Training Title:
Ethics Online

Clock Hours: 1

Objectives:
At the completion of this course, participants will be able to: • Identify different kinds of security arrangements that may be required for providing online therapy using different devices • Specify contents of informed consent required for protecting both client and practitioner online • List different areas of knowledge that a competent practitioner of online therapy may need • Define “digital footprint” and list ways of managing it

Description:
The purpose of this course is to provide an introduction to some of the ethical issues and considerations when providing professional services online. These include respecting one’s right to privacy, confidentiality and self-determination; informed consent; managing multiple relationships or managing one’s “digital footprint” and becoming a competent practitioner of online therapy or telepsychology/telehealth. What practitioners need to know about securing online records is quite different from that required for paper records. There are limits that potential clients need to be informed of – and limits that practitioners need to set in dealing with the expanded access of personal information available on the internet. Even managing the information that is online about oneself, the practitioner, is an important part of maintaining one’s professionalism. We will explore guidelines being developed by various professional associations to help practitioners navigate this new and, sometimes, quite confusing area. Keywords: Telepsychology, telehealth,e-therapy, online therapy, email therapy, ethics, guidelines, internet security, encryption, passwords, informed consent, staff competence, “digital footprint”, multiple relationships, boundary, boundaries, Genie Skypek

Approval Bodies