Boundary Issues in Professional Practice:

Clinical, Ethical, Legal, and Risk Management Concerns 

 

 

Join us for a unique and much requested ethics CE event

     Exploring risks associated with sexual exploitation,                   boundary violatins, & false allegations in                                                       the therapy room

6 Ethics CEs

Early Bird Rates til SEPT. 24th!

(Continental breakfast, lunch, mid-morning/mid-afternoon refreshments are included)

   

 

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Description:

Mental health practitioners face a variety of risks in their work, including risks associated with sexual boundary violations and allegations of sexual misconduct.  Not only are there serious legal and ethical issues for practitioners who have become involved with a client or former client, but there are also risks for practitioners stemming from possible false allegations of sexual exploitation.  Recent criminal convictions of mental health practitioners have heightened concerns about these issues and highlighted the complexity, and at times ambiguity, inherent in clinical decisions involving boundaries.  A challenging aspect of professional practice is that an action that saves the therapy in one context, might destroy it in another.  Mistakes, misperceptions, misunderstandings, lapses in judgment, or even well intended but poorly timed interventions can all have serious clinical, ethical, and legal implications.  This workshop addresses these issues head-on and will provide mental health professionals with guidance on navigating the minefield of professional boundaries in today’s institutional, regulatory, and legal environment.  It will additionally provide a space for in-depth discussion of these challenging clinical, ethical, and legal issues. 

This day-long workshop is appropriate for mental health professionals from all theoretical backgrounds and levels of experience.

 

8:30 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. Registration and continental breakfast

9:00 a.m. - 12:15pm  Morning Panel Presentation and Discussion

Panelists:

• Andrea L. Daly, Attorney at Law & Risk Management Specialist
• Michael Delaney, Attorney at Law & Former Attorney General of NH
• Thomas Gutheil, MD, Professor of Psychiatry Harvard Medical School, Forensic Psychiatrist, & Risk Management Consultant 

Moderator:

Leisl M. Bryant, Ph.D., ABPP, Clinical and Forensic Psychologist

The morning panel presentation and discussion will look at specifics of NH law, the legal system, and ways in which allegations of serious boundary violations may be handled by the criminal justice system.  It will further explore from a clinical perspective both the behaviors or practices that can result in sexual exploitation of patients, as well as dynamics that may result in false allegations of sexual misconduct or other boundary violations.  Thoughtful risk management strategies for preventing such violations and for managing the associated clinical, ethical, and legal risks will be highlighted, with a focus on learning how to practice safely.

 

12:15 p.m. - 1:15 p.m. Lunch

Lunch is included for all participants.  If you have specific dietary restrictions, please contact the office and we will see if we can accommodate those needs.

 

1:15 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.   Afternoon Ethics Roundtable Discussions

(Facilitated by the NHPA Ethics Committee)

As with so many paradoxes in life, the same elements that establish the confidential sanctity of the therapy room can also create vulnerability for both the client and the clinician.  The afternoon roundtables are designed to provide a collegial space to share and process some of the joys, stresses, and fears mental health practitioners experience in their respective therapy offices.  They will further provide an opportunity to process some of the complex reactions evoked when a colleague is accused and convicted of sexual misconduct, and consider how this impacts ongoing clinical work.  In addition, they will focus on a collaborative exploration of how clinicians can apply and implement information gained from the morning panel discussion in their own practices so they can practice effective psychotherapy with clarity and informed confidence.

The Ethics Roundtable is a highly interactive workshop in which participants are encouraged to bring their own clinical vignettes or complex cases for discussion.  Open dialogue and exploration of various ethical dilemmas will occur, with a focus on helping participants tease out the clinical, legal, ethical, and risk management factors in each situation.  Together, participants will work to see the ethical implications of specific situations and choices, to scrutinize options for resolution, and to foster a tolerance for both ambiguity and the understanding that there may be no single ideal solution to the ethical challenge. 

 

Learning Objectives:

This workshop is designed to help participants:

1. Recognize risks associated with boundary violations and allegations of misconduct in professional practice.
2. Describe specifics of NH law, the legal system, and ways in which allegations of professional misconduct may be handled by the criminal justice system.
3. Recognize behaviors and practices that can result in sexual exploitation of patients and dynamics that may result in false allegations of sexual misconduct.
4. Describe specific risk management strategies for preventing boundary violations and managing the associated clinical, ethical, and legal risks of both boundary violations and false allegations of such.
5. Apply current APA Ethical Principles and Standards when considering potential boundary issues in professional practice.
6. Utilize a framework and/or process to distinguish ethical issues from professional practice (clinical and moral issues), risk management, or legal concerns.
7. Discuss, consult about, and review specific ethical dilemmas, share potential resolutions, and identify relevant risk management strategies.
8. Integrate models of ethical decision making in difficult cases. 

