People Avoid Therapy Due to Confidentiality Concerns

Many Florida residents could benefit from seeing a psychologist. Psychologists help people deal with mental issues. A lot of people – even celebrities – struggle with anxiety, depression and other issues that make it hard for them to happily live their daily lives.

However, many people delay scheduling an appointment with a therapist or never do schedule an appointment when they know they would benefit from treatment.  There is a stigma surrounding mental illness.

There is also the fear of change. Many people would rather stay stuck in a rut and depressed rather than work on their lives and face challenges. They think of their unhappiness as normal and don’t want to change due to the commitment involved. Change also requires hard work. Not everyone is willing to put in the work, even if it means changing their lives for the better.

Patients expect that their discussions with therapists will be confidential and for good reason. Ethically, a psychologist cannot share the patients’ information with others

Besides these situations, all documentation about a client must be kept confidential. A psychologist who does not abide by confidentiality laws is acting in an unethical manner. They can be reported to the state board and face punishment such as license suspension. In severe cases, their license could be revoked.

A breach of confidentiality is considered an invasion of privacy. Patients should feel as if their personal information is kept safe from others. If they discover that a psychologist disclosed their personal information to a third party without their consent, and this disclosure caused psychological or emotional harm, then they could file a malpractice lawsuit and possibly recover compensation for damages.

As a psychologist, you may wonder how long this doctor-patient confidentiality lasts. The short answer is forever. Even if a patient stops seeing a psychologist or dies, the confidentiality continues on without an end date. Therefore, to protect your psychology license, the best course of action is to never reveal anything about a patient to others. Never share medical records with others unless the situation falls into one of the exceptions listed above.

Keep Your License With Help From a Tampa Psychologist Licensing Lawyer

Psychologists need to be aware of actions that can cause them to lose their license. Telling others about confidential patient information is one thing that can lead to license suspension and other penalties.

Unethical behavior can pose serious emotional harm to patients. Protect your license with help from Tampa psychologist licensing lawyer David P. Rankin. Schedule a consultation with our office today. Call (813) 968-6633 or fill out the online form to get started.

Resource:

psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/when-call-therapist/202010/why-are-people-still-reluctant-go-therapy