what to say and to whom

I was perusing through the May/June 2012 issue of the ASCA School Counselor magazine that I receive as part of my membership.  This issue focused specifically on ethical and legal questions that many counselors come across during the course of their time in the profession.  The first half of the issue was written as a Q and A with questions grouped into themes, such as: reporting suspected abuse/neglect, confidentiality/need to know, case notes and subpoenas, etc.  While I am never fully satisfied with the answers that are given in the ASCA magazines--they always seem to me to just hover on the surface and never get to the meat of the question or offer specific courses of action, I did still find the Q/A section on Confidentiality/Need to Know very relevant for me.

Sharing with teachers and administration information a counselor is privy to through the course of their work with individual students is always a sticky subject.  How much to share?  At what point is the information "need to know" and when is it more important to maintain strict confidentiality to which we are ethically bound?  A couple of suggestions and guidelines seemed relevant to me, as I consider starting out in a counseling office, perhaps as the only school counselor in the building.  There is a concern that administration and teachers will expect the counselor to break confidentiality even when the counselor thinks the information does not comply with the "need to know" guideline.  Refusing to give the information would be considered insubordination, but breaking confidentiality when it is neither in the students' academic interests or their well-being would be to lessen the value of the relationship that the counselor establishes with the student.  The writers suggest to "early on establish a trusting relationship with your teachers and administrators by letting them know you will immediately involve them in information affecting students' safety and well-being," (Stone, Hermann & Williams, 2012) in effect setting up an expectation that you will share about students' matters only under those circumstances.  They also suggested deflecting the teachers' request for information by asking the teacher to fill you in on the student's behavior that they are observing, and supporting their concerns without giving away information about the student that you do not deem "need to know."

So, I think for me, it is important to keep the "need to know" rule in mind, which basically "requires school counselors reveal sensitive information only when the recipients of the information have a need to know and is in a position to benefit the student if they have the shared information" (Stone, Hermann & Williams, 2012).  I think that last bit is crucial, "is in a position to benefit the student," meaning that if a student shared about a matter that  an administrator or a teacher will not be helpful with, then there is no reason to share that information with those personnel until their involvement becomes essential in ensuring student's safety, educational reasons, or well-being.

Source:
Stone, C., Hermann, M. A. & Williams, R. (2012, 06/07). Asked & Answered. School Counselor,   
49(5), 6-13.

Interviewing tomorrow.  Wish me luck! (I tell myself, as I am the only reader of this blog :) )