 

Morning Panelists:

Andrea L. Daly, J.D.

ANDREA L. DALY is the managing director of McLane Middleton, Professional Association’s Portsmouth office.  She is a litigation attorney whose practice focuses on representation of a range of individuals and entities in probate and fiduciary actions, including guardianship proceedings, will challenges, and fiduciary duty matters. She also has an expertise in risk management and licensing defense matters for a broad range of licensed professionals.  She has successfully defended a large number of psychotherapists, physicians, nurses, and dentists who are the subject of complaints filed with licensing boards. Andrea also has experience in a variety of personal injury and commercial litigation matters.  She is licensed in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Maine.

Michael Delaney, J.D.

MICHAEL A. DELANEY is a director at McLane Middleton, Professional Association in Manchester, NH.   His practice focuses on internal investigations and regulatory compliance issues for institutions, professionals and businesses.  Michael offers strategic counseling on government inquiries, regulatory compliance, fiduciary responsibilities and crisis management.  Michael regularly provides trainings and lectures on boundary awareness considerations, healthy boundary guidelines and reporting obligations, particularly for educational institutions and faculty.  Michael served as Attorney General of the State of New Hampshire from 2009–2013.  Michael is a former prosecutor and served as Chief of the State’s Homicide and Violent Crime Unit.  Michael is a 1991 Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the College of the Holy Cross and a 1994 graduate of the Georgetown  University Law Center.   He is admitted to practice before the state and federal courts in NH and MA, as well as the First Circuit Court of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court.  

Thomas Gutheil, M.D.

DR. GUTHEIL is Professor of Psychiatry and Co-Founder of the Program in Psychiatry and the Law, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School. He is the first Professor of Psychiatry in the history of Harvard Medical School to be board-certified in both general and forensic psychiatry.

Dr. Gutheil has served as special consultant to the American Bar Association, the Risk Management Foundation of the Harvard Medical Institutions, and the Department of Justice of the Federal Government of Canada. Recipient of every major award in the forensic field, as well as multiple teaching and writing awards, he is former president of the American Academy of Psychiatry and Law and former president of the International Academy of Law and Mental Health. He is author or co-author of over three hundred publications in the national and international professional literature, some of which have been translated into other languages, and many of which are used in almost every forensic training program in the country.

An internationally known authority, speaker, and consultant on medicolegal issues, malpractice, liability prevention, and risk management, Dr. Gutheil has served as a consulting expert or expert witness in forty-two states. Dr. Gutheil lives and works in the Boston area.

Moderator:

Leisl M. Bryant, Ph.D., ABPP

DR. BRYANT is a clinical and board certified forensic psychologist in private practice, who specializes in criminal and civil evaluations, violence risk assessments, mental health consultations, court involved family work, and expert testimony.   She has worked in a variety of settings (prisons, court clinics, psychiatric hospitals, outpatient treatment centers, private practice) and provides consultation to both public and private sector organizations regarding ethical practice and high risk cases.  Dr. Bryant is a Fellow with the American Academy of Forensic Psychology, and was formerly appointed to the Quality Improvement Committee for the Forensic Services Division of the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health.  In addition, she has been designated by the Massachusetts Assistant Commissioner for Forensic Mental Health as a Designated Forensic Psychologist and a Qualified Examiner.  She served for two years as President of the New Hampshire Psychological Association (NHPA) and has sat on the NHPA Ethics committee for nearly ten years.  In 2012, Dr. Bryant received the Margaret M. Riggs Award for Distinguished Contribution to psychology in the State of New Hampshire, and in 2013 she was awarded the Karl F. Heiser APA Presidential Award for Advocacy.   In addition to her private practice, she is currently the Executive Director for NHPA and has lectured widely on topics such as ethical complexity in professional practice, risk assessment, and forensic (court-involved) psychological practice.

 

Afternoon Ethics Roundtables

Facilitated by the NHPA Ethics Committee Members (click here for full bios)

 

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Additional Information

Cancellation policy: Refunds, minus a 35% cancellation fee, will be issued for all cancellations received two weeks prior to the start of the course (on or before October 14, 2016).  No refunds or vouchers will be made thereafter.  No shows are not refunded. 

Inclement weather policy: In the event that NHPA has to postpone or reschedule the training conference, a voucher equivalent to the full price amount of what was paid for the conference, will be issued.  If NHPA has to cancel the event with no postponement or reschedule date, a full refund will be given.  Please be sure that NHPA has your up-to-date contact information (email/text/phone).  Any weather cancellations or postponements will be made no later than three hours prior to an event.  Should you have questions or concerns about whether an event may be changed due to weather, please check the NHPA website or call our office at (603) 415-0451. 

Full attendance is required to obtain CEs.  No partial credit will be given.

 

 

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