents as well to better resolve the situations or issues that may be bothering her.
School psychologists need to consult their state laws to determine whether minors are given rights to seek treatment independent of parental notice or consent in their state, and under what conditions (Corrao & Melton, 1988). I would allow a student a maximum of two pre-counseling screening sessions without parental consent. I would do this to make sure that the student is not in any danger. During these two sessions I would let the student know that parental consent must be obtained and the parameters of confidentiality if consent was obtained.
I'm not sure what the law is in New Jersey, but if it requires the school psychologist to inform the parent, then that is what must be done. However, if I'm not mistaken, we do not have to inform the parent about what is being said in the sessions, unless it falls under specific conditions, such as the child threatening to harm herself. i would tell her that although I am forced to tell her parents about counseling, that I am not oligated to tell them what we discuss, with a few exceptions, such as self harm.
I agree with what Laura and Tahina mention about wanting to help Becky without parental notice and building rapport to increase the effectiveness of counseling for her. Unfortunetly though, she is still a minor and her parents do have a legal right to know what is going on. Counseling sessions are considered to go beyond ordinary classroom environments, therefore,I would explain in our first session what I have to do legally. I would also be sure to tell her that unless there is suspicion she is in danger or a danger to others I do not need to inform her parents of what we discuss in conseling. I would continue to see Becky for another two or three times to get more information and to give her options on how her, myself, or both of us together could approach her parents. If in the worst case scenario she does not wish to continue with getting parental consent I would be sure to provide her with additional resources where she could look for support on coping with her parents such as websites, books, community services etc.
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